June 20, 2000 CONGRESSIONAL RECORD—SENATE 11437 to protect those things we hold dear. In the name of those who died, we before his inauguration, there were dis- Quite often these volunteer depart- will continue the fight to pass gun turbing signs of government hostility ments are the only line of defense in safety measures. toward Radio Free Europe/Radio Lib- these rural communities. It’s time we I yield the floor. erty, evident in the harassment of provide them with the needed funds for f RFE/RL correspondent Andrei proper training and equipment to bet- Babitsky. ARREST OF VLADIMIR GUSINSKY ter protect their communities. I am encouraged to see that promi- I offer my sincere gratitude to our IN RUSSIA nent Russians have been speaking out Nation’s fire fighters who put their Mr. LIEBERMAN. Mr. President, I about the arrest of Mr. Gusinsky, and lives on the line every day to protect rise today to express my deep concern that our Government is signaling its the property and safety of their neigh- about the recent arrest in Russia of concern too. I echo the New York bors. They too deserve a helping hand Vladimir Gusinsky and its negative im- Times editorial on June 15 that this is in their time of need. pact on press freedom and democracy ‘‘A Chilling Prosecution in Moscow.’’ I I commend Senators DODD and under the leadership of President would ask unanimous consent that this DEWINE for introducing this important Putin. piece, as well as similar editorials from legislation, and urge all my colleagues Mr. Gusinsky runs Media Most, a the June 15 editions of the Washington who have not done so to sign onto this major conglomerate of Russian media Post and the Wall Street Journal, be bill. I would like to encourage the organizations, including NTV, Russia’s printed in full in the RECORD. Committee to hold hearings on S. 1941 only television network not under There being no objection, the mate- and suggest that we continue to move state control. Media Most is a rel- rial was ordered to be printed in the this bill forward toward ultimate pas- atively independent force in Russian RECORD, as follows: sage. news reporting, and its outlets have of- [From The New York Times, June 15, 2000] Thank you Mr. President, I yield the fered hard-hitting, often critical ac- A CHILLING PROSECUTION IN MOSCOW floor. counts of Russia’s brutal campaign in While President Vladimir Putin is trav- f Chechnya, as well as reports on alleged eling through Europe this week extolling the GUN VICTIMS OF TUESDAY, JUNE Government corruption. Besides being virtues of Russian democracy, his colleagues 20, 1999 an important media and business exec- in the Kremlin have been acting like Stalin- utive, Mr. Gusinsky is a also a leading ists. The arrest and detention of Vladimir Mr. LAUTENBERG. Mr. President, it figure in the Russian Jewish commu- Gusinsky, the owner of media properties has been more than a year since the nity, serving as President of the Rus- that have carried critical coverage of the Columbine tragedy, but still this Re- government, is an assault against the prin- sian Jewish Congress. publican Congress refuses to act on ciple of a free press. Whatever the merits of On May 11, just days after President sensible gun legislation. the alleged embezzlement case against Mr. Putin’s inauguration, Russian federal Since Columbine, thousands of Amer- Gusinsky, there was no need to haul him off icans have been killed by gunfire. Until agents in a major show of force raided to prison, an action that cannot help but stir fear in a nation all too familiar with the ar- we act, Democrats in the Senate will several of Media Most’s corporate of- fices, raising immediate concerns bitrary exercise of state power. read some of the names of those who If the rule of law prevailed in Russia, and lost their lives to gun violence in the about the direction of press freedom in the new government. These concerns Mr. Gusinsky could count on a presumption past year, and we will continue to do so of innocence, quick release on bail and a fair every day that the Senate is in session. intensified on Tuesday June 13 when a trial, his arrest might seem less ominous. These names come from a report pre- Russian prosecutor called Mr. But Russia lacks a fully independent judicial pared by the United States Conference Gusinsky in for questioning, and then system, and the government still uses crimi- of Mayors. The report includes data on arrested him on suspicion of embez- nal prosecution as a political weapon. He is firearm deaths from 100 U.S. cities be- zling millions of dollars worth of fed- charged with embezzling at least $10 million eral property. On June 16, Mr. in federal property, apparently involving his tween April 20, 1999 and March 20, 2000. purchase of a state-owned television station The 100 cities covered range in size Gusinsky was released from prison after the prosecutor formally charged in St. Petersburg. He says the accusations from Chicago, Illinois, which has a pop- are false. ulation of more than 2.7 million to Bed- him with embezzlement. There is a stench of political retaliation ford Heights, Ohio, with a population It is very difficult for anyone to ad- about this case. Mr. Gusinsky’s company, of about 11,800. dress fully the specifics of such Media-Most, owns numerous newspapers and But the list does not include gun charges, and the Russian government’s magazines as well as Russia’s only inde- deaths from some major cities like case against Mr. Gusinsky, when so lit- pendent television network. Their coverage New York and Los Angeles. tle information has been made avail- of the war in Chechnya has been aggressive The following are the names of some able by the Russian government. How- and skeptical, and they have not been hesi- tant to investigate government corruption of the people who were killed by gun- ever, the circumstances of the case and other misconduct. Last month heavily fire one year ago today—on June 20, raise serious concerns about the initial armed federal agents raided the Media-Most 1999: direction of press freedom and democ- office in Moscow, the first signal that the Ed Barron, 20, St. Louis, Missouri, racy under President Putin. As one of Kremlin might be trying to intimidate Mr. Wayne Burton, 21, Baltimore, Mary- the opening acts of the new Adminis- Gusinsky. land, Nigal H. Cox, 27, Houston, Texas, tration, the government chose to carry Mr. Putin seemed surprised by the arrest, Jermaine Davis, 39, Philadelphia, out a heavy-handed, much publicized calling it ‘‘a dubious present’’ when he ar- raid on an organization led by high rived in Madrid on Tuesday. That offers lit- Pennsylvania, Myron Frenney, 22, tle comfort to anyone concerned about Rus- Houston, Texas, Jose N. Garcia, 18, Chi- profile Government critic. It chose to sia’s fragile freedoms. If the arrest was cago, Illinois, Agustin B. Gonzalez, 21, arrest the leader of an organization, meant to embarrass Mr. Putin while he is Houston, Texas, Fernando Gonzalez- Media Most, that is one of the few out- visiting Western Europe, it is disturbing evi- Cenkeros, 35, Tulsa, Oklahoma, Jovel lets of independent news about con- dence of palace intrigue and political insta- D. Gwinn, 22, Kansas City, Missouri, troversial Russian government poli- bility in the Kremlin. If Mr. Putin received Roshon Hollinger, 5, Atlanta, Georgia, cies. The fact that this arrest took advance notification about the arrest and Antwaune Johnson, 29, Denver, Colo- place while President Putin was trav- failed to order the use of less draconian tac- rado, Edward Johnson, 36, Philadel- eling abroad, and that he publicly spec- tics, he has done a disservice to the press freedoms he says he supports. phia, Pennsylvania, Loris Larson, 35, ulated that the arrest might have been St. Louis, Missouri, Robert Mirabela, excessive, serves to make the situation [From the Washington Post, June 15, 2000] 20, Chicago, Illinois, Frederick and the Government’s policy even more MR. PUTIN SHOWS HIS KGB FACE Rathers, 16, Memphis, Tennessee, confusing and unsettling. Moreover, The most recent defining act of Russia’s Coartney Robinson, 20, Dallas, Texas, this case in not occurring in a vacuum. new president, Vladimir Putin, is more So- Arnold Webb, 30, Detroit, Michigan. After President Putin’s election, but viet than democratic. In an apparent effort

VerDate jul 14 2003 21:51 Oct 15, 2004 Jkt 079102 PO 00000 Frm 00074 Fmt 0686 Sfmt 0634 E:\BR00\S20JN0.002 S20JN0 11438 CONGRESSIONAL RECORD—SENATE June 20, 2000 to intimidate the press, Mr. Putin has en- sia’s only independent national television In so doing, they have been helping ensure gaged in police-state tactics so crude that channel, NTV. While state television in Rus- that the press acts as a critic of govern- even his severest critics seem stunned. For sia often has all the objectivity of a broad- ment—an essential element in Russia’s slow those who wonder whether Mr. Putin’s Rus- cast in Castro’s Cuba. NTV is regarded as progress towards democracy. sia will move toward joining civilized Eu- relatively objective in its news coverage. In Mr. Gusinsky now appears to be paying the rope, and whether it will nurture the legal commentary, however, NTV and other price. Although his arrest is ostensibly on protections that could attract investment Media-Most holdings have been fiercely crit- suspicion of fraud and the illegal acquisition and encourage prosperity, the latest news is ical of the Kremlin, President Putlin and the of state property worth $10m, the action fol- ominous. war in Chechnya, which remains his main lows a particularly heavy-handed raid by se- On Tuesday Mr. Putin’s prosecutors sum- policy achievement to date. For this reason, curity police, armed to the teeth and wear- moned Russia’s leading media tycoon, osten- any campaign against Media-Most, wittingly ing balaclava helmets, on his headquarters— sibly simply to answer some questions about or not, sends a chill throughout Russia’s free all suggesting a deliberate campaign of in- an ongoing case. When Vladimir Gusinsky press. timidation. Other actions by Mr. Putin’s ad- appeared, without lawyers, the government The allegations against Mr. Gusinsky are ministration indicate a similarly harsh atti- threw him into the Moscow hellhole known unclear. A statement said he is accused of tude to any sign of media opposition. The TV as Butyrka Prison. He remains there, though embezzling $10 million from the state, station controlled by Yuri Luzhkov, Mos- he has not yet been formally charged with though no details were given. Even taking cow’s mayor, is having to fight in the courts to renew its license. The registration system any crime. the explanation of embezzlement at face for new publications has been greatly tight- The case has significance beyond the rights value, one is left with the question of just of any one person. Mr. Gusinsky heads a ened. what is the Kremlin’s agenda. After all, as The president does not appear to be a be- media company that owns the only Russian the chief of the oligarchs and Gusinsky rival liever in glasnost, the openness introduced television network not under Kremlin con- Boris Berezovsky noted. ‘‘There is no doubt by Mikhail Gorbachev into the Russian trol. The company also owns a radio station that any person who did business in Russia media. More than any other reform, that and publishes a daily newspaper and a week- over the last 10 years broke the law, directly probably guaranteed the end of Communist ly magazine (the last in partnership with or indirectly in part because of the con- rule and the Soviet Union. By allowing expo- Newsweek, which is owned by The Wash- tradictory nature of Russia law.’’ Mr. sure of the iniquities, incompetence and cor- ington Post Co.). All of these properties have Berezovsky may be thinking, there but for ruption of the previous regime, glasnost en- challenged official orthodoxy by reporting the grace of the Kremlin go I, but he has a sured there was no going back. By definition, an official corruption and on Mr. Putin’s sav- point. however, glasnost was inimical to the old age war in Chechnya. The arrest will be seen, The lack of precise laws and enforcement KGB security service—Mr. Putin’s secretive and no doubt was intended, as an attempt to and the ease with which insider contacts former employer. silence President Putin’s critics. ‘‘There is a could be parlayed into millions has contrib- President Bill Clinton has already ex- pattern here, and we have seen it for some uted to the moral turpitude and general dis- pressed his concern about signs of restric- time,’’ U.S. Deputy Secretary of State regard for law and fair play in much of the tions on press freedom in Russia. When Strobe Talbott told The Post yesterday. ‘‘It Russian establishment. Now even Boris Gerhard Schroeder, the German chancellor, has a look and feel to it that does not reso- Yeltsin’s daughters are under investigation meets Mr. Putin today, he should do the nate rule of law. It resonates muscle; it reso- by Swiss authorities for allegedly running up same, in strong terms. The Russian president nates power; it resonates intimidation.’’ large credit card bills at the expense of a has said he knew nothing of Mr. Gusinsky’s Some Russian officials have presented the Swiss company that was awarded lucrative arrest. He should have done, particularly in arrest as a normal, even commendable, sign Kremlin building contracts. view of the widespread protests that fol- of Mr. Putin’s determination to fight corrup- In Moscow yesterday, 17 prominent busi- lowed. An unfettered press is an essential tion and establish a ‘‘rule of law.’’ Mr. nessmen, including Mr. Berezovsky, wrote an part of a market economy. He has a lot to Gusinsky is one of a band of Russian busi- open letter to the prosecutor general, saying learn. nessmen who became wealthy after the So- Mr. Gusinsky’s arrest threatens to destroy f viet Union’s dissolution in 1991 in part by ex- confidence in Russian as a place to do busi- ploiting close ties to those in power. Wheth- ness. ‘‘Until yesterday we believed we live in ADDITIONAL STATEMENTS er a plausible case can be made against Mr. a democratic country.’’ they wrote. ‘‘Today Gusinsky or any of the other oligarchs is we have serious doubts about that.’’ something we cannot judge. But that Mr. If Mr. Putin really want to tackle corrup- WEST VIRGINIA DAY Putin’s government should choose as its first tion, he may have to put the worst offenders ∑ Mr. ROCKEFELLER. Mr. President, target the only businessman who has dared in jail. But more important, he will have to today we celebrate West Virginia’s challenge Mr. Putin (and by far not the overhaul the Russian legal system and its 137th year as a state. West Virginia wealthiest of the oligarchs) shows that this enforcement mechanisms and reduce the bu- joined the Union in the midst of the affair is not about the rule of law. reaucracy and regulation that give rise to so Mr. Putin’s KGB background is widely much graft and make government more Civil War when President Lincoln ad- known, but when he ascended to power, transparent. Since most successful or power- mitted it to the Union as the 35th state many analysts expected him to wield power ful people in Russia have something to hide. on June 20, 1863. with some subtlety. The audacity of the gov- It is not hard for the Kremlin to wield the The spirit of pride and determination ernment’s assault is almost as stunning as ‘‘law’’ as a political weapon to badger its en- that gave the first West Virginians the the assault itself. The arrest is a slap at emies. But that’s not cracking down on cor- courage to start anew can still be seen President Clinton, who recently in Moscow ruption; that’s just cracking down. in the ever-innovative and evolving urged Mr. Putin to respect freedom of the ways that West Virginians have adapt- press and who chose to speak on Mr. [From the Financial Times, June 15, 2000] ed to changing economics and culture. Gusinsky’s radio station. With how much PUTIN’S PRESSURE This is apparent in the transitions of spine will Mr. Clinton and other Western A move by Vladimir Putin, Russia’s new the coal and steel industries as well as leaders who have been even more eager to president, to clip the wings of his country’s in the increasing cultivation of the embrace Mr. Putin, such as Britain’s Tony formidable business barons was widely an- Blair, now respond? Many Russians will be tourism industry. However, through ticipated. If he is going to reassert the power the continual change, West Virginians watching. of the state over the financial oligarchs who usurped much of its authority during the have held a heritage that remains rich [From the Wall Street Journal, June 15, 2000] Kremlin rule of Boris Yeltsin, that is nec- in song, craft, and tradition. It is as PUTIN V. GUSINSKY essary. But the decision to arrest Vladimir visible at the State Fair of West Vir- The arrest Tuesday of mogul Vladimir Gusinsky, the media tycoon, raises a number ginia in Lewisburg, the Appalachian Gusinsky is either the first salvo in a Krem- of questions. Heritage Festival in Shepherdstown, lin war against rent-seeking oligarchs or a He is neither one of the most powerful nor and the Tamarack Arts Center in Beck- return to the Soviet-era practice of taking one of the most notorious of that group. His ley as it is at Bob’s Grocery in political prisoners. It was either carried out real claim to fame is that his Media-Most Lindside. The state has an abundance with the knowledge of the Russian Presi- group owns the television station NTV and of coal, steel, forests, rivers, and moun- dent, or (as he says) it was done behind his Sevodnya newspaper among others—out- back while he is on a foreign trip. However spoken critics of Mr. Putin’s government. In tains, but her greatest resource has al- you serve it, it doesn’t look good. particular, they have questioned the conduct ways been her people. Mr. Gusinsky may fit the stereotype of a of the war in Chechnya. They have undoubt- This natural charm of West Vir- Russian oligarch, but his arrest is significant edly reflected the inclinations of their owner ginians is reflected in the scenic treas- because his Media-Most group includes Rus- but they have also been healthily outspoken. ures that crown the state. Though born

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