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Tag Archives: Human Rights
The Finnish-Russian Civic Forum strives to promote cooperation between the peoples of Finland and Russia by supporting civic initiatives for democracy, human rights, and freedom of speech.
European Parliament Ignores Rights Abuses in Russia
The European Parliament (EP) has taken a much more favourable attitude toward Russia at the same time as the human rights situation in Russia has continued to deteriorate. This is revealed in a February 2013 research paper by the Italian political scientist, Stefano Braghiroli, for the Centre for EU-Russia Studies at the University of Tartu.
Finnish Lawyer Arrested in Moscow
The Finnish lawyer, Kari Silvennoinen, was arrested on his arrival at Moscow airport on 27 September 2013. The Russian authorities gave no reason for his arrest. Mr Silvennoinen has been held without food and drink over night.
Navalny Supporters Under Siege
BREAKING: Police in Moscow are storming an apartment where supporters of the Russian opposition’s mayoral candidate in Moscow, Alexey Navalny, are holed up. Apparently, the authorities suspect that the apartment is an “illegal campaign headquarter.” The police has no search warrant.
A few moments ago, police were hacking away at the door with a sledgehammer and a chainsaw. Oleg Kozlovsky, Board Member of the Finnish-Russian Civic Forum, is one of the people inside the apartment. Oleg is tweeting live (in Russian), and there is live video feed from the scene.
Interpol Again Rejects Russian Request
The General Secretariat of Interpol has announced that Russia could not use Interpol to arrest William Browder, CEO and co-founder of Hermitage Capital, who was running a campaign to bring Russian officials responsible for the death of whistleblower Sergey Magnitsky to justice. A day earlier, Russia sent a search request to Interpol on Mr Browder.
Khodorkovsky Case Politically Motivated
The European Court of Human Rights has retracted its press release on the ruling in the case brought by the two former owners of the Yukos Oil Company, Mikhail Khodorkovsky and Platon Lebedev, against the Russian state, NEWSru.com reported. Apparently, the initial press release stated that the charges against the two had “strong grounds,” whereas the Court ruling said nothing of the sort.
Mr Khodorkovsky’s lawyer, Karinna Moskalenko, said the Court was ready to concede that some political forces and state officials had reason to prosecute Mr Khodorkovsky and Mr Lebedev through Russian courts, and that the authorities might have had a “hidden agenda.” Ms Moskalenko said the Court did confirm that there was reason to suspect that the Khodorkovsky case was indeed politically motivated.
Finland: Call to Arrest Putin
A group of Finnish civic activists has today filed a report to the police, calling for the arrest of Russian President Vladimir Putin and for an investigation into his actions during the war in Chechnya.
FINROSFORUM Elects New Board
The Finnish-Russian Civic Forum (FINROSFORUM) held its annual general meeting on 17 June 2013 in Helsinki. The meeting elected a new eight-member Board and a new Chairman for our organisation:
Stop Persecution of Civil Society in Russia!
The Steering Committee of the EU-Russia Civil Society Forum has issued a statement protesting the growing persecution of independent civil society organisations in Russia as a result of repressive legislation on “foreign agents.” The Forum cites the convictions meted out on two of its member organisations, the GOLOS Association and its regional partner, as well as the Kostroma Support Center for Civic Initiatives. The fourth NGO convicted as a “foreign agent” is the St Petersburg LGBT film festival, Side by Side. In all, the authorities have taken action against more than 40 NGOs, many of them members of the Forum.
Face of Russian Civic Activism
The Arkadia International Bookshop in Helsinki will host a discussion with the Russian environmental and opposition activist, Yevgenia Chirikova, on Tuesday, 28 May 2013, at 3pm.
No To Homophobic, Totalitarian Propaganda!
Several propagandists of homophobia and totalitarian ideology have been invited to speak at public events in Helsinki and Tampere on 20-21 May 2013. The venues for these events will be provided by Hotel Seurahuone in Helsinki, Tampere City Library, and Lenin Museum. The speakers include Vitaly Milonov, member of the St Petersburg Legislative Assembly, who is the author of the city’s anti-gay bill. Another speaker is historian Nikolai Starikov, who is well known for his sympathy for Soviet totalitarianism.
UPDATE (20 May 2013 @ 12:45): Ulla Aatsinki, Board Chairman of the Lenin Museum, announced that the museum would NOT host the presentation of Nikolai Starikov’s pamphlet, Stalin and Finland. Ms Aatsinki confirmed the information with museum director Aimo Minkkinen.
UPDATE 2 (20 May 2013 @ 14:00): The City of Tampere CANCELLED the reservation for the event with Vitaly Milonov and Nikolai Starikov at the Tampere City Library, Deputy Mayor Olli-Poika Parviainen announced.
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