Posts Tagged ‘Nemtsov’
Time to get tough on the Kremlin crooks and bullies
The jailing of Boris Nemtsov is a dark departure from Russia’s already bleak status quo.
When you next meet Boris Nemtsov, will you be able to look him in the eye and say that you did everything you could while he was in jail? Did you urge your ambassadors to visit him in prison? Did your local Russian ambassador find himself bombarded with public and private protests? Did your politicians write letters to the newspapers, give speeches or go to demonstrations? Did your legislators hold hearings about freedom of assembly in Russia? Did you raise Russia’s continued membership of the Council of Europe?
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The End of the Medvedev Revolution?
Since a Russian judge sentenced former Yukos oil executive Mikhail Khodorkovsky and his business partner, Platon Lebedev, to thirteen and a half years in prison on December 30, many commentators have viewed the outcome—after a 22-month trial that openly flouted judicial standards—as a major setback for Russian President Dmitry Medvedev. After all, a little more than a year ago, Medvedev gained international attention for vowing to institute the rule of law in Russia and make foreign investment in Russia a top priority, and there had been growing speculation that he might begin to take on the entrenched interests of Prime Minister Vladimir Putin. For the moment, those hopes seem dashed. In the long run, however, the case against Khodorkovsky and Lebedev may hurt Putin more than Medvedev as the two rivals position themselves for the 2012 presidential contest.
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Documentary Commemorates Death of Sergei Magnitsky
By Marina Grushin, 24 Nov. 2010
In an unprecedented show of solidarity, lawmakers and human rights activists gathered in capital cities around the world Tuesday to condemn the rampant lawlessness and corruption in Russia.
Legislators in Washington, Ottawa, and cities across Europe hosted the events to commemorate Russian lawyer Sergei Magnitsky, who died in a Moscow prison last year. On the one-year anniversary of Magnitsky’s death, his supporters premiered “Justice for Sergei,” a documentary chronicling the lawyer’s struggle against corrupt officials in Russia.
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Cardin-McCain whistleblower bill could be a threat to U.S.-Russian ties
The Hill
As the White House feverishly lobbies the Senate to approve a long-stalled nuclear-arms treaty, a bipartisan bill seeking answers in the suspicious death of a Russian attorney could escalate tensions between Washington and Moscow.
Sen. Ben Cardin (D-Md.), with Sen. John McCain (R-Ariz.) as co-sponsor, introduced the Justice for Sergei Magnitsky Act of 2010 just before lawmakers went home to campaign this fall. Rep. James McGovern (D-Mass.) has offered companion legislation in the House.
The legislation comes as the Obama administration urges senators to vote for the Strategic Arms Reduction Treaty (START), which Senate Minority Whip Jon Kyl (R-Ariz.) said last week should not be approved in the lame-duck session. The U.S.-Russia arms treaty needs 67 votes to be ratified.
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