Center for Civil Society International ([email protected])
Thu, 26 Mar 1998 16:45:41 -0800 (PST)
CCSI presents excerpts from the Agency for Social Information
(ASI) e-mail information bulletin. Translated from Russian by
CCSI volunteer Alyssa Deutschler. For more information on how to
receive ASI's bulletin regularly, contact:
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AGENTSTVO SOTSIALNOI INFORMATSII
Kutuzovskyi pr. 22 pod. 14a,
Moscow, 121151
Tel./fax: (095) 249-3989
E-mail: [email protected]
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ASI Bulletin No. 6
13-19 February, 1998
In this issue:
I. Institutions of Civil Society Must Be Supported, States
Yeltsin
II. Chamber of Commerce & Industry Will Help Promote Goods Made
By the Disabled
III. "Mother's Rights" Foundation Wants Independent Investigation
Into Soldiers' Deaths
IV. Green Democratic Party Accuses Leningrad Oblast
Administration of Violating Federal Law
V. Financial Seminar for NGOs in Voronezh
* * * * * * * * * *
Institutions of Civil Society Must Be Supported, States Yeltsin
Russian Federation President Boris Yeltsin addressed the Federal
Assembly on February 17 in an appearance in the Kremlin's Marble Hall.
In his address, Yeltsin spoke of the need for government agencies at
all levels to work with voluntary organizations and to support
institutions of civil society in Russia. Additionally, the president
noted that these non-governmental organizations frequently work more
effectively than their governmental counterparts. Yeltsin stated:
"Over the past years, the number of non-governmental organizations
dedicated to human rights, education, science, the environment,
consumers� rights and similar issues has grown. The scope and range of
their activities has widened. However, the government is reluctant to
help them, and at times, even hinders them. Contacts with government
agencies are frequently tainted with an opportunistic character. These
voluntary organizations aren't asking the government for money, but
they need cooperation and deliverance from the bureaucratic red tape
they are forced to waste precious time on. Currently there are few
practical forms by which governmental and non-governmental groups can
collaborate, neither are there means for public involvement in
government activities. Such forms and means need to be established
legislatively. The task confronting the government is to set free the
internal energy of society and direct that energy towards the future."
* * * * * * * * *
Chamber of Commerce & Industry Will Help Promote
Goods Made By the Disabled
On February 17 the Russian Society of Disabled People (RSD) signed a
cooperation agreement with the Russian Chamber of Commerce and Industry
(RCCI). The Society of Disabled People became a member of RCCI in
1997. Now, with the signing of the cooperation agreement, the two
groups will be able to work on joint projects. According to Aleksandr
Lomakin, chairman of RSD, working with RCCI will help to make RSD's
goods more competitive in the commercial market, since RCCI has greater
advertising resources. "We need to make greater efforts to sell our
products," said Lomakin, "since goods made by the disabled have a
negative connotation with consumers. However, many of RSD's 1,700
ventures produce high quality, unique goods. For example, our
paintbrush factory in Kirov is actually exporting its products." The
members of RSD hope that their alliance with RCCI will help them change
society's opinions about their work.
RSD is also counting on RCCI sponsorship for putting on several events,
including a festival to commemorate the 10 year anniversary of RSD and
two conferences--one on difficulties encountered in the development of
the disabled women's movement, and another on opportunities for
partnership between disabled groups and local governments.
Stanislav Smirnov, president of the Russian Chamber of Commerce and
Industry, noted that the signing of the cooperation agreement took
place on the same day that President Yeltsin acknowledged the role of
non-governmental organizations in dealing with society's problems.
* * * * * * * * *
"Mother's Rights" Foundation Wants
Independent Investigation Into Soldiers' Deaths
On February 18 a press conference was held at the National Press
Institute in Moscow on the theme, "Chaos in the Army: the Death of
Evgenii Shirshov." Participating in the press conference were:
Veronika Marchenko and Inna Plavan of the "Mother's Rights" Foundation;
attorney Karina Moskalenko, and Klara and Viktor Shirshov--parents of
the dead boy.
19-year old Evgenii Shirshov had already been serving for a half a year
with army unit No. 3656 A in the city of Novocherkassk (in Rostov
oblast) when he died on January 18, 1998. The official cause of death
was claimed to be "severe cardiovascular failure," although Shirshov
had never previously been diagnosed with any sort of heart problem.
However, there is reason to suspect that Shirshov was the victim of
murder on the basis of letters he sent to his parents. Over the course
of the ten days in between the young man's death and his funeral, his
parents were unable to obtain permission from the army to unseal the
coffin and have an independent autopsy conducted. In the meantime,
they continued to receive letters that their son had sent prior to his
death, in which he described the utter chaos that ruled over his army
unit.
Inna Plavan of the "Mother's Rights Foundation traveled with Viktor
Shirshov to Novocherkassk to collect Evgenii's body from his unit.
There, Plavan questioned a soldier serving in the unit who admitted
that two days prior to Evgenii Shirshov's death, he had seen Shirshov
and noticed a large bruise under his ear. Additionally, several
officers in the unit indicated to Plavan that Shirshov's death might
have been caused by reasons other than the official one.
Although they had not obtained official permission to do so, Klara and
Viktor Shirshov opened their son's coffin themselves, in the presence
of a medical student. At the press conference they presented
photographs taken of their son's corpse at that time. The photographs
clearly proved that Evgenii had been the victim of a severe beating:
his lips were split open, an "enormous" bruise marked his forehead, and
his left ear was partially missing. Despite this evidence, the head
military procurator still refused to allow the Shirshovs to have an
independent autopsy performed on the body, stating that there were "no
motivations" for it. The Shirshovs� attorney, Karina Moskalenko,
directed the attention of those attending the press conference to the
serious human rights violations which Evgenii Shirshov had documented
in his letters to his parents and his friends.
Of all the cases brought to the "Mother's Rights" Foundation in the
past year involving soldiers dying under mysterious circumstances in
the army, only 9 percent have resulted in any sort of legal
investigation. The foundation believes that it is time that an
investigation into the deaths of these soldiers be conducted by
independent civilians and not by the military court.
Contact Telephone: 206-0581 ("Mother's Rights" Foundation)
* * * * * * * * *
Green Democratic Party Accuses
Leningrad Oblast Administration of Violating Federal Law
In a statement sent to the governor of Leningrad Oblast, Vadim Gustov,
the Green Democratic Party accused the oblast and regional
administrations of violating federal law and international conventions
ratified by the Russian Federation. The party's accusations were
grounded on a directive made on December 26, 1996 by Governor Gustov
which allowed 84 hectares of forest near Lembolovskoe Lake to be
logged. The Green Democratic Party believes that the logging occured
in protected territory and thus was illegal. Such an action would only
be allowed under exceptional circumstances and even then, only with the
approval of the federal government. Moreover, the statement noted, no
environmental investigation on the federal level was carried out prior
to the logging and no project documentation or proof of license was
filed with the Leningrad Oblast Department of Ecology.
The statement further reads: "the directive made by the governor
contributes to the destruction of Lembolovskoe and Kero lakes, and
damages the ecological balance, water quality, and biodiversity of the
region." The Green Democratic Party has declared that the Leningrad
Oblast administration, as well as the governor himself, are guilty of
these violations and demands that they accept responsibility for them.
The statement was signed by both non-governmental and political groups.
Signers included: Democratic Choice of Russia; Young Christian
Democrats; the People's Labor Union; the Christian Ecological Movement;
the Taxpayer's Aid Society; the St. Petersburg "Memorial" Society; and
Chernobyl Union (northwestern branch).
Contact Telephone: (812) 130-3428
* * * * * * * * *
Financial Seminar for NGOs in Voronezh
On February 14, the Center for the Development of Civic Initiatives in
Voronezh held its first seminar on the subject of bookkeeping and
accounting for non-governmental organizations. Irina Gudovich, who is
a professor of applied economics at Voronezh State University as well
as the president of an NGO for women in the sciences, answered
questions from seminar participants on tax law and accounting.
Attendees were also given "how-to" materials on bookkeeping. At the
end of February, the Center plans to hold a seminar on fundraising for
NGOs that will cover such topics as how to write grant applications.
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| CCSI presents excerpts from the ASI Bulletin. The |
| ASI Bulletin is a publication of the Agency for Social |
| Information (ASI) in Moscow. Originally published in |
| Russian, selected stories are translated and posted to |
| the CCSI listserv CivilSoc. Back issues are available |
| in both English and Russian language by following the |
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