IV 

111TH CONGRESS 

2D SESSION H. RES. 1539 

Expressing solidarity with human rights defenders in the Russian Federation, 

and for other purposes. 

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 

JULY 20, 2010 

Mr. HASTINGS of Florida submitted the following resolution; which was 

referred to the Committee on Foreign Affairs 

RESOLUTION 

Expressing solidarity with human rights defenders in the 

Russian Federation, and for other purposes. 

Whereas the Russian Federation is a permanent member of 

the United Nations Security Council, a participating 

state of the Organization for Security and Cooperation in 

Europe (OSCE), a member state of the Council of Europe, and as a signatory to international legislation has 

freely committed to uphold and respect international law; 

Whereas the Russian Federation, as a party to the United 

Nations Universal Declaration of Human Rights under 

article 3 is obligated to ensure ‘‘the right to life, liberty, 

and security of person’’; 

Whereas the Russian Federation, as a signatory to the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights and as a 

party to the European Convention on Human Rights, is 


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•HRES 1539 IH 

legally obliged to uphold fundamental freedoms and 

human rights, including the right to life, freedom of expression, and freedom of association, among others; 

Whereas all OSCE participating states, including the Russian 

Federation, have recognized the right of individuals to 

know and act upon human rights and fundamental freedoms, and to contribute actively, individually or in association with others, to their promotion and protection; 

Whereas human rights defenders, investigative journalists, 

and activists addressing human rights abuses and corruption in the Russian Federation are routinely targeted for 

harassment, persecution, and physical attacks; 

Whereas human rights defenders, investigative journalists, 

and activists in the North Caucasus and those reporting 

on developments in that region of the Russian Federation 

have been systematically targeted for reprisals because of 

their work; 

Whereas Natalya Estemirova, the leading human rights defender in Chechnya, was abducted nearby her apartment 

building in Grozny on July 15, 2009, by unidentified 

men, transported to the neighboring Republic of 

Ingushetia, and brutally killed; 

Whereas several other activists were also slain in 2009 in 

connection with their professional work in the North 

Caucasus and others remain at risk; 

Whereas Anna Politkovskaya and over a dozen other journalists have been killed in Russia since 2000 in retaliation 

for their work, in cases that remain unsolved; 

Whereas the 2009 Country Reports on Human Rights Practices, issued by the Department of State, found that the 

Russian Government’s poor human rights record in the 


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•HRES 1539 IH 

North Caucasus worsened, with a marked increase in 

extrajudicial killings by both Government and rebel forces 

and politically motivated disappearances in Chechnya, 

Ingushetia, and Dagestan; and 

Whereas the ongoing human rights violations, legal impunity, 

and the permeating climate of fear in the North 

Caucasus remain a concern of human rights defenders 

and the international community: Now, therefore, be it 

1 Resolved, That the House of Representatives— 

2 (1) expresses solidarity with human rights de3 fenders in the Russian Federation; 

4 (2) calls for an end to the harassment, persecu5 tion, and attacks against human rights activists, in6 cluding journalists, in the Russian Federation; 

7 (3) condemns the impunity for those responsible 

8 for murder of human rights defenders, including 

9 journalists, in the Russian Federation; 

10 (4) urges the Russian Federation to— 

11 (A) fully respect in practice the rights and 

12 freedoms of all human rights defenders, includ13 ing the right to life, freedom of expression, and 

14 freedom of association; 

15 (B) take appropriate measures to end the 

16 harassment, persecution, and attacks against 

17 human rights activists, including lawyers and 

18 journalists; 


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1 (C) ensure that law enforcement officials 

2 vigorously and transparently investigate acts of 

3 violence, harassment, and intimidation against 

4 members of Russian civil society, as well as 

5 make certain that authorities are not complicit 

6 in such acts; and 

7 (D) fully and thoroughly investigate all un8 resolved murder cases of human rights defend9 ers, including journalists; 

10 (5) urges the President and the Secretary of 

11 State to integrate human rights in all components of 

12 bilateral relations with the Russian Federation and 

13 to continue to raise concerns with the Government 

14 of the Russian Federation over human rights viola15 tions, including the harassment, persecution, and at16 tacks on human rights defenders and journalists; 

17 and 

18 (6) urges the Secretary of State to make effec19 tive use of meetings of the Organization for Security 

20 and Cooperation in Europe and other international 

21 fora for the purposes of raising these and other 

22 human rights abuses in the North Caucasus and 

23 elsewhere in the Russian Federation. 

Æ 


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