:. Правозащитный Центр "Мемориал" "Миграция и Право"/ „MemorialHuman Rights CenterMigration RightProgramm

 

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"Memorial" Human Rights Center "Migration Right" Programm

 Contents

Migration situation 3

Objectives and Tasks of the Network 9

How "Migration Right" Network functions 10

Partners of the "Migration Right" Network 15

Relations with state agencies 17

Publication 19

List of Regional Legal Offices

of the "Migration Right" Network 25

 

Network of legal assistance to refugees, forced migrants and internally displaced persons in regions of Russia

"The "Migration Rights" network of legal assistance to forced migrants was founded in 1996 as a programme of the "Memorial" Human Rights Centre, an organization veteran in the filed of human rights protection in Russia.

The basic aim of the programme is to make competent legal aid free of charge accessible to every forced migrant.

At present the "Migration Rights" network spans 46 regions of Russia. Over 80% of all forced migrants reside in the covered regions. The total number of regional offices reached 56. Four of them are located in Chechen republic. Republics of Tatarstan and Dagestan, Rostovskaya, Voronezhskaya, Orlovskaya and Chelyabinskaya oblasts, Krasnodarski and Stavropolsky krai have two offices each. The network employs professional lawyers, many of them are highly experienced attorneys. Our first priority is to provide legal assistance in the regions adjacent to the territories that became a permanent source of migration.

Practice shows that the most active regional offices become centres of a regional network, organizing additional offices in the region and obtaining funding for them.

The coordinating centre of the network is located in Moscow.

The programme operates with the support from the UN High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR), Ford Foundation, and Mott Foundation. Funding from the TACIS democratic programme of the European Union played an important role in the development of the network. Serious financial support is provided by the government of the Netherlands through the European Council on Refugees and Exiles (ECRE). ECRE is an international organization uniting 80 non-government organizations that provide assistance to refugees from 31 countries.

As a result of many years of cooperation between ECRE and "Migration Rights" Network, on February 27, 2003 the "Memorial" Human Rights Centre became the first member of ECRE on the territory of the CIS.

Every year network lawyers provide about 22000 consultations, render assistance in the preparation of over 2000 claims, complaints and applications to courts, provide 400 to 500 free consultations at temporary placement centres and places with high migrant population. Lawyers of the Network represent interests of migrants in courts in over 1000 cases annually.

The Head of the network is Svetlana Alekseevna Gannushkina who also serves on the Board of the "Memorial" Human Rights Centre and is a member of the Commission on Migration of the Russian Government as well as a member of the Human Rights Commission under the President of the Russian Federation.

Contact information:

Address: 12, Maly Karetny pereulok,

Moscow, 103051

Telephone +7(095)200 65 06,

251 53 19,

790 74 55,

Fax +7(095)251 53 19,

917 89 61

e-mail: sgannuch@mtu-net.ru,

lcrmoscow@mtu-net.ru,

web-site: http://refugee.memo.ru

 

Migration situation

Migration situation in Russia, starting from 1991, was determined by a number of factors, primarily those related to the dissolution of the USSR. More than 3 millions of Russians out of 25 millions who resided outside Russia moved to the Russian Federation from other republics of the former Soviet Union. Warfare and ethnical conflicts caused migration flows within the country and from outside its borders.

In 1993 Russia acceded to the 1951 UN Convention on Refugees. At the same time the laws "On Refugees" and "On Forced Migrants" became effective. The laws were amended in 1997 and 1995, respectively. Resolution No. 274 of the RF Government of April 9, 1993 determined the order of granting temporary asylum on the territory of RF. *

 

The international law considers persons who are forced to leave the place of abode as a result of an armed conflict, continuous violations of human rights, acts of God or calamities caused by the activity of man, and who do not cross state borders internally displaced persons (IDPs). There is no such notion in the Russian legislation.

Temporary asylum is granted to a foreign citizen or stateless person when there are grounds for recognizing him as a refugee or there are humanitarian reasons that require his temporary stay on the RF territory (for example, poor health) until such reasons are no longer effective or the legal status of the person changes.

We will call persons in coressponding situations refugees, forced migrants and IDP irrespective of whether they are in the official status or not.

We estimate the total number of migrants comprising the target group of the network, that is, refugees, forced migrants, IDP, and, in part, labour migrants who need protection, at about 3 million.

In May 1996, Russian authorities declared at the UN Conference on migration in CIS countries that there are 290,000 refugees and 900 forced migrants with corresponding status on the territory of Russia. All of them came to the country exclusively from the republics of the former USSR.

During the last few years these numbers have dropped considerably. Certificates of most refugees were decided to have been wrongly issued. It turned out that the correct issuance of the certificates would have involved passing a status determination procedure. Status is granted to forced migrants for the term of 5 years, upon the expiration of which migration bodies have to prolong it in case the migrant failed to settle down. However, the majority of forced migrants lost the status without receiving any assistance from the state.

As of today (the end of the year 2003), only 10 thousand persons have the status of refugee, out of whom 8 thousand are inhabitants of Southern Ossetia who received the status in Northern Ossetia-Alania.

The number of refugees from far-away countries is 411 persons only. There are about 1200 people who received temporary asylum. The actual number of refugees is much higher, there are no less than 150 thousand Afghani only on the territory of the Russian Federation.

About 470 thousand migrants have the status of forced migrant.

There is no special IDP status in the Russian legislation. The status of forced migrant granted during the first Chechen campaign was no longer granted when the warfare in Chechnya resumed.

The foundation for migration policy during the last 3 years has been the struggle against illegal migration involving about 2 million Russian residents who previously resided in the country on legitimate grounds.

Federal Law "On the Legal Status of Foreign Citizens on the Territory of the RF", which became effective in November 2002, deprived no less than 500 thousand persons (2 millions according to other evaluations) of our former compatriots who arrived to Russia on legitimate grounds of legal status. This law distinguishes between three types of legal status for foreign citizens and statless persons on the territory of the RF: temporary stay, temporary residence and permanent residence. Authorization for permanent residence is followed by the issuance of a residence permit. Temporary stay of foreigners who obtained a visa is legal through the term of visa validity. For the CIS citizens who have the right of visa-free entry to Russia, the temporary stay cannot exceed 3 months. Authorization for temporary residence is made for the term of 3 years, but only within the framework of regional quotas. 6 months are allotted for the consideration of a case, thus persons in the status of temporary stay may not have enough time to change it to the temporary residence status in one visit and in practice are forced to cross the border several times. Finally, foreigners in the temporary residence status have no right to freedom of movement in violation of article 27 of the RF Constitution and international legal standards.

The quadrilateral treaty of February 26, 1999 made between Russia, Kyrgyzstan, Kazakhstan and Belorussia on the right of citizens of one of the parties to acquire citizenship of another in the simplified order (registration) doesnÕt function in practice. Such unilateral termination of a treaty on the spur of the moment violates rights of Russian nationals moving to Russia.

Federal Law "On RF Citizenship" left many relatives of Russian citizens stateless. Suffered their elderly parents, children, husbands and wives. Amendments passed on November 11, 2003 improved the situation but did not resolve the problem completely. It is also necessary to point out that for the first time from 1993 registration at the place of residence (propiska) was legally recognized as authority. In the amendments propiska is used thrice to determine such a fundamental right of an inhabitant of Russia as the right to become a citizen. Thus, achievements of the Russian legal system in overcoming the institute of propiska, liquidation of which is one of international obligations of Russia, are effectively reduced to zero.

The practice of law enforcement often does not conform to laws and international obligations of Russia. The Government does not take measures to implement standards declared in laws on refugees and forced migrants, which are called upon to facilitate their settlement at a new place and integration into the society. Budget allocations for the settlement of persons in the status of forced migrant or refugee are being reduced. Forced migrants do not receive loans for acquisition or construction of housing, since loans can only be made by legal entities according to the new legislation. Subsidies allocated to forced migrants are so insignificant that those few who obtained them cannot solve their hosuing problem with the money.

In summer 2003 the Resolution of the RF Government of July 4, No. 404 "On the order of making compensation payments for lost residence and property, damaged in the course of crisis resolution in Chechen Republic to those permanently residing on its territory". The amounts of payments envisaged by resolution No. 404 is 300 thousand roubles (10000 USD) for residence and 50 thousand roubles (1500 USD) for property, which is no small amount for inhabitants of the Chechen Republic. However, the Resolution includes a rather questionable mechanism of housing loss determination. The right to receive compensation payments is only granted to citizens whose housing is included into the list of hosuing not subject to restoration as determined by the Government of the Chechen Republic and the RF State Committee on Construction, Housing and Public Utilities in coordination with the RF Ministry of Economic Development and Trade and the RF Ministry of Interior. The other inhabitants of Chechnya will get nothing. According to the words of Chechen authorities, they should wait until funding for the programmes of restoration of social and economic sphere of Chechnya is received by the republican budget. Immediately, a struggle for inclusion of housing into the list was started. This list did not include destroyed premises, and sometimes included premises not suitable for living. Authorities declared numerous abuses and ceased payments.

Great hopes were attached to the item 10 of Resolution No. 404, which obliged responsible ministries to submit proposals for introduction of amendments to the resolution of the RF Government of April 30, 1997, No. 510, "On the order of compensation payments for lost housing and/or property to citizens who suffered as a result of crisis resolution in the Chechen Republic and who left it irrevocably" to the RF Government in the time of 2 months. These amedments should have extended the timeframe of the validity of Resolution No. 510 so that the compensation could be received by those who left Chechnya during the second wave of warfare. Besides, the size of the compensation, which, according to Resolution No. 510, constituted no more than 120 thousand roubles (4000 USD) for housing and 20 thousand for property, should have been increased. However, as of the date of publication of this booklet the amendements have not been made.

Thus, in spite of the fact that Russia ratified the 1951 UN Convention on Refugees and the Additional Protocol of 1967, as well as passed relatively liberal laws on refugees and forced migrants, the state still refuses to treat migration problems as high priority ones.

Several reorganizations of the Federal Migration Service (FMS) took place during the last 3 years. The agency ceased to exist as an independent institution in May 2002 and was incorporated as a department into the Ministry on Affairs of Federation, National and Migration Policy. When the ministry was dissolved in October 2001, the FMS became part of the RF Ministry of Interior. These reorganizations caused a paralysis in the activity of territorial bodies for a lengthy period of time, and funding for programmes of assistance to forced migrants was practically stopped. Now that the territorial migration agencies are transformed into the Department on Migration Affairs (DMA) and incorporated into territorial bodies of interior, the relation between FMS of the Ministry of Interior and territorial DMAs is not that of direct subordination. It is strictly limited to methodological support. One cannot expect a consistent and humanitarian migration policy under such conditions.

The existing situation where forced migrants lack legal protection makes them not only overcome difficulties of settlement at a new place, but also defend their legitimate rights, with the right to legalization becoming the principal one. Violation of migrantsÕs rights at the level of regional and departmental standard regulation and in administrative practice is aggravated by the fact that employees of bodies of interior cannot master all peculiarities of changed and unreasonably complicated standard acts and procedures for issuing authorization for temporary and permanent residence in a short period of time. The lost right to stay on the territory of Russia for unlimited period of time deprives our former compatriots from the CIS and Baltic countries of access to medical assistance, school education, allowances for children, pensions, hope for housing. Thus, part 3 of article 62 of the RF Constitution that reads "foreign citizens and persons without citizenship in the RF use rights and bear obligations on equal basis with RF citizens" is violated.

Without enough information on their rights and obligations and without resources to pay for legal support and attorneyÕs assistance, migrants become a permanent object of abuse by regional authorities and specific officials.

In these conditions free legal counsultations provided by NGOs to forced migrants become the main, if not the only, source of independent and objective legal assistance.

Defending rights of forced migrants in court is not always effective. Judges often do not have necessary knowledge of migration law and their perspective onto the practice of state agencies being appealed against is unexamining. It is not rare that they give preference to local normative acts over the federal legislation. However, the judicial power, and in the first place the Constitutional Court and the Supreme Court, at present gives a grounded hope that legislation and statutory acts will be brought into conformance with the RF Constitution and international law.

Resolution of the RF Government of April 30, 1997 No. 510 on compensation to citizens who left Chechnya irrevocably during the time of military actions, contained a requirement of placement on record at migration bodies; besides, in 2001 the term of the validity of this Resolution was limited. Upon our application, the Supreme Court recognized that both are illegitimate. This, according to the FMS data, made it possible for more than 1700 families additionally to receive compensation. Each payment to a family constituted 4000Ñ4500 dollars, and the lump sum of payments made as a result of these two decisions of the Supreme Court constituted approximately 7 millions dollars. We also managed to achieve introduction of changes into several Moscow acts through court, and first of all into the rules of registration at the place of residence and sojourn in Moscow and Moscow region. Requirement concerning norms of living space, terms of registration and the need of registration for children to be accepted to schools and kindergartens were abolished.

On multiple occasions (in 1996 and 1998) the Constitutional Court ruled as unconstitutional laws and governmental resolutions that reintroduced the institute of registration at the place of residence, limiting registration in time or by availability of living space, levying high additional fees on foreign citizens when they acquire property in the RF, etc. In November 2001 the Constitutional Court ruled that conviction on a criminal charge cannot serve as a ground for revoking the forced migrant status.

Great expectations are associated with the possibilities of the European Court (EC), in spite of the lengthiness of its procedures. Six applications supported by the "Memorial" Human Right Centre were submitted to the EC by victims of hostilities in Chechnya have been recognized as acceptable and will be considered in the near future.

 

Objectives and Tasks of the Network

The main task of the Network is protection of rights and legitimate interests of forced migrants. It is carried out through the provision of free legal assistance, preparation of documents including court documents for them, support of their interests in administrative and judicial bodies. Legal assistance in the framework of the programme is provided primarily to:

_ Refugees and forced migrants with the corresponding legal status;

_ Persons who applied for the status of refugee or forced migrant;

_ Persons who were refused status, consideration of case or acceptance of documents;

_ Persons recognized as out of status;

_ Persons who are in the same situation as refugees or forced migrants, but for some reason cannot apply for status;

_ Persons who are in the same situation as refugees or forced migrants, but for some reason cannot apply for status;

_ Victims of military and ethnical conflicts and IDP;

_ Labour migrants from regions with difficult economic situation.

In a number of cases legal assistance is also provided to other categories of migrants.

The specific task of providing legal assistance is only a part of a more general and promising goal: to create conditions for the integration of migrants into the society, obtain a solution of their problems on the basis of generally accepted legal standards; eliminate discriminatory approach and arbitrary rule on behalf of officials at all levels. That is why, in addition to providing specific legal assistance to migrants, the Network pursues more general objectives.

_ First of all, it is the generalization of judicial and administrative practice and development of common legal opinion on the most typical and the most complicated categories of cases.

_ Besides, it is the analysis and monitoring of migration situation in the regions, the analysis of the situation with status granting, social protection as well as the analysis of work of migration services and local authorities with forced migrants.

_ Education of migrants and enhancement of their juridical awareness through consultative receptions and publication of manuals.

_ Development of public consciousness, understanding of migration problems and benevolent attitude towards migrants through active work with mass media and establishment of constructive relationships with authorities at all levels.

_ Bringing up a new generation of lawyers in the framework of the Network, who are knowledgeable and oriented at the protection of migrantsÕ rights. This is achieved by means of attracting law students to the work in the Network as volunteers or practitioners for a small fee.

_ Labour migrants, who are put in the position of servile dependence on employers and hence need support, are in an extremely difficult position. It is particularly true of those who were forced to look for a job in Russia by problems in the economy bordering with danger to their lives and lives of their children. Such labour migrants can undoubtedly be referred to the category of forced ones, and their protection became a new task of the Network.

_ In addition to that, xenophobia is developing at a frightening speed and racism is growing in the society. As a result, the position of refugees and persons seeking asylum becomes not only uncertain from the legal point of view, but also physically dangerous. The network is forced to undertake protection of persons who suffered from xenophobia and became subject of persecution by extremist groups and law enforcement officers infected by racism.

 

How "Migration Right" Network functions

Regional offices are the foundation of the Network. As a rule, they are created on the basis of non-government organizations engaged in problems of migration and defending rights of refugees, forced migrants and IDPs. We make an agreement of non-commercial partnership with these organizations. Several regional offices operate directly from the base of state migration agencies. This is possible in the regions where the attitude towards migrants is benevolent.

The Network proved to be an efficient mechanism for the work of the "Memorial" Human Rights Centre as a whole. After the resumption of hostilities in Chechnya, reception rooms of a more general profile were organized on the base of the Network. They serve as the foundation for the "Trouble Spots" programme headed by the chairman of the "Memorial" HRC Oleg Petrovich Orlov.

It is only in the Republic of Ingushetia and the Chechen Republic that the Network pays rent for reception rooms, which in addition to legal assistance are used for monitoring of human rights violations and social problems. Results of the monitoring are brought to the attention of the general public.

Obligations of each regional office include:

_ Consultations, no less than 16 hours a week. Information about the place and time of consultations is published in local press, advertized through regional migration bodies, and brought to the attention of migrants through other methods;

_ Assistance in preparation of complaints and applications to administrative and judicial bodies;

_ Legal assistance to non-governmental organizations working to secure migrantsÕ rights, first of all to organizations of migrants;

_ Direct participation in court trials in the most important or complicated cases;

_ Trips to temporary placement centres and compact settlements of migrants for consultations;

_ Organization of round table discussions on the problems of migration in cooperation with representatives of state agencies;

_ Participation in regular seminars of the Network;

_ Analysis of local legislative acts on the problems of migration, participation in the development of such acts;

_ Answers to letters from migrants;

_ Work with mass media at the regional level;

_ Submission of regular reports on migration situation in the region and about the work of the office to the Coordination Centre;

_ Support of local activists, involvement of law students into the work with migrants;

_ Use of the computer intranet.

Regional offices report to the Coordination Centre. The Coordination Centre accumulates and analyzes all information on the activity of the Network, including reports from regional offices, and conducts organizational work;

develops programmes of training seminars, organizes the seminars and publishes their proceedings and other literature1 following the seminars;

acquires and supplies regional offices with necessary literature, as well as technical equipment;

keeps books of the Network.

Employees of the Coordination Centre periodically visit regional offices, participate in regional events and are engaged in regular electronic communication with all the regional offices of the Network.

Reports are sent in three times a month unless the sponsor requires more frequent reporting. Reports are prepared using a common format and stored in corresponding Lotus Notes databases. All regional offices are connected with each other via Internet. To facilitate exchange of experience, a database on judicial cases handled by lawyers in the regional offices has been developed. The databases resides on a server running Lotus Domino, which is located at the Coordination Centre in Moscow.

The centre developed and constantly updates databases on legislation, on replies from ministries and other state agencies to inquiries of Network employees of general relevance, on the migration situation and its evaluation by lawyers, other organizations and media. Each regional office maintains Lotus Notes client software and local replicas of necessary databases locally. Periodic synchronization with the central server makes it possible to achieve timely updating of information.

Besides, the majority of information on the operation of the Network, including addresses of the regional offices, their telephones and hours are accessible via Internet at the address http://refugee.memo.ru.

The Network employs highly qualified lawyer consultants who analyze and generalize reports of regional colleagues and judicial practice;

answer to inquiries from regional offices, participate in drafting bills on the matters touching upon the rights of forced migrants;

give opinion on bills and effective federal and regional acts. These opinions are brought to the attention of state agencies, deputies of the State Duma, non-government organizations and other interested parties.

At least twice a year the "Migration Rights" Network holds seminars on the problems of migration law, topical for Russia and for the interantional community at large. Participants of the seminars include leading western specialists in the field of migration law, Russian lawyers, leading specialists of Ministries and state agencies.

In addition to training seminars, in 2002-2003 we organized 4 seminars for attorneys Ñ members of the Chechen Bar on the subject of changes in the Russian legislation and work of attorneys at courts together with the Office for Democratic Institutions and Human Rights of the Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe, UNHCR and Independent Council of Legal Expertise. Sessions were led by prominent law theorists and practitioners from Moscow. Seminars aroused great interest among attorneys of the Chechen Republic. The initially alarmed attitude toward Moscow colleagues changed at the very first minutes of communication when trainees understood that we are well aware of the situation in Chechnya where representatives of our organization work on permanent basis and are involved in all the problems.

A feeling of isolation from the world was overcome; our trainees felt again that they are lawyers and people whose problems are important to the world. They bring this feeling to Chechnya, pass it on to other inhabitants who gain hope for possibility to struggle against arbitrary rule with legal methods.

A seminar on the same subject was held together with the UNHCR (offices in Moscow and Valdicavcaz) and Independent Council of Legal Expertise for employees of the "Vesta" organization working in the Northern Caucuses.

The Network also organized two international seminars in Moscow in cooperation with ECRE and with the support from the UNHCR targeted at judges, employees of migration agencies and lawyers of NGOs from Belorussia, Russia and Ukraine. The "concept of the third safe country" and "access to the procedure for determination of refugee status" were reviewed at these seminars from the point of view of the international law.

The work of the "Migration Rights" Network has shown that legal consultations together with legal support in specific cases (up to the highest instance) can create positive legal practice and thus change the situation of migrants for the better.

This is attained in different ways.

One of the ways is to organize winning of a large amount of cases of the same type in courts, attracting attention of the Supreme Court to the problem as a whole with the objective to elicit a resolution of the plenum of the Supreme Court or an instruction letter of corresponding content.

In 1997 payments of compensations for lost residence and property to citizens who fled Chechnya during the first wave of hostilities. Many of them had no warrants for residence, without which applications for compensations were not accepted. A campaign of numerous applications to courts to establish the fact of residence ownership as well as other facts of importance for receiving compensation was organized. After that we applied to the Supreme Court with the request to consider these cases in the order of priority due to their great importance for destinies of many people. N.Yu. Sergeeva, Deputy Chairman of the Supreme Court, sent a letter, in which, without encroachment upon independence of judges, she recommended to consider cases of this category in the time envisaged by the law, i.e. in a 10 day period. In the situation when courts are overloaded such recommendation meant high priority. Besides, in connection with the hostilities in Chechnya, the Supreme Court recommended that the courts consider such applications not at the place of location of a former residence, where courts did not function, but at the place of actual location of an applicant, in order not to violate his right to a court defense.

After a number of applications, a plenum of the Supreme Court in 1996 indicated it to courts (in the case of Kakulia) that for the cases related to refusals in status granting, the burden of proof lies not only with the applicant, as it happens in a usual civil process, but with migration bodies as well, as the applicant in his situation often can only present facts of persecution, but not prove them. Check of the information presented by the person seeking asylum is an obligation of state agencies that have all capabilities necessary to do that.

Citizens of the USSR who permanently resided on the territory of Russia as of 06.02.92 (the date when the law on citizenship became effective) were recognized as citizens of the RF. However, for a long period of time only registration at the place of residence (permanent registration), confirmed by a stamp in passport, was recognized as a proof of permanent residence. Lawyers of NGOs organized a campaign for establishing the fact of permanent residence on the territory of Russia as of 6.02.92 in courts. At the beginning the courts refused to consider such cases. However the campaign resulted in an instruction letter of the deputy chairman of the Supreme Court, in which the following position of the Supreme Court was expressed: "cases on establishing the above facts are within the cognizance of courts of general jurisdiction, since they cause legal consequences Ñ recognition of the Russian citizenship".

Another method is an application to the Supreme Court or Constitutional Court for protection of interests of an undetermined group of persons, when the decision on recognition of a legal act or its part as contradictory and not subject to enforcement made by the supreme judicial authority causes a change in the situation as a whole, and from then on analogous cases are resolved without resorting to court.

Thus, according to the Resolution No. 510 of the RF Government of April 30, 1997, compensations could be received only by citizens who left Chechnya irrevocably in 1994-96 and who registered with migration agencies; besides, in 2001 the term of validity was restricted for this resolution. The Supreme Court ruled that both restrictions were illegal. According to the FMS, this made it possibile to get the compensation additionally for 1700 families. Each payment constituted 4000-4500 dollars per family and the total amount of payments resulting from these two decisions of the Supreme Court constituted a sum on the order of 7 millions dollars.

By a determination of the Constitutional Court it was recognized that the practice of refusals of placement on pension lists for persons who only have permission for temporary residence (and not a residence permit) does not ensue from the pensionary legislation. Consequently, such practice is illegitimate, and that is why there is no need for a special resolution on this matter. Thus, the determination of the Constitutional Court solved this problem.

 

Partners of the "Migration Right" Network

The "Migration Rights" programme exists and successfully develops thanks to a partnership with other organizations engaged in the problems of migration.

First of all, this is the regional office of the UNHCR in Moscow. It is thanks to the financial support of the UNHCR that the first regional offices of the Network were opened and equipped. UNHCR continues to provide funding for 20 consultative regional offices and partially supports the Coordination Centre in Moscow. In addition to funding, UNHCR provides valuable methodological and organizational assistance, making it possible for us to follow the worldwide practice in application of the Convention on Refugees and maintain contacts with organizations in other countries analogous to the Network. We hope that the fruitful cooperation with the UNHCR will continue and strengthen in the future.

In 1997, in the course of implementation of a project under the TACIS programme, the Network became a partner of ECRE and its legal network ELENA, which unites lawyers specializing in legal assistance to refugees. Cooperation with ECRE/ELENA is exceptionally valuable for us because of the huge experience accumulated by this international organization that assists us in the organization of training seminars for Russian lawyers, analysis of the international situation, development of law and literature in the field of migration. We are planning to increase the participation of Network lawyers in activities of ECRE/ELENA, as well as promote more intensive exchange of experience and useful information, taking advantage of the membership of the "Memorial" HRC in ECRE.

The Network successfully cooperates with foreign non-governmental organizations, including Amnesty International, Human Rights Watch, Danish Council on Refugees, Finnish Council for the assistance to refugees, Norwegian Council for Refugees. The Network maintains direct contacts with non-governmental organizations of other CIS countries working to provide assistance to forced migrants and exchanges information with them, which makes it possible to have an understanding of the migration situation in these countries.

To mention the Programme partners among Russian non-government organizations, first of all these are four other programmes of the "Memorial" HRC, "Discrimination on Ethnical Grounds", "Persecution on Political Motives", "Trouble Spots", "Preparation of Cases for the European Court". All of these programmes are related to monitoring of situation with human rights in different regions of Russia and CIS, and especially in the zones of ethnical conflicts. Knowledge of the situation with human rights in the regions of migrant exodus creates a possibility for a better qualified protection of their rights, especially in cases where during the resolution of the problem of status granting there appears a necessity to prove the forced character of displacement.

Of significant importance to the operation of the Network is the constructive cooperation with organizations of migrants themselves, first of all with their association, the Forum of migrant organizations. The Forum puts forward as its objective the protection of interests of migrant organizations in their relations with public organizations in the centre and locally, and its branches exist in many Russian regions. In some regions lawyers of the Network are working directly from the base of organizations part of the Forum; in any case they are striving to establish a working interaction with the Forum.

The closest working and personal relationship exists between the Network and the oldest non-government organization caring about forced migrants, the Moscow Committee for Assistance to Refugees and Forced Migrants Ñ the "Civic Assistance" Committee. The Moscow regional office of the Network works on its base. "Memorial" HRC and "Civic Assistance" Committee carry out joint work in Ingushetia and Chechnya, where care to the ill is provided at our reception rooms and where to the food gathered by the "Civic Assistance" Committee is sent.

One more partner of the Programme is the Independent Council of Legal Expertise, which has distingushed lawyers-researchers and practitioners among its members. This organization provides assistance to the Network in the organization of seminars, preparation of expert opinions on drafts of laws and effective normative acts touching upon the rights of forced migrants, as well as in the analysis of the existing law enforcement practice.

Locally, regional offices of the Network cooperate with regional human rights organizations, and primarily with branches of "Memorial", organizations of migrants and their communities, lawyer associations. Regional offices of the Network work from their base, their addresses and names can be found in the list of Network regional offices below. We thank all of our regional partners for cooperation and continuous support of the "Migration Rights" Network.

 

Relations with state agencies

We realize that the main objectives of the Network, the protection of migrantsÕ rights and development of legal approach to the solution of migration problems from the perspective of the international obligations of the Russian Federation and the RF Constitution, cannot be achieved without constructive cooperation with state agencies. This determines the relationship of the Network with state bodies involved in one way or another in the resolution of issues related to the legal situation of refugees and forced migrants.

The key role in the registration of newly arrived migrants, in the granting of status to them and in their settlement is played by the Ministry of Interior. Local bodies of interior are far from being always aware of the differences between the rights of usual travelers and those of forced migrants, victims of ethnic dissension, violence, and discrimination. The Network tries to achieve uniformity in the application of laws and normative acts of the RF by the bodies of interior through the Ministry of Interior.

In the course of its work the Network often approaches the Prosecutor GeneralÕs Office with petitions asking for lodgement of protests against regional and departmental normative acts contradicting to the federal legislation. Such applications are supported by expert opinions prepared by consultants of the Coordination Centre or Independent Council of Legal Expertise. The Prosecutor GeneralÕs Office sharing the point of view expressed by us lodges a protest with the corresponding state agency, and if the protest is rejected, they resort to court. Such active and fruitful cooperation has on multiple occasions caused abolishment of illegitimate normative acts and gives grounds to the belief that a uniform understanding and application of federal legislation on the whole territory of Russia is an attainable goal.

Sometimes we apply to the Ministry of Justice with a request to perform an examination of a normative act being contested. Such an examination strengthens our position in courts.

One of the ways to establish mutual understanding between the Network and bodies of the executive is through the participation of representatives of the federal migration service and passport and visa service of the Ministry of Interior, Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Prosecutor GeneralÕs Office and other institutions in the seminars for lawyers of the Network. The reports, in which they state the position of their agencies, answers to the questions that they provide and their participation in the general discussion are extremely useful for further work. As a rule, agencies show interest in such cooperation, which undoubtedly helps to find answers to many complicated questions that the migrants face. Besides, lawyers from regions get a chance of direct communication with representatives of federal agencies.

Taking into account the urgent need in partial updating and improvement of the legislation, regulating a legal position of forced migrants, the Network is striving to attract attention of the State Duma to this problem. Here it is based on the support of a number of deputies who are like-minded, first of all that of the deputy V.V. Igrunov, one of the initiators of the creation of the "Memorial" HRC and "Civic Assistance" Committee.

 

PUBLICATIONS

Proceedings of the "Migration Rights" Network Seminars

Seminar 1, Moscow, December 19-20, 1996.

Setting up a network of legal assistance for refugees and forced migrants in Russia. Zvenya, Moscow, 1997.

Seminar 2, Moscow, April 25-26, 1997.

Dealing with the problems of refugees and forced migrants through the legislative, judicial and administrative systems.

Seminar 3, Moscow, November 27-28, 1997

Violation of international norms and the Russian legislation on the rights of refugees and forced migrants. (2 and 3 seminar in one book). Zvenya, Moscow, 1999.

Seminar 4, Moscow, April 24-26, 1998

Current problems of migration. International mechanism for refugeesÕ rights protection. URAO, Moscow, 1999.

Seminar 5, Moscow, December 3-5, 1998.

Legal problems of citizenship acquisition by forced migrants and their job placement on the territory of the Russian Federation. Valent, Moscow, 2000.

Seminar 6, Moscow, April 22-24, 1999.

Legal issues concerning the social protection of forced migrants in Russia (in two parts). R.Valent, Moscow, 2000.

Seminar 7, Moscow, October 21-24, 1999

ELENA International Course on Refugee and Asylum Law (unpublished).

Special Seminar, Prague, December 3-4, 1999.

Refugee status determination: standard of proof and status determination of undocumented asylum seekers. R.Valent, Moscow, 2000.

Seminar 8, Moscow, April 25-28, 2000

Problems of victims of warfare in the Chechen Republic. Mechanism for the execution of court judgements and implementation of prosecution response measures. R.Valent, Moscow, 2000.

Seminar 9, Moscow, September 28- October 1, 2000,

State of administrative and judicial practice on the issues pertaining to the situation of refugees and forced settlers (is being translated)

M. Lobov. Issues concerning the application of the European Convention on Human Rights. Guarantees of rights to property. Protection of refugeesÕ rights. Supervision over the execution of the European Court decisions. R.Valent, Moscow, 2001.

Seminar 10, Moscow, January 17-19, 2001.

Tax and tariff legislation as applied to problems of forced migrants. R.Valent, Moscow, 2001.

Seminar 11, Moscow, April 26-28, 2001.

Legal and social situation of forced migrants in Russia. Minimal international guarantees (there is no translation). R.Valent, Moscow, 2001.

Seminar 12, Moscow, October, 26-28, 2001.

Work with Asylum Seekers

Seminar 13, Moscow, April 27-29, 2002

Legal and social problems of internally displaced persons (IDPs)

Seminar 14, Moscow, October 24-28, 2002.

Problems of theory and practice of application of new legislative norms

 

Reports

S. Gannushkina. On the Implementation by the Russian Federation of the Programme of Action Developed in May 1996 at the Regional Conference to Address the Problems of Refugees, Displaced Persons, Other Forms of Involuntary Displacement and Returnees in the Counties of the CIS and Relevant Neighboring States. R.Valent, Moscow, 2000. Re-published in 2001.

S.A. Gannushkina Internally Displaced Persons from Chechnya in the Russian Federation. R.Valent, Moscow, 2002.

S.A. Gannushkina Internally Displaced Persons from Chechnya in the Russian Federation. June 2002 Ñ May 2003. R.Valent, Moscow, 2003.

O.P. Orlov Conditional Justice. On the situation with investigation of crimes against civil persons, committed by representatives of federal forces in the territory of Chechen Republic in the course of military actions of 1999-2003 (as of May 2003). R.Valent, Moscow, 2003.

Anna Politkovskaya Alien War, or Life behind the Toll Bar. Chechnya. R.Valent, Moscow, 2002.

Manuals for Migrants

L.V. Andreychenko, E.V. Belousova. In an assistance to forced migrants. Zvenya, Moscow, 1999.

Petrosyan M.E. A foced migrant has the right. Legal handbook. R.Valent, Moscow, 2002.

(published upon order of the "Civic Assistance Committee")

B.N. Dulnev Checks of documents and registration in a public placeÉ R.Valent, Moscow, 2002.

(published upon order of the "Civic Assistance Committee")

 

Booklets

Civic AssistanceÈ Committee (format 20x20). R.Valent, Moscow , 2000.

Civic AssistanceÈ Committee (format 10x20). R.Valent, Moscow, 2000.

Migration RightÈ Network. R.Valent, Moscow, 2000.

 

 

 

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Stand 08-2004.