[Congressional Record Volume 146, Number 54 (Thursday, May 4, 2000)]
[Senate]
[Pages S3546-S3547]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




SENATE RESOLUTION 303--EXPRESSING THE SENSE OF THE SENATE REGARDING THE 
   TREATMENT BY THE RUSSIAN FEDERATION OF ANDREI BABITSKY, A RUSSIAN 
         JOURNALIST WORKING FOR RADIO FREE EUROPE/RADIO LIBERTY

  Mr. KENNEDY (for himself, Mr. Leahy, and Mr. Grams) submitted the 
following resolution; which was referred to the Committee on Foreign 
Relations:

                              S. Res. 303

       Whereas Andrei Babitsky, an accomplished Russian journalist 
     working for Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty, a United States 
     Government-funded broadcasting service, faces serious charges 
     in Russia after being held captive and beaten by Russian 
     authorities;
       Whereas the mission of Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty's 
     bureaus in Russia is to provide Russian listeners objective 
     and uncensored reporting on developments in Russia and around 
     the world;
       Whereas Russian authorities repeatedly denounced Mr. 
     Babitsky for his reporting on the war in Chechnya, including 
     his documentation of Russian troop casualties and the Russian 
     Federation's brutal treatment of Chechen civilians;
       Whereas Senate Resolutions 223 and 262 of the One Hundred 
     Sixth Congress condemning the violence in Chechnya and urging 
     a peaceful resolution to the conflict were adopted by the 
     Senate by unanimous consent on November 19, 1999, and 
     February 24, 2000, respectively;
       Whereas on January 16, Mr. Babitsky was arrested by Russian 
     police in the Chechen battle zone, was accused of assisting 
     the Chechen forces, and was told he was to stand trial in 
     Moscow;
       Whereas Russian authorities took Mr. Babitsky to a 
     ``filtration camp'' for suspected Chechen collaborators where 
     he was severely beaten and then transferred to an undisclosed 
     location;
       Whereas on February 3, the Government of the Russian 
     Federation announced that it had traded Mr. Babitsky to 
     Chechen units in exchange for Russian prisoners, a violation 
     of the Geneva Conventions to which Russia is a party;
       Whereas on February 25, Mr. Babitsky was released by his 
     captors in the Republic of Dagestan, only to be jailed by 
     Russian officials for carrying false identity papers;
       Whereas Mr. Babitsky says the papers were forced on him by 
     his captors and used to smuggle him across borders;
       Whereas Mr. Babitsky now faces charges from the Government 
     of the Russian Federation of collaborating with the Chechens 
     and carrying false identity papers and is not allowed to 
     leave the city of Moscow;
       Whereas on February 25, a senior advisor in Russia's 
     Foreign Ministry published an article in The Moscow Times 
     entitled ``Should Liberty Leave?'', which condemned the 
     coverage by Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty of the war in 
     Chechnya, particularly reporting by Radio Free Europe/Radio 
     Liberty correspondent Andrei Babitsky, and which stated that 
     it would ``be better to close down the branches of Radio 
     Liberty on Russian territory'';
       Whereas on March 13, the Russian Ministry of the Press 
     ordered Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty's Moscow Bureau to 
     provide complete recordings of broadcasts between February 15 
     and March 15, an action that Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty 
     described as ``designed to intimidate us and others'';
       Whereas on March 14, the Russian Ministry of the Press 
     issued a directive to prevent the broadcast of interviews 
     from Chechen resistance leaders, an act of censorship which 
     undercuts the ability of Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty to 
     fulfill its responsibilities as an objective news 
     organization;
       Whereas the treatment of Mr. Babitsky intimidates other 
     correspondents working in Russia, particularly those covering 
     the tragic story unfolding in Chechnya;
       Whereas Russia's evolution into a stable democracy requires 
     a free and vibrant press; and
       Whereas it is imperative that the United States Government 
     respond vigorously to the harassment and intimidation of 
     Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty: Now, therefore, be it
       Resolved, That the Senate--
       (1) urges the Government of the Russian Federation to drop 
     its charges against Mr. Babitsky;

[[Page S3547]]

       (2) calls upon the Government of the Russian Federation to 
     provide a full accounting of Mr. Babitsky's detention;
       (3) condemns the Russian Federation's harassment and 
     intimidation of Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty and other 
     news organizations;
       (4) calls upon the Government of the Russian Federation to 
     adhere fully to the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, 
     which declares in Article 19 that ``everyone has the right to 
     freedom of opinion and expression; this right includes the 
     freedom to hold opinions without interference and to seek, 
     receive and impart information and ideas through any media 
     regardless of frontiers'';
       (5) urges the Government of the Russian Federation and the 
     President of the United States to implement the 
     recommendations in Senate Resolutions 223 and 262 of the One 
     Hundred Sixth Congress; and
       (6) urges the President of the United States to place these 
     issues high on the agenda for his June 4-5 summit meeting 
     with President Vladimir Putin of the Russian Federation.

  Mr. KENNEDY. Mr. President, it is a privilege to join Senator Grams 
and Senator Leahy in offering this Senate resolution expressing our 
deep concern about the continuing plight of the Russian journalist 
Andrei Babitsky.
  Mr. Babitsky, an accomplished journalist working for Radio Free 
Europe/Radio Liberty, still faces serious charges in Russia after being 
held captive by Russian authorities, beaten, and kept in a ``filtration 
camp'' for suspected Chechen collaborators.
  For 10 years, Mr. Babitsky has helped fulfill the mission of RFE/RL 
to provide Russian listeners with objective and uncensored reporting. 
But Russian authorities, displeased with Mr. Babitsky's courageous 
reporting on the war in Chechnya, accused him of assisting the Chechen 
forces and had him arrested in the battle zone last January.
  After six weeks in captivity, Mr. Babitsky was released, and then 
jailed again by Russian officials for carrying false identity papers. 
He says the papers were forced upon him. After an international outcry 
arose over his case, he was again released. But he still is not allowed 
to leave Moscow, and he still faces charges for carrying false papers 
and aiding the Chechens.
  In addition, Russian authorities have continued to condemn Radio 
Liberty's coverage of the Chechen conflict, and have suggested that 
Radio Liberty should be forced to abandon its facilities in Moscow and 
throughout the Russian Republic. The authorities have taken steps to 
censor Radio Liberty and to intimidate its correspondents and others.
  The United States should respond vigorously to this harassment and 
intimidation of Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty. The Russian government 
should drop its trumped-up charges against Mr. Babitsky.

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