default header
08 April 2004
Helsinki Rights Groups Condemn 15-year Jail Term for Sutiagin
April 7, Vienna, Moscow: International Helsinki Federation for Human Rights
The International Helsinki Federation for Human Rights (IHF) and the Moscow Helsinki Group (MHG) are condemning the 15-year jail term to which a Moscow court sentenced Igor Sutiagin April 7 for treason.
"On the basis of the evidence known to us today, it appears that the jury in this case may have been manipulated," said Aaron Rhodes, IHF executive director. "The IHF calls for the conviction of Sutiagin to be quashed," he added in an April 7 IHF press release.
Sutiagin had been found guilty of passing information on weapons systems to a western company, even though evidence was presented that the reports given to the company were derived from information in the public domain, according to the release.
The International Helsinki Federation represents 42 Helsinki Committees in the OSCE (Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe) region. The Helsinki Committees work together to protect human rights throughout Europe, North America and Central Asia, monitoring compliance with the human rights provisions of the 1975 Helsinki Final Act and other international standards. human rights standards
Following is a press release by the International Helsinki Federation for Human Rights:
(begin text)
International Helsinki Federation for Human Rights
Vienna, Austria
April 7, 2004
RUSSIA: 15-YEAR JAIL TERM FOR SUTIAGIN CONDEMNED: IHF CALLS FOR CONVICTION TO BE QUASHED
Vienna, Moscow, 7 April 2004 - The International Helsinki Federation for Human Rights (IHF) and the Moscow Helsinki Group (MHG) condemned the 15-year jail term handed down by a Moscow court today to Igor Sutiagin for treason.
The sentence followed a day after a jury found Sutiagin guilty as charged on accusations of passing information on weapons systems to a western company, Alternative Futures. The court ignored evidence from Sutiagin's defence that the reports supplied to the company were compiled from information readily available in the public domain.
"Once again, we are witnessing the troubling phenomenon of "spy-mania" that has come to characterize Russia under President Putin's administration", stated Dr. Aaron Rhodes, Executive Director of the IHF. "The international community and the Russian public should condemn this creeping authoritarianism that threatens to reverse Russia's democratic development", he added.
The IHF is seriously concerned by the failure of the judge to ask the jury to address the question regarding the alleged classified nature of the materials Sutiagin supplied. The trial was closed to the media and the general public on grounds of national security. Since Sutiagin's arrest in October 1999, the IHF has repeatedly expressed concern that the charges and legal proceedings against him were politically motivated.
"On the basis of the evidence known to us today, it appears that the jury in this case may have been manipulated", stated Dr. Rhodes. "The IHF calls for the conviction of Sutiagin to be quashed", he added.
For further information: Aaron Rhodes (IHF), 676-635 6612 Ludmilla Alexeyeva (MHG), 095-207 6069 Malcolm Hawkes (IHF, Moscow), 926-217 0303
(end text)
(Distributed by the Bureau of International Information Programs, U.S. Department of State. Web site: http://usinfo.state.gov)
