Treatment of those who supported Alexander Kirilichev in his campaign for Governor of the Primorskye Region during the December 1999 elections against incumbent mayor Yevgeny Nazdratenko, including those who distributed flyers on behalf of Kirilichev, before and after the election; whether the Vladivostok-based independent station Lemma was shut down in December 1999 for airing radio broadcasts in favour of Kirilichev or against Nazdratenko (1999 - 2001) [RUS36895.E]

Treatment of Kirilichev supporters

A 7 June 2000 report published in the Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty (RFE/RL) publication entitled Russian Federation Report states that criminal proceedings had been called against editor-in-chief of the Vladivostok-based newspaper Krasnoe Znamya Vladimir Shrabov on charges of slandering Primorskye Krai Governor Yevgenii Nazdratenko. During the December 1999 Primorskiy gubernatorial elections, newspaper Krasnoe Znamya called voters to support Nazdratenko's chief opponent Alexander Kirilichev and, in a special issue published the day before the elections, listed Nazdratenko's "misdeeds" during the campaign and used caricatures to depict the incumbent governor and his circle (ibid.).

A 2 May 2000 Washington Post report states that :

Nazdratenko's is not the only such fiefdom in Russia. Other regional governors--popularly elected, politically entrenched and immune from criminal prosecution--have similar reputations for excesses. How to rein them in is one of the biggest challenges facing Vladimir Putin, the acting Russian president and president-elect, as he seeks to reassert the Kremlin's authority and lure back foreign investors to rebuild the country.
In Primorye, critics confront Nazdratenko at their peril. Journalists, businessmen, regional legislators, even the British government have demanded investigations into his actions--to no avail. Former president Boris Yeltsin tried once to replace him, and failed. Political foes say they are mercilessly hounded by Primorye's government agencies. Last fall, a lawyer who was gathering evidence against the governor died in a bomb blast.

A 19 November 1999 NTV report states that gubernatorial candidates running against Yevgeny Nazdratenko, including Alexander Kirilichev, were denied halls to hold assemblies or rooms to meet journalists.

A 17 December 1999 NTV broadcast stated that gubernatorial candidates in the Primorye December 1999 elections, including Alexander Kirilichev, had filed lawsuits and complaints about irregular electoral practices conducted by the incumbent governor, as campaign workers had their cars inspected for leaflets and posters that countervened a rule adopted three days before the elections.

In May 2001, Alexander Kirilichev, a deputy in the Primorye Duma and director of the Primorsk Shipping Corporation, was running for the 27 May 2001 gobernatorial elections (Vladivostok Daily 4 May 2001)

Closure of independent radio station Lemma

The authorities in Vladivostok closed the city-owned offices of independent radio station Radio Lemma on 19 December 1999 (The Independent 5 Mar. 2000; Vladivostok News 19 Nov. 1999; Washington Post 2 May 2000). The radio station's editor told reporters that one reporter was "badly beaten, his own daughter was abducted and he himself was attacked by six men on the street." The radio station remained off the air for one month (ibid.).

No further information on the treatment of Kirilichev campaign workers and supporters could be found among the sources consulted by the Research Directorate.

This Response was prepared after researching publicly accessible information currently available to the Research Directorate within time constraints. This Response is not, and does not purport to be, conclusive as to the merit of any particular claim to refugee status or asylum. Please find below the list of additional sources consulted in researching this Information Request.

References


The Independent [London]. 5 March 2000. Patrick Cockburn. "A Far Corner of Russia That is for Ever Soviet." (NEXIS)

NTV [Moscow]. 16 December 1999. "Election Campaign in Vladivostok." (NEXIS)

_____. 19 November 1999. "Election Battle in Vladivostok." (NEXIS)

Russian Federation Report [Prague]. 7 June 2000, Vol. 2, No. 21. "Pan Regional Issues: Primore: Local Journalist Accused of Slander." (Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty) http://www.rferl.org/russianreport/2000/06/21-070600.html [Accessed: 11 May 2001]

Vladivostok Daily. 4 May 2001. "14 Race for Governor as Registration Over." http://vd.vladnews.ru/2001/0005/Current/TXT/TXT03.ASP [Accessed 11 May 2001]

Vladivostok News. 19 November 1999. Russell Working. "City Evicts Radio Lemma From Studio." http://vlad.tribnet.com/1999/iss203/text/upd2.html [Accessed 9 May 2001]

The Washington Post. 2 May 2000. Sharon LaFraniere. "A Crisis of Control in Russian Far East; Powerful Governor Rules 'Another Country'." (NEXIS)

Additional Sources Consulted


IRB databases

Internet sources including:

Amnesty International

Human Rights Watch (HRW)

World News Connection (WNC)

Search Engines:

Copernic

Dogpile

Fast

Google

Hotbot

Metacrawler

Metaeureka

Northern Light