September 29, 2005

The Observatory for the Protection of Human Rights Defenders, a joint programme of the World Organisation Against Torture (OMCT) and the International Federation for Human Rights (FIDH), has received new information and requests your urgent intervention in the following situation in the Russian Federation.

New Information:

The Observatory has been informed by the Russian-Chechen Friendship Society (RCFS) of a new criminal case targeting the RCFS and in particular its managing director, Mr. Stanislav Dmitrievsky.

According to the information received, on September 23, 2005, Mr. Stanislav Dmitrievsky was summoned for interrogation at the Main Investigatory Department of the Ministry of the Interior of Nizhny Novgorod region. He was informed that a new criminal case against the RCFS had been initiated on September 2, 2005, pursuant to a Federal Tax Inspection office's audit into the organisation's accounts on tax evasion charges for an important amount (Article 199 part 1 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation).

The Observatory recalls that on June 16, 2005, the RCFS received an order from the Tax Inspection office in Nizhny Novgorod, pursuant to an audit undertaken by the office. It ordered the RCFS to pay 1'000'561 roubles (over 35,000 USD) for non-payment of income tax and fines for the grants received in 2002, 2003 and 2004. It was issued under Article 100 of the Tax Code of the Russian Federation and referred to grants from the European Commission and the National Endowment for Democracy Foundation (whose budget mainly comes from the United States Department of State) arguing these sponsoring organisations have not been included in the list of donors from which subsidies are not taxable (the list was drawn up by the Government of the Russian Federation and adopted in Resolution N. 923 on 24 December 2002 - see Observatory Annual Report 2004). On June 28, 2005, RCFS appealed against this decision.

On August 15, 2005, the RCFS received another order (Resolution N. 25) from the Federal Tax Inspection office that confirmed the order to pay the same amount of taxes and fines. In this order, the deputy chief of tax inspection, Mr. Trifonov, admitted that the European Commission is included in the list of donors from which grants are not taxable. However, he further claimed that the RCFS had used this subsidy for "publishing and diffusing publications", an activity that is not included in article 251 of the Tax Code of the Russian Federation. According to this article, tax free grants must be dedicated to "education, arts, culture and environmental defence fields". The resolution also states that the bilateral agreement between the Russian Federation and the USA signed on April 14, 1992, does not concern grants awarded by the National Endowment for Democracy. The RCFS has lodged another appeal against this decision.

Despite the pending appeal before the arbitration court, on August 26, 2005, the Tax Inspection office ordered a compulsory withdrawal of funds from the RCFS's bank account since, despite the pending appeal filed against Resolution N. 25 (See Observatory Press Release dated 16 September 2005). The next hearing is scheduled to be held on October 25, 2005.

The Observatory is seriously concerned about the judicial harassment against Mr. Stanislav Dmitrievsky and the Russian-Chechen Friendship Society, which visibly aims at hindering their human rights activities. The Observatory is deeply concerned about their physical and psychological integrity and recalls that RCFS members have been continuously victims of threats and acts of harassment.

Background information:

Since the beginning of 2005, the RCFS has been subjected to several judicial proceedings :

• On January 11, 2005, the prosecutor's office of Nizhny Novgorod Region initiated a case against the Pravozaschita (Human Rights Defence) newspaper, a joint publication by RCFS and the Nizhny Novgorod Society for Human Rights (NNSHR), as chief editor of the newspaper, following the publication of statements by Messrs. Akhmed Zakaev and Aslan Maskhadov, two Chechen separatist leaders, calling for a peaceful end to the Russian - Chechen conflict. Several members of the RCFS Information Centre were summoned and interrogated in relation to the investigation. Some of them, of Chechen origin, subsequently decided to quit their jobs at the Information Centre of the RCFS (see Observatory Open Letters to President Putin, dated 26 January and 20 June 2005).
• On September 2, 2005, Mr. Stanislav Dmitrievsky was officially charged by the prosecutor's office in relation to this case. Mr. Dmitrievsky is accused of having committed a crime under part 1 of Article 282 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation referring to "actions aimed at inciting hatred or hostility and at disparagement of either an individual or a group of people according to their gender, race, nationality, background, religious beliefs as well as belonging to any social group that are committed publicly or through mass media outlets". This offence is liable to up to two years imprisonment.
• The RCFS is also subjected to judicial harassment by the Ministry of Justice. Indeed, pursuant to an audit carried out by the Main Department at the Federal Registration Service of the Ministry of Justice of Nizhny Novgorod Region, a complaint was lodged by the ministry against the RCFS on April 8, 2005, before the Court of Nizhny Novgorod Region, aiming at closing down the organisation on the basis of the allegation that RCFS had failed to provide some documents to the Ministry. This measure was taken whereas the material required had already been provided to the Tax Inspection office which was then also auditing into the organisation's accounts(See Open Letter of the Observatory, dated 20 June 2005). . On September 21, 2005, the hearing in the case was postponed to October 26, 2005, upon request of the Ministry of Justice.
  
  

Moreover, RCFS members have been subjected to many threats and acts of violence:

• One of its volunteers, Mr. Aslan Sheripovich Davletukaev, was tortured and killed in January 2004 (See Observatory Annual Report 2004).
• From February to April 2005, RCFS members and Mr. Stanislav Dmitrievsky in particular, were subjected to a smear campaign that was launched in mass media venues of Nizhny Novgorod (See Open Letters of the Observatory, dated 26 January 2005 and 20 June 2005).
• Finally, on September 9, 2005, unidentified people distributed leaflets containing threats and smears aimed against Mr. Stanislav Dmitrievsky, and his colleague and editor, Ms. Oksana Chelysheva. On March 14, 2005, similar leaflets had been distributed in the area where Ms. Chelysheva lives. The authors in neither cases have not yet been identified (See Observatory Press Release dated 16 September 2005).
  
  

Action requested:

Please write to the authorities of the Russian Federation urging them to:

1. guarantee in all circumstances the physical and psychological integrity of Mr. Stanislav Dmitrievsky, Ms. Oksana Chelysheva and all Russian human rights defenders;
2. put an end to all acts of harassment against the RCFS and all of its members;
3. conform with the provisions of the Declaration on Humans Rights Defenders, adopted by the General Assembly of the United Nations on December 9, 1998, in particular article 1, which states that "everyone has the right, individually or in association with others, to promote the protection and realisation of human rights and fundamental freedoms at the national and international levels" and Article 12.2 which states that "the State shall take all necessary measures to ensure the protection by the competent authorities of everyone, individually and in association with others, against any violence, threats, retaliation, de facto or de jure adverse discrimination, pressure or any other arbitrary action as a consequence of his or her legitimate exercise of the rights referred to in the present Declaration";
4. more generally, conform with the provisions of the Universal Declaration on Human Rights, and with all other international human rights instruments binding the Russian Federation.
   
   

Addresses:

• Mr. Vladimir Vladimirovich Putin, President of the Russian Federation, Kremlin, Moscow, Russia, Faxes: + 7 095 206 5173 / 230 2408, Email: president@gov.ru
• Prosecutor General of the Russian Federation, Mr. Vladimir Ustinov, Rossiyskaya Federatsiya, 103793 g. Moskva K-31, Ul. B. Dimitrovka, d 15a, Prokuratura Rossiyskoy Federatsii, Generalnomu prokuroru Ustinovu V., Russian Federation, Fax: + 7 095 292 88 48
• Prosecutor of Nizhegorodskaya Oblast Demidov Vladimir Veniaminovich Izhorskaya Street, 25 Nizhny Novgorod 603115 Russian Federation; Fax: +7 8312 61 85 55
• Mr. Triphonov Michail Yurievich, deputy director of the Federal Tax Inspection office in Nizhny Novgorod; Tel: +7 8312 33 22 01
• Chairwoman of the Presidential Human Rights Commission of the Russian Federation, Ella Pamfilova, Rossiyskaya Federatsiya, 103132 g. Moskva, Staraya ploshchad, d 8/5,pod 3, Predsedatele Komissii po pravam cheloveka pri Prezidente, Pamfilove, Elle., Russian Federation, Fax: +7 095 206 4855
• Minister of Internal Affairs, Rashid Nurgaliev, ul. Zhitnaya, 16, 117049 Moscow, Russian Federation, Telegram: Rossiia, 117049, Moskva, Ministru vnutrennykh del, Fax: +7 095 237 4925
• Minister of Foreign Affairs, Sergey Lavrov, Smolenskaya-Sennaya pl, 32/34, 121200 Moscow, Russian Federation, Telegram: Rossiia, 121200 Moskva, Ministru inostrannykh del, Fax: + 7 095 244 2203
• Ambassador Leonid Skotnikov, Permanent Mission of the Russian Federation to the United Nations in Geneva Av. de la Paix 15, CH-1211, Geneva 20, Switzerland, e-mail : mission.russian@ties.itu.int, fax: +4122 734 40 44
  

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Geneva - Paris, September 29, 2005