Background Release

Moscow, July 11, 1995

The campaign of Radical Party and A.R.A. on collecting signatures under appeal "For Conscientious Objection Right, Against Militarism" to the both chambers of Russian parliament and president of the country continues.

5,629 signatures from 66 regions of Russia are collected - the data is updated on July 10. The most big amount of signatures (more than 100) are collected in following regions: Moscow and Moscow region - 1,978, Cheljabinsk region - 1,785, Saint Petersburg and Leningrad region - 628, Krasnodar region - 148, Tatarstan - 113.

Among those signed the appeal are 18 members of the State Duma (Kara-Kys Arakchaa, Valerij Borscev, Mihail Glubokovskij, Vladimir Gricanj, Anatolij Kashpirovskij, Vasilij Lipickij, Viktor Lotkov, Vladimir Manannikov, Valentin Mihajlov, Eduard Pascenko, Julij Rybakov, Ivan Starikov, Magomed Tolboev, Aleksandr Turbanov, Igorj Ustinov, Bembja Hulhachiev, Viktor Shejnis, Anatolij Juscenko). To the appeal have also adhered: Andrej Bitov, writer; Dmitrij Bykov, journalist; Zufar Gareev, writer; Aleksandr Gorodnickij, poet and academician; Vasilij Gusljannikov, president of the Republic of Mordovia; Viktor Dorkin, mayor of Dzerzhinskij (Moscow region); Viktor Zolotarev, president of the Party of Constitutional Democrats; Marija Kirbasova, president of Russian Committee of Soldiers' Mothers; Kirill Kovaljdzhi, poet; Ljudmila Kotesova, member of Council of Federation; Stepan Orlov, president of Youth Liberal Union; Marina Salje, co-president of Free Democratic Party; Igorj Serebrjanyj, member of Moscow Regional Duma;

Zinaida Fedorova, vice mayor of Vladikavkaz; Jurij Scekochihin, journalist.

During last two weeks were created and have started to act promotory groups of the petition campaign in 24 Russian cities (apart of Moscow and Saint Petersburg, where are offices of Radical Party): Aramilj (Sverdlovsk region), Arkhangelsk, Borovsk (Kaluga region), Vladimir, Voronezh, Gelendzhik (Krasnodar region), Djurtjuli (Republic of Bashkortostan), Ekaterinburg, Kemerovo, Klin (Moscow region), Krasnodar, Lipetsk, Mezhdurechensk (Kemerovo region), Murmansk, Nazran, Novgorod, Orenburg, Orehovo-Zuevo (Moscow region), Pskov, Tarusa (Kaluga region), Cheljabinsk, Elista, Juzhno-Sakhalinsk, Jaroslavlj.

An active participation in the petition campaign take militants of Russian Committee of Soldiers' Mothers, Association of Soldiers' Mothers (Cheljabinsk region), Human Rights Organization "Soldiers' Mothers" (Saint Petersburg).

In the end of June - beginning of July in several cities were organized public assemblies of A.R.A. dedicated to the petition campaign for conscientious objection right, which gathered some tens of participants each. Such meetings were hold in Tarusa (Kaluga region) on June 20, in Cheljabinsk on June 24, in Saint Petersburg on July 4. In the nearest future such public activities are scheduled in Ekaterinburg, Vladimir, Arkhangelsk, Vladivostok, Juzhno-Sakhalinsk, Khabarovsk, Rjazanj, Tula, Novgorod, Voronezh, Obninsk, Jaroslavlj and other cities.

The goal of the petition campaign conducted by A.R.A. and Radical Party is to collect several tens of thousands of signatures in all Russian regions. Collected signatures will be presented to the members of the State Duma in Autumn, when Duma should examine again in second reading the draft of Federal Law "On Alternative Civilian Service". This draft being adopted in first reading in December last year, was then diverted on May 24 in second reading, since "the proposals of the Defence Ministry were not enough taken into account". Defence Ministry insists on selective character of the conscientious objection right (on religious reasons only) and possibility to send conscientious objectors to serve in the auxiliary units of Russian armed forces.

A.R.A. and Radical Party demand - and it is displayed in the appeal "For Conscientious Objection Right, Against Militarism" - that alternative civilian service should have a real civilian character being in any case not connected with armed forces and military structures, that conscientious objection right should be recognized as a universal civil right, that conscription commissions would not have right to prove sincerity of a draftee's convictions, that alternative civilian service would of the same length as military one.

For more information:

A.R.A., tel./fax +7-095-9239127