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.