Moscow Times - 06.23.2004

The Moscow Times

Lavrov Talks With 48 NGOs

By Francesca Mereu, Staff Writer

The Foreign Ministry on Tuesday said it wanted to form a common front with Russian NGOs at organizations such as the UN and the Council of Europe, in a move apparently aimed at deflecting international criticism of the Kremlin's human rights record.

Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov told representatives of 48 mostly pro-Kremlin NGOs that the government sought a "platform of cooperation" with the country's NGOs, and said that their views on human rights and economic and social issues were valued. 

After a two-hour, closed-door meeting at the Foreign Ministry late Tuesday, Lavrov said, "While we didn't make any decisions, we did exchange ideas on economic issues and human rights."

But Lavrov declined, when questioned, to say why prominent NGOs that have been critical of the government on human rights and Chechnya were not invited to the meeting.

Among the NGO representatives present were pro-Kremlin political analysts Sergei Markov and Gleb Pavlovsky, former State Duma speaker Gennady Seleznyov, and Aleftina Fedulova, a former Duma deputy and head of the Russian Women's Union.

Notable by their absence were NGOs such as Memorial, Soldier's Mothers and For Human Rights, which were not invited.

"Maybe only those NGOs that are less active from the political point of view were invited," said Lev Ponomaryov, head of the For Human Rights movement, by telephone Tuesday. "I wasn't -- this is news to me." 

NGOs have been worried about possible government moves to restrict their activities and access to funding since President Vladimir Putin, in his annual state of the nation address last month, accused some NGOs of serving "dubious group and commercial interests." 

Soon afterward, Foreign Ministry spokesman Alexander Yakovenko said that NGOs in Chechnya were offering succor and information to rebels. 

NGOs have also been critical of plans, announced last week, to assign a police liaison officer to each group.

See related articles:
Kremlin Seeks Loyal NGOs
NGOs Respond Softly to Putin