"Memorial": Verdict to Dmitrievskiy - a further step towards liquidation of freedom of speech in Russia

The "Memorial" human rights centre has made a statement on the court trial over Stanislav Dmitrievskiy which runs that "the verdict to Dmitrievskiy is a further step towards liquidation of freedom of speech in the country."

"Undoubtedly, this is a political conviction which has nothing to do with the law. The Dmitrievskiy's case is obviously part of a campaign to attack the civil society in Russia.

By this verdict, the "power authorities', primarily secret services, which take more and more power in Russia into their hands, give a clear and unambiguous indication - "from now on, we alone have the right to decide what Russian citizens should or should not know." No censorship has been introduced in Russia yet but they want terror to make us switch on the "internal censor."

Are they going to reach their target? His depends on each of us," the statement stresses.

Stanislav Dmitrievskiy has been convicted today by the Soviet district court of Nizhni Novgorod to two years of suspended imprisonment, with a four-year probation, reported Svetlana Gannushkina, chair of the "Civil Assistance" Committee and member of the "Memorial" human rights centre Council, by telephone to the "Caucasian Knot" correspondent.

Dmitrievskiy has been convicted under article 282 of RF CC. The maximum punishment under this article is 5 years of imprisonment. The oblast prosecutor's office requested 4 years of imprisonment in a penal colony for Dmitrievskiy. Soviet district court of Nizhni Novgorod sentenced the chief editor to 2 years of suspended imprisonment, with 4-year probation.

For reference, on September 2, 2005, Dmitrievskiy was charged under article 282 of RF CC, "actions aimed at stirring hate or hostility, or at humiliation of dignity of a person or a group of persons on the basis of sex, race, nationality, attitude to religion or membership in a social group." The article prescribes a punishment up to five years of imprisonment. The prosecution asked the court to pass a guilty verdict and impose a punishment of four years in a penal colony for Stanislav Dmitrievskiy.

The criminal proceedings were initiated in January this year after the publication in "Pravozaschita" (Human Rights Protection) newspaper of the address of Aslan Maskhadov and Ahmed Zakaev with calls for a peaceful settlement of the Russian-Chechen conflict.

The publications contained sharp critics of the actions by Russian leadership, Russian armed forces and personally by President Vladimir Putin. The human rights activists believe the charges to Dmitrievskiy to be politically motivated and aimed at liquidation of the constitutional guarantee of the freedom of speech.

On November 15, "International Amnesty" made an open statement in which it expresses its concern about the pressure campaign led by various state institutions with regard to the RChFS and announced its intention to consider Dmitrievskiy prisoner of conscience in case he is convicted.