For the attention of the Coordinators of the Committee on Foreign Affairs

Brussels, June 5, 2000

Dear Colleague,

following the speech that Mr. Idigov, Chairman of the Committee for Foreign Affairs of the Chechen Parliament and special representative of President Maskhadov, made on behalf of the Transnational Radical Party before the UN Human Rights Commission in Geneva, the Russian Federation asked the UN Committee for NGOs to revoke the Consultative Status of 1st category before the ECOSOC of the Transnational Radical Party.

Besides this reason, the Russian Federation mentioned also the position defended and promoted by the TRP on the drugs issue. For further information on the whole question you may consult the Memorandum that I take the liberty to send you.

If the request of the Russian Federation was to be accepted by the UN Committee for NGOs, this would represent a very dangerous precedent concerning freedom of opinion and freedom of expression of NGOs at the United Nations.

For these reasons and because of the urgency of this problem (the Committee for NGOs will take its decision during the second half of June) we believe that the EP should take a very clear position on this matter. Therefore I send you a draft resolution that I hope can count on the support of your group.

Best regards,

Olivier Dupuis