Category: Human Rights

Contagious Solidarity: As Russia Faces Growing COVID-19 Crisis, Independent Activists Gear Up To Help

Health, Epidemics, Substance Abuse, Human Rights, Nonprofits, Activists, NGO's, Politics, Government, Protests, Elections
Map of Russia and Russian Flag adapted from images at state.gov

(Article text ©2020 RFE/RL, Inc., Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty – rferl.org – Lyubov Chizhova, Aleksandr Litoi, Robert Coalson – ST. PETERSBURG, Russia, March 25, 2020 – article text also appeared at rferl.org/a/contagious-solidarity-as-russia-faces-growing-covid-19-crisis-independent-activists-gear-up-to-help/30509363.html) Aleksandra Krylenkova is a human rights activist with a long track record. In recent months, she has been campaigning in support of the defendants in the so-called Network […]

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RUSSIALINK: “Russia Overturns First Jehovah’s Witnesses Convictions” – Moscow Times

Corruption, Law, Police, Courts, Crime, Human Rights, Religion
File Photos of Law Books and Gavel, adapted from image at fjc.gov

(Moscow Times – themoscowtimes.com – March 26, 2020) A Russian court has overturned the convictions of six Jehovah’s Witnesses accused of extremism, marking the first instance of the group’s worshippers having their verdicts overturned in Russia, the group announced Wednesday. The court in Penza, some 550 kilometers southeast of Moscow, handed five adherents suspended two-year prison sentences in December. The […]

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Fewer than Half of Russians Value Competitive Elections or Freedom of Religion or Speech, Pew Research Reports

Human Rights, Politics, Government, Protests, Elections, Religion
Screenshot of Video at https://twitter.com/CurrentTimeTv/status/1171888101989539842 showing man punching another man in the stomach at Russian polling place while second man was looking down at mobile device

(Window on Eurasia – Paul Goble) Staunton – Only 40 percent of Russians value competitive elections and only 23 percent consider it important that opposition parties can operate freely, according to a conducted by Pew Research (pewresearch.org/global/2020/02/27/democratic-rights-popular-globally-but-commitment-to-them-not-always-strong/ in newtimes.ru/articles/detail/191401?fcc). The Russian figures in this regard are significantly lower than in most of the other countries surveyed, but what is particularly […]

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Putin Calls For Review Of Case Of Opposition Activist Kotov

Corruption, Law, Police, Courts, Crime, Human Rights, Politics, Government, Protests, Elections
File Photos of Law Books and Gavel, adapted from image at fjc.gov

(Article text ©2020 RFE/RL, Inc., Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty – rferl.org – Jan. 25, 2020 – article text also appeared at rferl.org/a/putin-calls-for-review-of-case-of-opposition-activist-kotov/30396635.html) Russian President Vladimir Putin has ordered the Prosecutor-General’s Office to review the legality of the sentencing of an opposition activist imprisoned for repeatedly taking part in unauthorized rallies, the Kremlin said. Konstantin Kotov was sentenced to four years […]

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JRL NEWSWATCH: “Memory wipe: Vladimir Putin wants to rehabilitate Stalin’s pact with Hitler; Russia’s latest disinformation campaign is aimed at Poland and the EU” – The Economist

Europe, EU, History, Soviet Union, Human Rights, Military, Poland, Politics, Government, Protests, Elections
File Photo of Benito Mussolini and Adolf Hitler Riding in Convertible

“… Antipathy between Poland and Russia is ancient. But … Putin has fanned the flames by launching one of the biggest propaganda offensives of his 20-year hold on power …. This time he tried to upend the entire history of Soviet aggression towards eastern Europe. A key moment … August 1939, when Hitler and Stalin signed a non-aggression pact and […]

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RUSSIALINK: “Putin instructs State Duma to draft proposals on national register of mass graves of victims of political repressions” – Interfax

History, Soviet Union, Human Rights, Politics, Government, Protests, Elections
Aerial View of Kremlin and Environs

MOSCOW. Dec 10 (Interfax) – Russian President Vladimir Putin has backed the idea of improving the laws regarding the mass graves of political repressions’ victims and commemorating them with a museum at the Butovo firing range just outside Moscow. “As for the order of work on and with the mass graves, let us ask State Duma deputies to do the […]

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Show Trials in the Information Age

Corruption, Law, Police, Courts, Crime, Human Rights, Politics, Government, Protests, Elections
Aerial View of Kremlin and Environs

(Kennan Institute – wilsoncenter.org/program/kennan-institute – Maxim Trudolyubov – Dec. 9, 2019) Maxim Trudolyubov is a Senior Fellow at the Kennan Institute and the Editor-at-Large of Vedomosti, an independent Russian daily. Mr. Trudolyubov was the editorial page editor of Vedomosti between 2003 and 2015. He has been a contributing opinion writer for The International New York Times since the fall of […]

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Far From Home: Russia Weighs Law To Allow Convicts To Do Time Closer To Their Families

Corruption, Law, Police, Courts, Crime, Human Rights
Russia Regions Map

(Article text ©2019 RFE/RL, Inc., Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty – rferl.org – Karina Merkuryeva and Robert Coalson – Dec. 1, 2019 – article text also appeared at rferl.org/a/far-from-home-russia-weighs-law-to-allow-convicts-to-do-time-closer-to-their-families/30301657.html) Zulaikhat Nurmagomedova has only seen her fiancé once in the last two years after he was sentenced to 12 years in prison on drug charges he denies and sent 700 kilometers east […]

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Maria Butina’s New Job? Maybe Advocating For Other Russians Held In U.S. Prisons

Corruption, Law, Police, Courts, Crime, Human Rights, Spies, Spy Allegations, United States, U.S.-Russian Relations
Stylized Russian and U.S. Flags, 200, 1807-2007

(Article text ©2019 RFE/RL, Inc., Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty – rferl.org – Mike Eckel – Nov. 19, 2019 – article text also appeared at rferl.org/a/maria-butina-s-new-job-russians-u-s-prisons/30281107.html) During and after the 15-month prison sentence she served after admitting to working as an unregistered foreign agent, Maria Butina complained about both her sentence — “this is absolutely absurd” — and her treatment in […]

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RUSSIALINK: “Russia’s Domestic Violence Problem Is ‘Exaggerated,’ Justice Ministry Says” – Moscow Times

Corruption, Law, Police, Courts, Crime, Human Rights, Politics, Government, Protests, Elections
File Photos of Law Books and Gavel, adapted from image at fjc.gov

(Moscow Times – themoscowtimes.com – Nov. 19, 2019) The Russian government doesn’t see domestic violence as a “serious problem” and believes that its scale is exaggerated, the country’s Justice Ministry said in an official response to Europe’s human rights court obtained by the Kommersant business daily. The European Court of Human Rights (ECHR) this summer had asked Russia to respond […]

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RUSSIALINK: “Russians Increasingly Value Free Speech, Civil Rights – Poll” – Moscow Times

Human Rights, Politics, Government, Protests, Elections
Russia Map

(Moscow Times – themoscowtimes.com – Nov. 20, 2019) The share of Russians who view free speech, the right to a fair trial and other civil rights as important freedoms has increased by double digits in two years, according to the independent Levada Center pollster. Experts and sociologists link the double-digit growth in the importance of civil rights issues among Russians […]

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RUSSIALINK: “Supreme Court decision on movement For Human Rights shows authorities are not ready for criticism, compromise – HRW” – Interfax

Corruption, Law, Police, Courts, Crime, Human Rights, Nonprofits, Activists, NGO's, Politics, Government, Protests, Elections
File Photos of Law Books and Gavel, adapted from image at fjc.gov

MOSCOW. Nov 1 (Interfax) – The Russian Supreme Court’s decision on the liquidation of the movement For Human Rights led by Lev Ponomaryov indicates the flaws of the Russian judicial system and the position of the Russian authorities, which are not ready to take criticism and achieve compromises, Tanya Lokshina, associate director for Human Rights Watch’s Europe and Central Asia […]

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RUSSIALINK: “Returning the Names event begins near Solovetsky Stone in Moscow” – Interfax

History, Soviet Union, Human Rights
File Photo of Soviet Gulag at Belbaltlag, adapted from image at nps.gov

MOSCOW. Oct 29 (Interfax) – The names of the victims of repressions during the Great Terror under Stalin have begun to be read as part of the Returning the Names event in front of the Solovetsky Stone in Moscow. “Today, we have gathered in front of the Solovetsky Stone as a symbol of sorrow, memory, and repentance for the 13th […]

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RUSSIALINK: “On This Day Victims of Political Repressions Are Honored; The day was declared by political prisoners in 1974” – Moscow Times

History, Soviet Union, Human Rights, Politics, Government, Protests, Elections
File Photo of Soviet Gulag at Belbaltlag, adapted from image at nps.gov

(Moscow Times – themoscowtimes.com – October 30, 2019) On Oct. 30, 1974 a group of dissidents imprisoned in Soviet labor camps in Mordovia and Perm declared the date the Day of the Political Prisoners in the U.S.S.R. Led by Kronid Lyubarsky, the prisoners put forward a list of demands, which included recognition of political prisoner status; separation of political prisoners […]

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RUSSIALINK: “Thirty-four Russians subjected to administrative liability for insulting state symbols – Prosecutor General’s Office” – Interfax

Corruption, Law, Police, Courts, Crime, Human Rights, Media, Internet, Social Media, Television, Politics, Government, Protests, Elections
File Image of Laptop Computer, Tables and Mobile Device, adapted from image at energy.gov

MOSCOW. Oct 24 (Interfax) – Courts have found 34 Russians guilty of administrative violations for insulting state symbols, Russian Prosecutor General’s Office spokesman Alexander Kurennoi said. “The police made 56 protocols of administrative violations over a period of nine months. Courts found 34 people guilty, 13 cases were closed, nine cases are pending trial,” Kurennoi said on the video channel […]

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Putin Personally Responsible for All Repression in Russia, Krasheninnikov Says

Human Rights, Politics, Government, Protests, Elections
Vladimir Putin file photo with VOA logo; screen shot from video still

(Paul Goble – Window on Eurasia – Staunton, October 8, 2019) Vladimir Putin is personally responsible for all the repressive acts his system carries out because over the last two decades he not only appointed all those officials who are carrying them out but also has clearly signaled the direction they follow and could change things overnight if only he […]

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JRL NEWSWATCH: “Want to Insult Putin? It Will Cost You $462; Russia’s new lèse majesté law helps turn the president into a laughingstock” – Bloomberg/ Leonid Bershidsky

Human Rights, Media, Internet, Social Media, Television, Politics, Government, Protests, Elections
File Image of Laptop Computer, Tables and Mobile Device, adapted from image at energy.gov

“Six months ago, Russia adopted a law making it an administrative offense to insult the government on the internet. … and in a majority of the cases where a court imposed a fine[] Russians have been punished for insulting … Putin. Instead of sheltering Putin and other top officials from harsh and vulgar criticism, however, the use of the Russian […]

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Sharon Tennison: “Russia Redux: the Gulag Museum”

History, Soviet Union, Human Rights, Politics, Government, Protests, Elections
File Photo of Gulag Victim Ivan Burylov

Subject: Russia Redux: the Gulag Museum Date: Sat, 21 Sep 2019 From: Sharon Tennison <sharon@ccisf.org> [Text with photos: ccisf.org/russia-redux-the-gulag-museum/] Our September 2019 mega-delegation of American citizens were dazzled by the beauty of current day Russia and also horrified to learn what today’s grandparents and great-grandparents endured in the Gulag work across the USSR. It is reported that over 17,000,000 persons, […]

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RUSSIALINK: “Domestic Violence Affects 1 in 3 Russians, Poll Says” – Moscow Times

Corruption, Law, Police, Courts, Crime, Human Rights, Women
Map of Russia and Russian Flag adapted from images at state.gov

(Moscow Times – themoscowtimes.com – September 13, 2019) Nearly one-third of Russia’s population has come face-to-face with domestic violence in their own families or among acquaintances, according to an independent survey published Friday. Russia decriminalized certain forms of domestic violence in 2017, a decision that top lawmakers have said was a mistake two years later. Activists say the absence of […]

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JRL NEWSWATCH: “Russia Turns Trampled Grass Into Weapon Against Opponents” – Bloomberg/ Jake Rudnitsky, Ilya Arkhipov

Corruption, Law, Police, Courts, Crime, Human Rights, JRL NewsBlog, Politics, Government, Protests, Elections, Regions, Cities, Municipalities
File Photos of Law Books and Gavel, adapted from image at fjc.gov

“A state-owned organization responsible for maintaining Moscow’s roads is seeking compensation from protest leaders for grass trampled during a recent unsanctioned protest, part of a multi-pronged assault on the opposition …. [A]uthorities raided at least 39 offices in Navalny’s political network [across the country], seeking evidence for a money laundering investigation … against his Anti-Corruption Foundation, his ally Leonid Volkov […]

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RUSSIALINK NEWSWATCH: “Hand It Over: Court Awards Moscow City Transport 1.2 Million Rubles in Suit Against Opposition Politicians” – Kommersant/ Maria Litvinova

Corruption, Law, Police, Courts, Crime, Human Rights, JRL NewsBlog, Politics, Government, Protests, Elections
File Photos of Law Books and Gavel, adapted from image at fjc.gov

“Alexei Navalny, Lyubov Sobol, Ivan Zhdanov, Yulia Galyamina, Ilya Yashin, Alexander Solovyov, Oleg Stepanov, and Vladimir Milov must jointly pay Moscow City Transport (Mosgortrans) 1.2 million rubles [approx. $18,000] for … traffic stoppages during the ‘unauthorized’ protest rally on July 27 in Moscow. … [according to a] ruling … by the Koptevo District Court on [a] lawsuit brought by Moscow […]

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A New Hope? Five Takeaways From The Elections In Moscow And Elsewhere

Corruption, Law, Police, Courts, Crime, Human Rights, Politics, Government, Protests, Elections, Regions, Cities, Municipalities
Russia Regions Map

(Article text ©2019 RFE/RL, Inc., Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty – rferl.org – Mike Eckel – Sept. 9, 2019 – article text also appeared at rferl.org/a/five-takeaways-moscow-elections-russia/30155264.html) The opposition is up. The ruling party is down. Incumbent governors are in. The Kremlin is worried. Aleksei Navalny’s Smart Voting strategy is … smart? Despite Russian elections still being largely a stage-managed process, the […]

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JRL NEWSWATCH: “Russian Opposition Puts Putin Under Pressure in Moscow Election; The opposition alliance didn’t fare well elsewhere in Russia, but its leaders hail Moscow showing as a success” – Wall Street Journal/ Georgi Kantchev

Corruption, Law, Police, Courts, Crime, Human Rights, JRL NewsBlog, Politics, Government, Protests, Elections
Aerial View of Kremlin and Environs

“Candidates backed by Russia’s opposition won nearly half the seats up for grabs in Moscow’s city elections … building on a wave of protests … that exposed some of the frailties … in Putin ‘s closely controlled political machine, but failed to make significant inroads in local races elsewhere …. Sunday’s vote came after a tumultuous summer that saw a […]

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JRL NEWSWATCH: “A Summer of Unprecedented Brutality in Moscow” – The New Yorker/ Masha Gessen

Corruption, Law, Police, Courts, Crime, Human Rights, JRL NewsBlog, Politics, Government, Protests, Elections
Aerial View of Kremlin and Environs

“… Moscow [recently] has seen an unprecedented number of large, confrontational protests … met with unprecedented brutality …. [While] the Kremlin has been cracking down on dissent for seven years … arrests continue to multiply, prison terms grow longer … brutality becomes more brutal. Once in a while, the cruelty … comes into sharper focus. … prosecutors tried to strip […]

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JRL NEWSWATCH: “Russians go to polls after summer of protests” – AFP

Corruption, Law, Police, Courts, Crime, Human Rights, JRL NewsBlog, Politics, Government, Protests, Elections
Arm and Torso of Person in Brown Sweater Placing Paper Ballot into Ballot Box

“[… A] hugely controversial campaign in Moscow that degenerated into the biggest police crackdown on protesters in nearly a decade. … [Local election] results … will be keenly watched ahead of [2021] parliamentary elections … and help shape Russia’s political future as … Putin’s regime enters [its] third decade …. [T]ens of thousands have taken part in Moscow protests demanding […]

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JRL NEWSWATCH: “Russia’s Opposition, Barred From Moscow Vote, Looks Elsewhere for Gains; Putin’s opponents hope a wave of dissent will carry them past a crackdown and their own discord” – Wall Street Journal/ Thomas Grove, Ann M. Simmons

Corruption, Law, Police, Courts, Crime, Human Rights, JRL NewsBlog, Politics, Government, Protests, Elections, Regions, Cities, Municipalities
Map of Russia and Russian Flag adapted from images at state.gov

“Targeted by police … barred from the ballot in Moscow’s city elections, Russia’s opposition is trying to gain a political foothold in other municipal races … as it rides a rising wave of dissent against … Putin. But to convert a surge in support into a coherent political challenge to … Putin, opposition leaders must first overcome a crackdown against […]

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Proposed Law Would Help Russians Hold Siloviki Accountable

Corruption, Law, Police, Courts, Crime, Human Rights, Politics, Government, Protests, Elections
File Photo of Moscow Protest with Riot Police

(Paul Goble – Window on Eurasia – Staunton, August 24, 2019) Many Russians believe that the anonymity policemen and Russian Guards feel in the uniforms they wear when moving against protesters gives the siloviki the feeling that no one will be able to identify the individual officers responsible and hold them accountable. Indeed, they suspect that is one of the […]

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RUSSIALINK: “Russia to decide on Magnitsky family’s compensation within 3 months – Justice Ministry” – Interfax

Assassinations, Beatings, Threats, Corruption, Law, Police, Courts, Crime, Europe, EU, Human Rights
European Court of Human Rights Building file photo

MOSCOW. Aug 27 (Interfax) – The Russian Justice Ministry is studying the European Court of Human Rights (ECHR)’s judgment granting 34,000 euros in compensation to the family of Hermitage Capital auditor Sergei Magnitsky; a decision on appealing this judgement will be made within three months. “The judgment has yet to take effect, therefore, the Russian Justice Ministry will decide on […]

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JRL NEWSWATCH: “More than 600 Russian scholars worldwide demand end to ‘rioting’ case against Moscow protesters” – Meduza

Corruption, Law, Police, Courts, Crime, Human Rights, JRL NewsBlog, Politics, Government, Protests, Elections
File Photos of Law Books and Gavel, adapted from image at fjc.gov

“Russian scholars … in a range of countries … Russia included, have published a statement demanding that charges of mass rioting against Moscow election protesters be dropped. … ‘We demand that those who currently direct [Russia’s] governing apparatus cease their abuses of power, stop their political repressions, and begin adhering rigorously to the Constitution of the Russian Federation.’ … signatories […]

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RUSSIALINK: “A Student Arrest Puts Elite Moscow University to the Test” – Moscow Times

Corruption, Law, Police, Courts, Crime, Human Rights, Politics, Government, Protests, Elections
File Photo of Kremlin Tower, St. Basil's, Red Square at Night

The Higher School of Economics, a bastion of free thinking since the 1990s, has become caught up in the opposition protest movement. (Moscow Times – themoscowtimes.com – Pjotr Sauer – August 16, 2019) A chill ran down Artyom Tyurin’s spine when he heard the news that his friend and fellow student Yegor Zhukov had been hauled from his bed in […]

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‘Bums, Freaks, And Gypsies’: How Pro-Kremlin Media Depict The Moscow Protesters

Corruption, Law, Police, Courts, Crime, Human Rights, Media, Internet, Social Media, Television, Politics, Government, Protests, Elections
Aerial View of Kremlin and Environs

(Article text ©2019 RFE/RL, Inc., Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty – rferl.org – Todd Prince – Aug. 14, 2019 – article text also appeared at rferl.org/a/how-pro-kremlin-media-depicts-the-moscow-protesters/30109908.html) More than 50,000 people joined a rally for fair elections in Moscow on August 10, biting back concerns about arrests and police beatings to show up for what turned out to be the largest anti-government […]

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RUSSIALINK: “What to Expect From Moscow Protests This Saturday” – Moscow Times

Corruption, Law, Police, Courts, Crime, Human Rights, Politics, Government, Protests, Elections, Regions, Cities, Municipalities
Aerial View of Kremlin and Environs

(Moscow Times – themoscowtimes.com – August 8, 2019) Moscow’s opposition plans to press ahead with more protests this Saturday even after election officials closed all avenues for several Kremlin critics to run for office in the Russian capital next month. The ongoing standoff between Russia’s opposition and its leadership that has taken place in recent weeks has drawn international attention […]

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JRL NEWSWATCH: “What we know so far about Moscow’s custody challenge against two parents who were seen with their toddler at an election protest” – Meduza

Children, Adoptions, Orphans, Human Rights, JRL NewsBlog, Politics, Government, Protests, Elections
File Photos of Law Books and Gavel, adapted from image at fjc.gov

“Moscow prosecutors are pursuing a custody challenge against a couple who brought their one-year-old child to a … protest for fair elections. … [T]he city’s Prosecutorial Office claimed that ‘during the course of the protest, the parents gave their young child to a third party, which put the boy’s health and life in danger and caused him physical and emotional […]

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JRL NEWSWATCH: “Russia’s Levada and VTsIOM polls dramatically disagree on sentiment over the Moscow protests” – bne Intellinews/ Ben Aris

Corruption, Law, Police, Courts, Crime, Human Rights, Politics, Government, Protests, Elections
Kremlin and River

“… results of a poll by independent pollster the Levada Center violently disagreed with a poll by the state-owned pollster, the Russian Public Opinion Research Centre (VTsIOM), on the reaction to the weekend protests over the upcoming city council elections. Levada found that 37% of Muscovite supported the protests, 27% viewed them negatively and 30% were neutral. … a VTsIOM […]

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JRL NEWSWATCH: “Violent Crackdowns on Russian Opposition Reveal Dangerous Policy Shift” – Moscow Times/ Sam Greene

Human Rights, JRL NewsBlog, Politics, Government, Protests, Elections
Aerial View of Kremlin and Environs

“The level of confrontation between the Kremlin and the Russian opposition has increased, and along with it the scale and severity of the law-enforcement response to protests.” “There has been a significant and sustained shift in the Kremlin’s relationship with the Russian opposition[] and … the Russian public [generally] …. Authorities across the country have issued ever fewer permits for […]

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RUSSIALINK: “Russian Cop Jailed for Ignoring Murdered Domestic Violence Victim’s Pleas” – Moscow Times

Corruption, Law, Police, Courts, Crime, Human Rights, Regions, Cities, Municipalities
Map of Russia and Russian Flag adapted from images at state.gov

(Moscow Times – themoscowtimes.com – July 12, 2019) A Russian police officer has been convicted of negligence after telling a domestic violence victim to “come back when you’re dead” minutes before she was murdered. Police inspector Natalya Bashkatova received a domestic abuse call in the city of Oryol in late 2016 but refused to investigate the victim’s claims, telling her, […]

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Crime, Torture and Punishment in a Moscow Suburb; Viktor Lukyan, sentenced to six years for murder, had little chance of a fair trial under a system that presumes defendants are guilty

Corruption, Law, Police, Courts, Crime, Human Rights, Politics, Government, Protests, Elections
Map of Russia and Russian Flag adapted from images at state.gov

(Moscow Times – themoscowtimes.com – Evan Gershkovich – July 9, 2019) [themoscowtimes.com/2019/07/09/crime-torture-and-punishment-in-a-moscow-suburb-a66314] Lukyan in a Domodedovo courtroom cage in February. He spent more a year in pre-trial detention. Evan Gershkovich / MT On a Wednesday morning late last May in Barybino, a drab town in the Moscow suburbs, a passerby spotted a body wrapped in black garbage bags floating in […]

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JRL NEWSWATCH: “Russia’s Resilient Legal Powerhouse: The Procuracy Enters the 21st Century” – Kennan Institute/ William E. Pomeranz

Corruption, Law, Police, Courts, Crime, Human Rights, Media, Internet, Social Media, Television, Politics, Government, Protests, Elections
Satellite Dishes

“On March 18, 2019, President Vladimir Putin signed into law two new restrictions on freedom of speech. One law levied administrative fines on so-called ‘fake news’ while the other imposed penalties for information deemed insulting to human dignity, public morality, or otherwise expressing disrespect to state symbols and institutions.[1] The above laws lacked precise standards, thereby requiring interpretation. What was […]

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Reports of Putin Fathering Twins Test Free Speech in Russia

Human Rights, Media, Internet, Social Media, Television, Politics, Government, Protests, Elections
Vladimir Putin

(Voice of America – voanews.com – Jamie Dettmer – May 29, 2019) Normally the delivery of twins is a cause for celebration – and when the head of government is one of the parents and the other is an aspiring politician it opens up the possibility for cute photo-opportunities. Not so in Russia under the command of Vladimir Putin, it […]

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RUSSIALINK: “Russia has much work to do to build democracy ‘on ruins of socialism’ – Zorkin” – Interfax

Corruption, Law, Police, Courts, Crime, Human Rights, Politics, Government, Protests, Elections
Russian Constitutional Court file photo

ST. PETERSBURG. May 16 (Interfax) – Russia will need to make a “breakthrough into a lawful future” soon, Constitutional Court Chairman Valery Zorkin said. “Russia still has a lot to do on the path of affirming the legal democratic foundations of state and public life. A crucial factor in their formation is the equality of everyone before the law and […]

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JRL NEWSWATCH: “As Russia Celebrates Hitler’s Defeat, Stalin’s Ghost Is Haunting Putin” – The Daily Beast/ Anna Nemtsova

History, Soviet Union, Human Rights, JRL NewsBlog, Politics, Government, Protests, Elections
File Photo of Benito Mussolini and Adolf Hitler Riding in Convertible

“Russians have been encouraged to see Hitler as a tyrant, but Stalin as their defender. Now some wish Stalin were still around.” “… most of Europe dates the beginning of the war to 1939, partly because of a nonaggression pact that … Stalin made with Hitler that opened the way for him to invade Poland. That was followed by the […]

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JRL NEWSWATCH VIDEO: “New Russian Documentary Brings the Horrors of the Gulag to the YouTube Generation; Yuri Dud’s documentary has garnered millions of views in days. From Global Voices.” – Transitions Online/ Alexey Kovalev

Chemical Weapons, Biological Weapons, ChemBio, History, Soviet Union, Human Rights, Politics, Government, Protests, Elections, Regions, Cities, Municipalities
File Photo of Kolyma Mountains Satellite Image, adapted from image at noaa.gov

“… former sports reporter … [Yuri Dud] runs his own YouTube interview show …. generat[ing] millions of views … a serious competitor even to state-owned TV. … [T]he subject of Dud’s latest show shocked his … 5 million [subscribers] and the general public: a two-hour documentary about the Kolyma region, in Russia’s far northeast … almost synonymous with Stalin-era repressions. […]

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OPPORTUNITY: Kimberly O’Haver: “Human Rights Initiative (HRI) Seeking Consultant”

Human Rights, Jobs, Opportunities, Calls for Papers
File Photo of Empty Chair and Desk with Computer, adapted from image at osha.gov

Subject: Human Rights Initiative (HRI) Seeking Consultant Date: Thu, 2 May 2019 From: Kimberly O’Haver <kimberly.ohaver@opensocietyfoundations.org> The Human Rights Initiative (HRI), a program of the Open Society Foundations, is seeking a consultant to evaluate its Youth Action Fund initiative, which has been implemented by HRI since 2014. The assessment is to be finalized by August 31st and its primary purpose […]

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Sarah Lindemann-Komarova: “Russiagate, There are No Winners”

Belarus, History, Soviet Union, Human Rights, Military, United States, U.S.-Russian Relations
File Photo of American Soldier Meeting Soviet Soldiers in Berlin in 1945, adapted from image at army.mil

Subject: Russiagate, There are No Winners Date: Thu, 25 Apr 2019 From: Sarah Lindemann-Komarova <echosiberia@gmail.com> Russiagate, There are No Winners Sarah Lindemann-Komarova [Sarah Lindemann-Komarova has been a community development activist in Siberia since 1992. Currently she is focusing on research and writing about civil society in Russia.] medium.com/@ECHOSiberia/russiagate-there-are-no-winners-4de2dd97acbc Baby boomers, Gen X, Millennials, Gen Z, we are now into the […]

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Record Numbers of Russians Have Positive View of Stalin, Levada Center Finds

History, Soviet Union, Human Rights, Politics, Government, Protests, Elections
File Photo of Soviet Gulag at Belbaltlag, adapted from image at nps.gov

(Paul Goble – Window on Eurasia – Staunton, April 16, 2019) On the centenary of the establishment of the GULAG that he did so much to expand (kasparov.ru/material.php?id=5CB56680ECD4C), the Levada Center polling agency released the results of a survey showing 70 percent of Russians have a positive attitude toward the Soviet dictator, the highest share ever (rbc.ru/politics/16/04/2019/5cb0bb979a794780a4592d0c). Not surprisingly, this […]

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RUSSIALINK: “Calvey to stay under house arrest till mid-summer” – Interfax

Corruption, Law, Police, Courts, Crime, Economy, Business, Investment, Trade, Human Rights, United States, U.S.-Russian Relations
Kremlin and River

MOSCOW. April 12 (Interfax) – The Basmanny District Court in Moscow has extended the period of house arrest of Baring Vostok investment fund founder and senior partner Michael Calvey, who is charged with fraud, until July 14, an Interfax correspondent reported from the courtroom. “The court will grant the request of investigators. The court will also extend the period of […]

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RUSSIALINK: “Most Russians Prefer Council of Europe Membership – Polls” – Moscow Times

Europe, EU, Human Rights
File Photo of Council of Europe Headquarters Building with Flags in Front

(Moscow Times – themoscowtimes.com – April 8, 2019) A majority of Russians support their country’s membership in the Council of Europe (CoE) human rights watchdog, according to two surveys published Monday. Russia was suspended from the CoE parliamentary assembly in 2014 in protest of Moscow’s behavior toward Ukraine and the annexation of Crimea. In response, Russia halted annual payments to […]

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Putin Tells Prosecutors To Protect Rights Of Business Owners

Corruption, Law, Police, Courts, Crime, Economy, Business, Investment, Trade, Human Rights, Sanctions
Men Sitting Around Long Oval Boardroom Table, File Photo of FIFA Officials Meeting with Vladmir Putin

(Article text ©2019 RFE/RL, Inc., Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty – rferl.org – March 19, 2019 – article text also appeared at rferl.org/a/putin-tells-prosecutors-to-protect-rights-of-business-owners/29830693.html) President Vladimir Putin has urged Russian prosecutors to protect the rights of businesspeople “with a view to improving the business climate.” Speaking to a gathering of prosecutors in Moscow on March 19, Putin said that a “more effective […]

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JRL NEWSWATCH: “U.S. investor jailed by Russia tells Washington to keep distance: prison monitor” – Reuters

Corruption, Law, Police, Courts, Crime, Economy, Business, Investment, Trade, Human Rights, Politics, Government, Protests, Elections, United States, U.S.-Russian Relations
File Photo of U.S. Embassy Moscow, with Russian Foreign Ministry Building in Distance

“The detention … of Michael Calvey, founder of the Baring Vostok private equity group, has strained U.S.-Russia ties and stoked talk of a possible U.S. boycott of an annual economic forum in June attended by … Putin. Calvey was detained along with three other executives from Baring Vostok after investigators accused them of stealing 2.5 billion roubles ($38.09 million), a […]

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RUSSIALINK: “Prosecutors must ensure proper prison conditions – Putin” – Interfax

Corruption, Law, Police, Courts, Crime, Human Rights, Politics, Government, Protests, Elections
Vladimir Putin file photo with VOA logo; screen shot from video still

MOSCOW. March 19 (Interfax) – Prosecutors must step up monitoring of conditions in jails and prisons, President Vladimir Putin said. “The penal system must remain under the constant scrutiny of prosecutors,” Putin said at a meeting with senior prosecution officials on Tuesday. “Together with colleagues from the [Federal Penitentiary Service] FSIN, regional human rights commissioners and representatives from human rights […]

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