Journal of the Human Rights Movement in the USSR Amnesty International Publications Russian original C Khronika Press 1977, New York English translation copyright C Amnesty International, 1978 All rights reserved Published 1978 by Amnesty International Publications Designed and produced by Index on Censorship, London and New York Printed by Villiers Publications Ltd, London NW5, England ISBN 0-900058 73 0 Copyright of photographs: requests for permission to reproduce any of the photographs in this book should be directed to Amnesty International Publications, 10 Southampton Street, London WC2E 7HF, England, which will pass such requests on to copyright-holders. AMNESTY INTERNATIONAL is a worldwide human rights movement which is independent of any government, political faction, ideology or religious creed. It works for the release of men and women imprisoned anywhere for their beliefs, colour, language, ethnic origin or religion, provided they have not used or advocated violence. 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A Chronicle of Current Events Number 46 r 1 rr s Number 46 Amnesty International Publications 10 Southampton Street London WC2E 7HF 1978 List of Illustrations Contents page 1 Robert Nazaryan, Armenian 'Helsinki group' member Preface 2 Merab Kostava, member of Georgian 'Helsinki group' Abbreviations vii 3 Viktor Rtskhiladze and Zviad Gamsakhurdia, members of same RS FSR Criminal Code: Articles 70 and 191-1 vi group Chronicle number 46 II The Trial of Landa 1 4 Anatoly Shcharansky, member of Moscow 'Helsinki group' The Trial of Begun 6 5 Nikolai (Mykola) Rudenko, leader of Ukrainian 'Helsinki group' The Trial of Barladyanu 7 6 Yulia Okulova (Voznesenskaya), Leningrad poet The Trial of Rudenko and Tikhy 13 7 Ona Pranckunaite, Lithuanian Catholic 'Helsinki groups' under Investigation 20 8 losif Begun, Moscow engineer and 'refusenik' The Ginzburg Case 20 Ill The Orlov Case 24 9 Alexander Bolonkin, Moscow mathematician in Siberian exile The Shcharansky Case 25 10 losif Mendelevich, Riga Jew In Georgia 29 11 Evgeny Pronyuk, Ukrainian philosopher In the Ukraine 30 12 Georgy Davydov, Leningrad geologist Arrests, Searches, Interrogations 34 Events in Lithuania 37 IV 38 13 Kronid Lyubarsky, Moscow astronomer Searches and Interrogations 40 14 Galina Salova (wife of Lyubarsky), astronomer Persecution of Religious Believers 43 15 Nina Strokatava, Ukrainian microbiologist, with Zinaida Grigorenko Persecution of Religious Believers 44 16 Svyatoslav Karavansky (husband of Strokatava), Ukrainian Adventists Pentecostals and Baptists 44 litterateur The Right to Leave One's Country 47 V Pentecostals and Baptists 52 17 Viktor Nekipelov, pharmacist and writer Germans 55 18 Yury Grimm, Moscow worker, 'refusenik' Have Left 56 19 Viktor Kalning, Latvian ex-journalist In the Prisons and Camps 57 20 Boris Mityashin, Leningrad truck-driver M V D directives on Conditions of Detention 57 VI Vladimir Prison 59 21 Georgy Vladimov, Moscow writer, A I chairman The Mordovian Camps 63 22 Grigory Goldshtein, Jewish scientist, Tbilisi The Perm Camps 65 23 David Koop, arrested Baptist, with family Letters and Statements by Political Prisoners 68 Releases 72 VII 73 24 Lyudmila and Larissa Zaitseva, arrested Baptists from Rostov After Release In Tarusa 74 25 Ivan Leven, arrested Baptist from Omsk region, with family In Exile 82 VIII In the Psychiatric Hospitals 82 26 losip Terelya, Ukrainian worker psychiatrically interned Kazan S P H 82 27 Alexander Podrabinek, campaigner against psychiatric abuse Chernyakhovsk S P H 83 28 The Kazan special psychiatric hospital In Ordinary Hospitals 84 II III Extrajudicial Persecution 86 Miscellaneous Reports 87 Preface A Refusal to Give Evidence 89 Relief Fund for Political Prisoners 93 Letters and Statements 97 A Chronicle of Current Events was initially produced in 1968 as a bi- Discussion of the Draft Constitution 101 monthly journal. In the spring of that year members of the Soviet Civil An Independent News Agency 103 Rights Movement created the journal with the stated intention of Swnizdat News 106 publicizing issues and events related to Soviet citizens' efforts to exercise Trials of Former Years 108 fundamental human liberties. On the title page of every issue there The Case of Tikhy (1957) 108 appears the text of Article 19 of the Universal Declaration of Human The Case of Suslensky and Meshener 109 Rights, which calls for universal freedom of opinion and expression. Addenda and Corrigenda 111 The authors are guided by the principle that such universal guarantees Appendix 112 of human rights (also similar guarantees in their domestic law) should List of Political Prisoners 113 be firmly adhered to in their own country and elsewhere. They feel Endnotes 131 that 'it is essential that truthful information about violations of basic Bibliographical Note 132 human rights in the Soviet Union should be available to all who are Index of Names 134 interested in it'. The Chronicles consist mostly of accounts of such violations. In an early issue it was stated that 'the Chronicle does, and will do, its utmost to ensure that its strictly factual style is maintained to the greatest degree possible... •' The Chronicle has consistently maintained a high standard of accuracy. As a regular practice the editors openly acknowledge when a piece of information has not been thoroughly verified. When mistakes in reporting occur, these mistakes are retro- spectively drawn to the attention of readers. In February 1971, starting with number 16, Amnesty International began publishing English translations of the Chronicles as they appeared. This latest volume, containing Chronicle 46, is, like previous ones, a translation of a copy of the original typewritten text. The editorial insertions are the endnotes (numbered) and the words in square brackets. The table of contents, abbreviations, extracts from the RSFSR criminal code, illustrations, names index, bibiographical note and material on the outside and inside of the cover have been added to help the general reader. None of this material appeared in the original texts. The endnotes have been kept to a minimum, partly because the Russian text already refers to earlier issues, and partly because the names index gathers together all references to a particular person. Ukrainian names are usually given in transliteration from the Russian, not in Ukrainian forms. Since Amnesty International has no control over the writing of A Chronicle of Current Events, we cannot guarantee the veracity of all its contents. Nor do we take responsibility for any opinions or judge- ments which may appear or be implied in its contents. Yet Amnesty V International continues to regard A Chronicle of Current Events as an authentic and reliable source of information on matters of direct concern to our own work for the worldwide observance of the Abbreviations Universal Declaration of Human Rights. Amnesty International ASSR Autonomous Soviet Socialist Republic. Subordinate to an March 1978 S S R (see below) and based on the minority nationality whose home is on the territory. The Mordovian A S S R, for example, is subordinate to the Russian Soviet Federat- ed Socialist Republic and so named because it is the RSFSR Criminal Code home of the Mordovian national minority. G B Committee for State Security. Communist Youth League. Each republic within the Soviet Union has its own criminal code. The Komsomol M V D Ministry of Internal Affairs. Chronicle frequently refers to specific articles of these codes. The V D Department of Internal Affairs. articles mentioned most often are found in the criminal code of the V1R Department (of the M V D) for Visas and Registration. Russian Soviet Federated Socialist Republic — RSFSR for short. These articles read: RSFSR Russian Soviet Federated Socialist Republic. S S R Soviet Socialist Republic, of which there are 15 in the Article 70 Anti-Soviet Agitation and Propaganda. Agitation or pro- Union of Soviet Socialist Republics (U S S R). paganda carried on for the purpose of subverting or weakening Soviet Administration for Internal Affairs. authority or of committing particular especially dangerous crimes V D against the state, or the spreading for the same purpose of slanderous fabrications which defame the Soviet political and social system, or the circulation or preparation or keeping, for the same purpose, of litera- ture of such content, shall be punished by deprivation of freedom for a term of 6 months to 7 years, with or without additional