Oleg Popov
Long ago the time when Russian dissidents and human rights activists had indulged in non-censored gratuitous “social” activities became a thing of the past. They used to follow the principle “I can not be silent!” (Leo Tolstoy). At that time they could be imprisoned for it; at the best they could be deported abroad. Now these activities yet traditionally called defense of human rights are not only non-punishable but even well-paid.
Natalia Narochnitskaya
On the threshold of the current Russian-Japanese Summit talks Russian society follows every word of the leaders of Russia on so-called territorial problem with strained attention. So it did on November 14-15, 2004, when at first S. V. Lavrov, the Minister for Foreign Affairs and then the President himself confirmed “Russia’s allegiance to the commitments, arising from the Soviet-Japanese Declaration of 1956”. Mass media hack writers rushed for comments to diplomats and politicians, deputies from the Committee for Foreign Affairs of the State Duma and leaders of political parties to clear up whether this recurrent declaration is an illustration of willingness “to hand over the administration” of Southern Kurils or “to return” them to Japan.
In 1975 at the summit of the heads of European states, the USA and Canada in Helsinki, an accord which is well known as the Helsinki Agreement was signed. The states of Eastern Europe including the USSR were recognized as “legal”. In exchange for this “concession” from NATO, Soviet leaders agreed to include into this accord a regulation which imposed responsibility of all these states to observe human rights as prescribed in the Universal Declaration of Human Rights.
The events of last several years in Russia – Chechen war, acts of terror in Russian cities, consolidation of state institutions, struggle for influence on mass media, “spy trials” of G. Pasko and V. Sutyagin and arrests of oligarchs – had shown a striking likeness of positions of Russian human rights activists and their European and American colleagues.
Vadim Venediktov
Rating: 10|Votes: 1
After adoption of the Constitution of the Russian Federation which enforced deideologization of society our students found themselves in a very tricky situation: no precise guiding lines. And not every one of young people is capable to make independently the path of reason in search of the Truth, find and gain It.