According to the Norwegian Helsinki Committee, it is unclear why the Office of the Prosecutor wants this information. According to the “law on NGOs”, the task of checking NGOs, belongs to the Ministry of Justice. The Prosecutor’s Office can only be involved if there is information about a criminal act.
International NGO’s in focus
Only NGOs of the international origin (as for instance, Human Rights Watch or Transparency International), or NGOs supported by international donors received letters.
The Norwegian Helsinki Committee is concerned that the requests from the Prosecutor Offices is another example of pressure on civil society groups, directed in particular against NGOs that cooperate with foreign or international institutions.
Several of the organizations that received letters, are among the participants of a Strategic Conference on human rights in the Russian Federation, hosted by the Norwegian Helsinki Committee and Amnesty International, Norway, in Oslo from the 20 to 21 of September.
Norwegian Authority in Moscow
The Norwegian Prime Minister Jens Stoltenberg and the Minister of Foreign Affairs Jonas Gahr Støre are currently visiting the Russian Federation. The Norwegian Helsinki Committee hopes that their conversations with Russian officials will address the worsening situation for human rights defenders in the Russian Federation.
the Russian Federation is a signatory to the UN Declaration on Human Rights
Defenders, which states that (Article 2):
1. Each State has a prime responsibility and duty to protect, promote and implement all human rights and fundamental freedoms, inter alia by adopting such steps as may be necessary to create all conditions necessary in the social, economic, political as well as other fields and the legal guarantees required to ensure that all persons under its jurisdiction, individually and in association with others, are able to enjoy all these rights and freedoms in practice.
The Norwegian Helsinki Committee urges Russian authorities to live up to President Medvedev’s pledge to fight “legal nihilism”, and honor Russia’s international political and legal obligation to support and defend human rights defenders.
NHC action in Oslo
The Norwegian Helsinki Committee, Amnesty International and the Human Rights House Foundation staged a silent protest on 27 April 2010 outside the hotel where President Dimitri Medvedev has been staying during his visit to Norway.
Medvedev’s visit coincided with Oslo Freedom Forum, an international conference for human rights defenders. Hence, among the protesters were high profile Russian human rights activists like the former Chess master Garri Kasparov and the Rafto laureate Lidia Yusupova.
The aim of the demonstration was to draw public attention of the many grave h
uman rights concerns in the Russian Federation.
Allegations of torture, suspicious deaths in police custody, and not the least the many cases of people ‘disappearing’ after being arrested by Russian security forces, are very rarely investigated. Russian human rights defenders, environmental activists and lawyers are regularly attacked.
HRH Oslo, based on the Norwegian Helsinki Committee and HRH Oslo information.
Related links:
Russia: human rights defender sentenced for the second time
Trial coming up for two suspects in Moscow double murder
