Russian-American Voters Address members of Congress to Support Magnitsky Act

American Russian Speaking Association

American Russian-Speaking Association for Civil & Human Rights with its friends and allies mark the Day of Political Prisoners with online campaign in a dozen of states

October 30 is observed by many Russians around the world as the Day of Political Prisoners. It was introduced in 1974 in Soviet labor camps by human rights advocate and author Kronid Lyubarsky and a hero of the Soviet Jewry struggle for the right to emigrate Alexey Murzhenko. In 1991, Russian parliament officially recognized it as the national Day of Remembrance of Victims of Political Repressions.

20 years later, Russia is losing, at an ever increasing speed, the last vestiges of its democratic accomplishments of the 1990s, for which Soviet-era human rights defenders paid a heavy price. According to The Memorial Society, Russia’s most authoritative source of human rights information and research, there are currently about 80 people in jail or under prosecution for political reasons, even if official charges against some of them are of a different nature.

This situation has a negative impact on Russia’s neighbors, where authoritarian regimes are also increasingly persecuting their opponents, and poses a threat to international peace and security. It also increases pressure for emigration from Russia, a country which is currently the 7th largest source of asylum seekers in the world. Over the past two years, the number of Russians granted asylum in the United States increased by 35 percent.

In this light, a number of Russian-speaking community organizations have coalesced in support of the Magnitsky Act (named after Russian anti-corruption whistleblower Sergei Magnitsky who perished in 2009 in Moscow jail at the age of 37). This legislation would impose visa and financial sanctions on Russian government officials (and, in the Senate version, their counterparts in other countries) responsible for the arrest and the death of Magnitsky or for other gross violations of human rights. This bill was introduced in Congress last year by Sen. Ben Cardin (D-MD) and Rep. James McGovern (D-MA) and recently included in the legislation that would grant Russia permanent normal trade relations with the US with the removal of the Jackson-Vanick Amendment of 1974. It currently has 40 supporters in the Senate (including 22 Republicans, 17 Democrats, and one Independent) and 82 in the House (including 42 Democrats and 40 Republicans).

On October 30, Russia’s leading human rights organizations rallied in support of the political prisoners of our time. In solidarity with them, our supporters and friends – Russian-speaking voters around the country – are reaching out today to Members of U.S. Congress – co-sponsors of the Magnitsky Act who are running for re-election on November 6. We are conveying our support for the speediest passage of the Act on their campaign websites and Facebook pages and by tweeting to them on behalf of Russian-speaking voters who share our opinion. We urge Russian-speaking Americans and all our friends to go to the polls on November 6 and vote with this information in mind. (In addition, we also support the Former Soviet Union State Pension Fairness Act, introduced by Rep. Nadler, that requires US government to report on its pursuit of pension payments for former Soviet workers currently in the US who have been denied their pensions by post-Soviet governments.)

Our online campaign today is conducted in eleven states including those with the largest population of Russian-American voters – New York, New Jersey, Maryland, Florida, California, Washington, Ohio, Illinois, Missouri. Georgia, and South Carolina. The campaign was postponed for a day due to the devastating impact of Hurricane Sandy.

For additional information or to get involved, please contact us at headquarters@amrusrights.org hairy girls займ на карту https://zp-pdl.com/emergency-payday-loans.php https://zp-pdl.com/fast-and-easy-payday-loans-online.php микрозаймы онлайн