Moscow Helsinki Group is against persecution of public organizations in Krasnodar Territory

As it was reported in the division of the Moscow Helsinki Group, the Moscow Helsinki Group expresses deep anxiety about a campaign of persecution, developed by the authorities of the Krasnodar Territory against regional non-government organizations. For today the Krasnodar Regional Youth Public Organization ?Creative Union ?Southern Wave? has fallen a victim to the campaign. Since 1995 the Club of Civil Education attached to the organization has been operating. This club carries out meetings, conferences, round-table discussions dedicated to the problems of civil society development. A third of club?s actions are dedicated to the problems of human rights observance in the region. Such an activity became a reason for persecution.

On April 4, 2003 the Creative Union ?Southern Wave? received notification from the Main Department of the Ministry of Justice of the RF for the Krasnodar Territory. In the opinion of the Deputy Chief N.G. Nesterenko, carrying out of round-table discussions on human rights does not correspond to the charter of the organization. Unless ?Southern Wave? will not stop the given activity, the division of justice threatens to take closing of the public organization to court. The aims of the Creation Union ?Southern Wave?, in accordance with its charter, include ?an information exchange?, and that allows discussing any problems including human rights observance. Though, as it is told in the statement, the Moscow Helsinki Group, ?being aware of the ability of executive power to influence court decisions, particularly in the Krasnodar Territory?, is afraid of this threat to have every prospect to be realized.

The head of the organization E. Grekov was invited for talk to the Office of Public Prosecutor of Pricubansky District of Krasnodar. Not being familiarized with a motive of the inspection, he was demanded to render all documentation on his organization. After Grekov?s question, what the exact reason for the interest in ?Southern Wave? to the Office of Public Prosecutor was, he was informed the organization ?had negative influence on the image of power?.

According to the information of the MHG, administrative and physiologic pressure is also being put by regional authorities upon other public organizations and human rights activists in the region. The MHG makes a request to the mass media for paying rapt attention to this situation, as the broadest publicity is able to stop despotism of Krasnodar authorities. Before the end of April the MHG plans to conduct a hearing on the situation with human rights and other public organizations in the Krasnodar Territory. Activists from ?Southern Wave? and other regional organizations will appear at the hearing as speakers. The representatives of the General Office of Public Prosecutor of the RF, the Ministry of Justice of the RF, the Ministry of Internal Affairs of the RF and other officials.