Neil Hicks [Director, Human Rights Defenders Program, Human Rights First]: "The brief detention of five foreign human rights activists who were attending a planned international meeting commemorating the work of Anna Politkovskaya in the provincial city of Nizhny Novgorod on October 6, 2007 should be seen as an escalation in official harassment and interference in the work of the independent human rights organization, the Nizhny Novgorod Foundation to Promote Tolerance (NNFPT). I will summarize below the events that I witnessed during my stay in Nizhny Novgorod from October 4 — October 6, but they should be seen in the context of a series of official attacks against the organization dating back to at least 2005 that resulted in the conviction of its director, Stanislav Dmitrievsky of having violated the law against extremism in January 2006 and to the court ordered closure of the Russian Chechen Friendship Society (RCFS), the precursor to the NNFPT, upheld by the Federal Supreme Court in January 2007. More recently, the Russian authorities have sought to exclude the RCFS from participation in meetings at the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe open to NGOs.

On October 4, 2007 I arrived in Nizhny Novgorod to discover that my reservation at the Central Hotel had been canceled. Staff members of the host organization contacted several hotels in Nizhny Novgorod seeking reservations for me and other foreign visitors. At one hotel they were told that the rooms reserved for foreign guests had developed a leak, and were not habitable. Finally, I was allowed to check in to the Nizhegorodskaya Hotel for one night. When I asked at the reception desk if I could extend my stay for a second night they said that I would have to vacate my room by 4 pm. In traveling to various hotels seeking reservations for foreign guests we observed an unusually heavy police presence in hotel lobbies. Police surveillance was also apparent outside the NNFPT office.

Immediately prior to our arrival in Nizhny Novgorod, the organizers had been informed by their bank that they would not be permitted to access the funds in their account that they had been planning to use to cover the expenses of the meeting.

On October 5, 2007 the organizers learned at 11.00 am that the conference room they had reserved in a hotel for a press conference scheduled to be held at 1.00pm was no longer available. They were told that it had been let for another conference. Also, that morning, traffic police towed away the small minibus, belonging to a staff member of the organization, which the organizers had been using to transport participants, claiming that it had been stolen, even though the owner was present with his registration documents.

Participants traveled by public transport to the hotel where the press conference had been scheduled. They met up with journalists, standing outside the hotel and traveled in their cars to the offices of another human rights organization, where an impromptu press conference was held.

After lunch, while searching for a place to spend the night, we observed that we were being followed by an unmarked vehicle. We lost the tail and I was driven to an unoccupied private apartment in the city, where I spent the night.

The next morning, October 6, 2007, would be participants in the now canceled events met at the offices of the NNFPT. An unmarked vehicle in which there was someone shooting video footage, visible by a red dot pointing through tinted windows, was parked outside the building. At about 11.00 am group of police officers arrived at the office, identifying themselves as being from the immigration department. They took the passports and registration documents of the foreign guests present in the office. A few minutes later, another group of policemen arrived and took away one of the organization's leaders, Stanislav Dmitrievsky for questioning into an ongoing investigation into the alleged use of counterfeit software by the organization. At about 11.30 am a group of five foreign guests were taken to the immigration department in a police mini bus.

At the immigration department we were held in a public waiting area and taken into offices one by one to be questioned and for our statements to be recorded. After about one hour, an armed guard was posted in the room, carrying a machine gun. He was joined by a second uniformed police officer who sat opposite to us. We were well treated throughout and no threats were made against any of us.

I was the last person in the group to be questioned because they had to wait for the arrival of a translator to assist me. I was informed that I was guilty of an administrative violation on two counts: because I had stayed in a private apartment and not a hotel, and because my tourist visa does not permit me to meet with private individuals and organizations in Russia. It was explained to me that as a tourist I should travel with a tour guide and visit tourist sites. I objected that the terms of my visa application required only that I register my arrival in Russia within three days of my arrival, which I did during my stay at the hotel. I also questioned whether it was the case that no one who comes to Russia on a tourist visa meets with private individuals. I was told that many people may do this, but in my case I had committed a violation.

I was given an opportunity to write my objections in English on the statement form, which I did. At the end of the questioning, I was taken to the Head of Department for her decision. She explained that I could be fined up to 5,000 Roubles ($200) but because I had tried to stay in a hotel, and because I had not been informed by my travel agency about the restrictions attached to my visa status she would only impose a fine of 3,000 Roubles. It was explained to me that if I paid the fine it would mean that I accepted the punishment, but I did have the right to appeal within ten days through the British consulate. I informed the head of department that I would appeal against the penalty.

After about four and half hours we were released from the immigration department. All five of us had been served with fines, which we had all declined to pay. When we returned to the office of the NNFPT we found a police search in progress. A group of six men, including police officers and witnesses selected by the police were conducting a search for counterfeit software. They seized CDs found in the office. They locked the door and held the Foundations' Director, Oksana Chelysheva in the room alone while they conducted the search.

Stanislav Dmitrievsky was released after almost three hours of questioning.

That evening, we left Nizhny Novgorod on the overnight train to Moscow. Our departure was monitored by uniformed police officers who were stationed at the railway station.

These events, while relatively minor and nonthreatening in themselves, constitute an escalation in the level of harassment directed towards international human rights activists in Russia. The foreign guests had a variety of immigrations statuses. One of us was a student, resident in Moscow, another a resident researcher for Amnesty International. Nevertheless, we were all issued with violations and fines.

From the perspective of the host organizations in Nizhny Novgorod these incidents were anything but nonthreatening. They represent a flagrant breach of their rights to assemble peacefully and particularly to meet and communicate with international activists of varying kinds. Such actions are a violation of OSCE Human Dimension Commitments, the U.N. Declaration on Human Rights Defenders and of basic rights upheld in international human rights law."