Call for Support

Yury Aivaseda (Vella), the Soros Foundation premium winner "For Asceticism", well-known poet and writer, reindeer-breeder, Nenetsian keeping the traditional way of the life-style on his patrimony lands in Hanti-Mansiysk Autonomous Area is groundlessly exposed to criminal prosecution for his activities aimed to defence the rights of indigenous people of the North. The institution of the criminal case against him is artificially initiated for his actions launched in extreme situation within the existed Russian Legislation (Chapter 12 of the Civilian Code of RF).

According to messages of Yury Aivaseda (received by fax and telephone) on 14 of September 2000 the workers of the oil company "Western Siberia - Lukoil", braking the legislation, started to destroy the road connected the nomad camps of the indigenous people with the village, that might let absolutely impossible for some of the indigenous people families to leave the patrimony areas, to get the medical help, to buy food in the shop, to deliver children to the school, to get to the post-office and state institutions. The destruction of the road would completely cut off the families of the indigenous people from the main world. The actions on road destruction had demonstratively cynical character - the excavator destroyed the road in the presence of the families with kids. The kids were crying. The representative of the company threatened to destroy the roads and bridges connected the patrimony lands with the main roads several times previously, to cut off the people from the external world.

That pressure was because of trying of Yury Aivaseda to defence his rights and the rights of his neighbours on traditional life-style. Several times those threats were implemented. The indigenous people had no technical possibilities to restore the roads were purposely taken into the situation of the complete isolation from the world. On 14 of September 2000, trying to stop those barbaric attempts of suppression of the human respect, and to resist to the violation of the constitutional rights and creation of the impossible living conditions, and to self-defence of the civilian rights Yury Aivaseda cleaved the wills of the excavator destroyed the road. Those actions were challenged by bad need and wish to stop the actions injuring children, to end the actions shocking them. Those actions of Aivaseda forcedly estimated as criminal offence, there was called a criminal investigation for Aivaseda with publication of his photo and information about him as about a person suspected of a crime. The attempt to institute Aivaseda to criminal proceedings has cynic and demonstrative character, and aimed on injury of the reputation and humiliation of the honour and respect of the leader of the movement for the indigenous people rights defence, well-known not only in Russia, but also abroad.

We ask the world community to appeal to the governmental institutions of the Russian Federation to stop the illegal persecution of the person for his attempt to defence his constitutional rights. We ask to address letters of the protest to the

Ministry of Internal Affairs of RF
117049, Zhitnaya ul., 16, Moscow, Russia
fax: +7-095-9252098, +7-095-2390862

The General Prosecutor of RF Vladimir Ustinov
103793, ul. B. Dmitrovka, 15?
fax: +7-095-921-2085, +7-095-921-4186

The Governor of Hanti-Mansiysk Autonomous Area Alexander Filipenko
626200, Russia, Khanty-Mansiisk,ul. Mira, 5
Phones: +7-34671-33147, -32642; fax: +7-34671-33460
E-mail: kominf@hmansy.wsnet.ru; maslova@hmansy.wsnet.ru

Administration of the Internal Affairs of the Hanti-Mansiysk Autonomous Area
626200, Russia, Khanty-Mansiisk, ul. Dzherzhinskogo, 11
Phone: (346-71)98-2-00, fax: (346-71)3-46-80 

The Prosecutor of Hanti-Mansiysk Autonomous Area.

Public Organisation The Rights Centre "Rodnik"

Association of the Indigenous People of the North of Sakhalin region

The President of the Association of the Indigenous People of the North of Khabarovsk krai

Participants of the seminar "Defence of the rights of indigenous people of Sakhalin on traditional life-style" (1-7 of October 2000, v.Nogliki, Sakhalin region).

P.S. For additional information contact the Centre "Rodnik" (rodnik@orc.ru)