As the case of Igor Sutyagin (picture) makes its way through the appeal process, he needs your help. On April 7, 2004 the Moscow City Court sentenced Igor Sutyagin, a researcher from the U.S. and Canada Institute in Moscow, to 15 year in hard labor. He is accused in treason and espionage. (06-AUG-04)

The prosecution of Igor Sutyagin sets a very dangerous precedent. It shows that in today´s the Russian Federation the security services can bring an accusation of espionage against anyone. The Russian judicial system is too weak to assure a defendant a fair trial under the pressure from the FSB.

The Supreme Court set the date for hearings on the appeal, filed by the defense. It will consider the case on August 17.

As the case of Igor Sutyagin makes its way through the appeal process, he needs your help. If it isn´t indifferent to you, please, do what you can – subscribe to the mailing list, sign the letter to the Russian president, support Igor´s family, tell your colleagues about Igor´s case, and write to share your opinion.

Persecution of scientists for their research should not be allowed to continue.

LETTER OF SUPPORT

President of the Russian Federation
The Kremlin
Moscow
the Russian Federation
 
Dear Mr. President,

We are writing to you to express our deep concern over recent cases in which the Russian security service has brought espionage charges against researchers and scientists. These cases are setting the very dangerous precedent that in the Russian Federation legitimate scientific and policy analysis may be considered a crime.

The most recent court case that of Dr. Igor Sutyagin, a researcher at the U.S. and Canada Institute who was sentenced to fifteen years in prison on April 7, 2004, is especially troubling. There are a number of serious questions about the fairness of the proceedings in Dr. Sutyagin´s case. The hearings were closed, denying the society the opportunity to make an informed judgment about merits of the charges brought against Dr. Sutyagin. The information that has been made publicly available strongly indicates both that the charges are unwarranted and that there is no convincing evidence of wrongdoing, for it has never been demonstrated that Dr. Sutyagin was involved in anything but a legitimate analysis of publicly available information. The irregularities in the process, which have been documented by the human rights community, suggest Dr. Sutyagin was not given the proper chance to defend himself in a fair trial.

We understand that Russia´s judicial system gives Dr. Sutyagin an opportunity to appeal his conviction and present the case for his innocence. However, this is not enough. We believe that Russia´s leaders should make it clear to government agencies and to the Russian society, as well as to the international community, that the Russian Federation will not tolerate the harassment of researchers and scientists. Instead of fearing prosecution, researchers and scientists should be valued for their role in the pursuit of knowledge and in securing for the Russian Federation the place it deserves in the community of nations.

Sincerely,
…

You can subscribe to the mailing list, write a letter to express your sympathy to Igor´s family and learn more on the official web site, supporting Igor Sutyagin in this difficult situation.

http://www.sutyagin.org/eng/

 

Photo: www.hro.org