[Congressional Record Volume 146, Number 74 (Wednesday, June 14, 2000)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Pages E1013-E1014]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                    INTRODUCTION OF H. CON. RES. 352

                                 ______
                                 

                        HON. BENJAMIN A. GILMAN

                              of new york

                    in the house of representatives

                        Wednesday, June 14, 2000

  Mr. GILMAN. Mr. Speaker, I submit for the Record the text of House 
Concurrent Resolution 352, a resolution I am today introducing to 
express the concern of the Congress of the United States with regard to 
the increasing intimidation and manipulation of the Russian media by 
the Russian government, its officials and agencies.
  Mr. Speaker, this resolution makes it clear that the Congress is very 
concerned over a number of things that the Russian government has 
done--or, at times, failed to do--with regard to freedom of the press 
in Russia. Very little privatization has been carried out when it comes 
to major sectors of the media in Russia. Enterprises such as large 
printing and publishing houses, newspaper distribution companies, and 
nationwide television frequencies and broadcasting facilities have been 
only partially privatized, if they have been privatized at all. In the 
context of the extensive privatization of state-owned enterprises that 
has taken place in recent years in Russia, the failure to more 
extensively privatize key segments of the media is inexplicable. That 
failure, however, has allowed the Russian government to continue to 
exert an immense influence over the media at all levels, an influence 
that we have seen employed, blatantly and cynically, for political ends 
in the recent parliamentary and presidential elections in Russia.
  Beyond the manipulation of the media that took place in the context 
of the recent Russian elections, this resolution points out that the 
Russian government and its officials and agencies have taken steps 
intended to simply intimidate those in the media that it could not 
manipulate. A new Russian Ministry for the Press was created last July. 
In one of his earliest statements, the Minister in charge of that 
agency stated that its job was to address the ``aggression'' of the 
Russian press. As leading Russian editors said in an open letter to 
former Russian President Boris Yeltsin last August, high-ranking 
government officials have put pressure on the mass media, particularly 
through unwarranted raids by tax police. In fact, Mr. Speaker, as 
recently as May 11th, masked officers of the Russian Federal Security 
Service mounted an armed raid on the headquarters of ``Media-Most,'' 
which operates ``NTV,'' the largest independent national television 
station in Russia, and then, just this week, arrested the owner of 
Media-Most, Vladimir Gusinsky, on what I understand to be rather vague 
charges.
  Mr. Speaker, Russian reporters have been beaten and murdered, and 
police investigations tend to fail, more often than not, to identify 
the perpetrators, much less bring them to justice. Andrei Babitsky, a 
Russian reporter working for Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty and 
covering the war in Chechnya, was arrested by the Russian military and 
then exchanged to unidentified Chechens for Russian POWs, a blatant 
violation of his rights as a Russian citizen. His prosecution by the 
Russian government since his return to Moscow has also involved 
reported abuses of his rights under Russian law. Aleksandr Khinshtein, 
a reporter for ``Moskovsky Komsomolets,'' was ordered by the Federal 
Security Service in January to enter a psychiatric clinic far from 
Moscow for an examination after he wrote critical articles concerning 
illegal activities by Russian officials, a disturbing return to Soviet-
era practices of repression. Thankfully, Mr. Khinshtein's lawyer 
appeared in time to prevent that order from being carried out, but, who 
can say what faces such courageous Russian reporters tomorrow?
  Indeed, who can be sure what will face the Russian people tomorrow? 
This resolution points out a very disturbing fact. Russian intelligence 
agencies are right now moving to ensure total surveillance over the 
Internet in Russia. Under a so-called technical regulation, known by 
its acronym as ``SORM-2,'' the Federal Security Service is installing a 
system by which all transmissions and e-mails within Russia and all 
such transmissions to parties in Russia can be read in real time by 
that agency. At the same time that the manipulation and intimidation of 
the Russian media is taking place, a new structure of surveillance over 
all of Russia's citizens is being created.
  Mr. Speaker, with regard to the abuse of freedom of the press now 
underway in Russia, Thomas Dine, President of Radio Free Europe/Radio 
Liberty, has to date been the only American official who has clearly 
and strongly identified that distressing trend. He has stated publicly 
that the Russian government's efforts to intimidate the mass media in 
that country threaten the chances for democracy and rule of law there. 
I believe that this resolution makes that fact clear, but also makes it 
clear that the freedom of expression of Russians in general is under 
attack by the current Russian government and its agencies.
  This resolution makes it clear that the United States continues to 
support freedom of speech and freedom of the press in Russia. By its 
passage, the President of the United States will be requested to make 
that quite clear to the President of Russia and to emphasize the fact 
that such intimidation and manipulation of the media in Russia is 
incompatible with true democracy.
  Mr. Speaker, I ask my colleagues to join me in supporting passage of 
this important resolution.

                            H. Con. Res. 352

       Whereas almost all of the large printing plants, publishing 
     houses, and newspaper distribution companies, several leading 
     news agencies, and almost all of the nationwide television 
     frequencies and broadcasting facilities in the Russian 
     Federation remain under government control, despite the 
     extensive privatization of state-owned enterprises in other 
     sectors of the Russian economy;
       Whereas the ``Press Freedom Survey 2000'' reported by 
     ``Freedom House'' of Washington, DC, stated that the 
     approximately 2,500 regional and rural newspapers in Russia 
     outside of Moscow are almost completely owned by local or 
     provincial governments;
       Whereas the Government of Russia is able to suspend or 
     revoke broadcast and publishing licenses and apply exorbitant 
     taxes and fees on the independent media;
       Whereas, in 1999, a major television network controlled by 
     the Russian Government canceled the program ``Top Secret'' 
     after it reported on alleged corruption at high levels of the 
     government;
       Whereas, in July 1999, the Government of Russia created a 
     new Ministry for Press, Television and Radio Broadcasting, 
     and Mass Communications;
       Whereas, in August 1999, the editors of fourteen of 
     Russia's leading news publications sent an open letter to 
     then Russian President Boris Yeltsin stating that high-
     ranking officials of the government were putting pressure on 
     the mass media, particularly through unwarranted raids by tax 
     police;
       Whereas Mikhail Lesin, Minister for Press, Television and 
     Radio Broadcasting, and Mass Communications, stated in 
     October 1999 that the Russian Government would change its 
     policies towards the mass media so as to address 
     ``aggression'' by the Russian press;
       Whereas the Russian Federal Security Service or ``FSB'' is 
     reportedly implementing a technical regulation known as 
     ``SORM-2'' by which it could reroute, in real time, all 
     electronic transmissions over the Internet through FSB 
     offices for purposes of surveillance, a likely violation of 
     the Russian constitution's provisions concerning the right to 
     privacy of private communications,

[[Page E1014]]

     according to Aleksei Simonov, President of the Russian 
     ``Glasnost Defense Foundation,'' a nongovernmental human 
     rights organization;
       Whereas such surveillance under SORM-2 would allow the 
     Russian Federal Security Service access to passwords, 
     financial transactions, and confidential company information, 
     among other transmissions;
       Whereas it is reported that over one hundred Russian 
     journalists have been killed over the past decade, with few 
     if any of the government investigations into those murders 
     resulting in arrests, prosecutions, or convictions;
       Whereas numerous observers of Russian politics have noted 
     the blatant misuse of the leading Russian television 
     channels, controlled by the Russian Government, to undermine 
     popular support for political rivals of those supporting the 
     government in the run-up to parliamentary elections held in 
     December 1999;
       Whereas it has been reported that Russian television 
     stations controlled by the Russian Government were used to 
     disparage opponents of Vladimir Putin during the campaign for 
     the presidency in the beginning of this year, and whereas it 
     has been reported that political advertisements by those 
     candidates were routinely relegated by those stations to 
     slots outside of prime time coverage;
       Whereas manipulation of the media by the Russian Government 
     appeared intent on portraying the Russian military attack on 
     the separatist Republic of Chechnya to the maximum political 
     advantage of the Russian Government;
       Whereas in December 1999 two correspondents for ``Reuters 
     News Agency'' and the ``Associated Press'' were reportedly 
     accused of being foreign spies after reporting high Russian 
     casualty figures in the war in Chechnya;
       Whereas the arrest in January 2000, subsequent treatment by 
     the Russian military, and prosecution by the Russian 
     Government of Andrei Babitsky, a correspondent for Radio Free 
     Europe/Radio Liberty covering the war in Chechnya, have 
     constituted a violation of commitments made by the Russian 
     Government to foster freedom of speech and of the press, and 
     have reportedly constituted a violation of the Criminal Code 
     of the Russian Federation;
       Whereas in January 2000 Aleksandr Khinshtein, a reporter 
     for the newspaper ``Moskovsky Komosomlets'', was ordered by 
     the Russian Federal Security Service to enter a clinic over 
     100 miles from his home for a psychiatric examination after 
     he accused top Russian officials of illegal activities, and 
     such detainment in psychiatric wards was previously employed 
     by the former Soviet regime to stifle dissent;
       Whereas the Russian newspaper ``Novaya Gazeta'' was 
     officially warned by the Russian Ministry of the Press for 
     its printing of an interview with Aslan Maskhadov, the 
     elected President of the Republic of Chechnya; an entire 
     issue of ``Novaya Gazeta'', including several articles 
     alleging massive campaign finance violations by the 
     presidential campaign of Vladimir Putin, was lost to 
     unidentified computer ``hackers''; and a journalist for 
     ``Novaya Gazeta'' was savagely beaten in May of this year;
       Whereas President Thomas Dine of Radio Free Europe/Radio 
     Liberty on March 14th, 2000, condemned the Russian 
     Government's expanding efforts to intimidate the mass media, 
     stating that those actions threaten the chances for democracy 
     and rule of law in Russia;
       Whereas ``NTV'', the only national independent television 
     station, which reaches half of Russia and is credited with 
     professional and balanced news programs, has frequently 
     broadcast news stories critical of Russian Government 
     policies;
       Whereas on May 11, 2000, masked officers of the Russian 
     Federal Security Service carrying assault weapons raided the 
     offices of ``Media-Most'', the corporate owner of NTV and 
     other independent media;
       Whereas the May 11th raid on Media-Most represented a 
     failure of recourse to normal legal mechanisms and conveyed 
     the appearance of a politically-motivated attack on Russian 
     independent media;
       Whereas the raid on Media-Most was carried out under the 
     authority of President Putin and Russian Government ministers 
     who have not criticized or repudiated that action;
       Whereas on June 12, 2000, Vladimir Gusinsky, owner of NTV 
     and other leading independent media was suddenly arrested;
       Whereas President Putin claimed not to have known of the 
     planned arrest of Vladimir Gusinsky,
       Whereas the continued functioning of an independent media 
     is a vital attribute of Russian democracy and an important 
     obstacle to the return of authoritarian or totalitarian 
     dictatorship in Russia; and
       Whereas a free news media can exist only in an environment 
     that is free of state control of the news media, that is free 
     of any form of state censorship or official coercion of any 
     kind, and that is protected and guaranteed by the rule of 
     law: Now, therefore, be it
       Resolved by the House of Representatives (the Senate 
     concurring), That the Congress--
       (1) expresses its continuing, strong support for freedom of 
     speech and the independent media in the Russian Federation;
       (2) expresses its strong concern over the failure of the 
     government of the Russian Federation to privatize major 
     segments of the Russian media, thus retaining the ability of 
     Russian officials to manipulate the media for political or 
     corrupt ends;
       (3) expresses its strong concern over the pattern of 
     Russian officials' surveillance and physical, economic, 
     legal, and political intimidation of Russian citizens and of 
     the Russian media that has now become apparent in Russia;
       (4) expresses its strong concern over the pattern of 
     manipulation of the Russian media by Russian Government 
     officials for political and possibly corrupt purposes that 
     has now become apparent;
       (5) expresses profound regret and dismay at the detention 
     and continued prosecution of Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty 
     journalist Andrei Babitsky and condemns those breaches of 
     Russian legal procedure and of Russian Government commitments 
     to the rights of Russian citizens that have reportedly 
     occurred in his detention and prosecution;
       (6) expresses strong concern over the breaches of Russian 
     legal procedure that have reportedly occurred in the course 
     of the May 11th raid by the Russian Federal Security Service 
     on Media-Most and the June 12th arrest of Vladimir Gusinsky;
       (7) calls on the President of the United States to express 
     to the President of the Russian Federation his strong concern 
     for freedom of speech and the independent media in the 
     Russian Federation and to emphasize the concern of the United 
     States that official pressures against the independent media 
     and the political manipulation of the state-owned media in 
     Russia are incompatible with democratic norms; and

     SEC. 2. TRANSMITTAL TO SECRETARY OF STATE.

       The Clerk of the House of Representatives shall transmit a 
     copy of this resolution to the Secretary of State with the 
     request that it be forwarded to the President of the Russian 
     Federation.

     

                          ____________________