I. Russian Women's Organizations Draw Attention to Growing Problem of Domestic Violence

Between thirty and forty percent of all murders in Russia are committed within the family. The majority of victims are women and children. Each year two thousand children in the Russian Federation commit suicide; 50,000 run away from home and more than 14,000 women die at the hand of their husbands or boyfriends. This data was presented at a round table discussion held in Moscow on October 17 entitled, "Violence in the Family - Violence in Society." The round table was organized by the Consortium of Women's NGOs and the "Anna" Crisis Center for Women.

According to participants at the round table discussion, some of the most active work being done towards halting domestic violence is being done by regional crisis centers and public shelters. Representatives from government agencies are convinced that the rise of domestic violence in the Russian Federation can be attributed to a rise in alcoholism and the deterioration of living conditions; but those at the round table refuted this conclusion, stating that domestic violence occurs even in high-income families.

"There is a growing impression that local government structures, in contrast with federal agencies, are already cooperating with civic organizations to alleviate domestic violence: they publicize the activities of the civic groups, develop joint projects with them, and offer them free office space," stated Elena Yershova, president of the Consortium of Women's NGOs. "Examples of such cooperative efforts between local government and the public can be found in the city of Langepas (in Tyumen Oblast), in Novgorod, and Ekaterinburg. Nizhnii Novgorod also serves as a positive example - there, a model project has already begun in the hopes of creating local legislation to help prevent domestic violence."

As a result of "Violence in the Family - Violence in Society," participants at the discussion prepared an open letter to the Russian media, asking for help in directing societal and governmental attention to the problem of domestic violence and for support of civic initiatives directed towards this problem.

II. UNICEF Presents Report on Children in Central and Eastern Europe

The presentation of a UNICEF report entitled, "Children at Risk in Central and Eastern Europe: Hopes and Fears" took place on October 17 in Moscow. The vice-premier of the Russian Federation, O. Sysuev, and First Lady Naina Yeltsin both attended the presentation, along with Ezio Murzi, a representative of UNICEF. The publication was the fourth in a series of investigative reports prepared by the International Center of Child Development for a UNICEF-sponsored project. Eighteen countries took part in the project, including Russia Federation.

The report noted the continuing fall of income levels, the unrestrained growth of unemployment and the elimination of financial assistance for families in most of the countries of Central and Eastern Europe and the former Soviet Union. The effects of the declining birthrate and growing incidence of divorce and single-parent families are also analysed in the report, along with the impact of these factors on the social welfare sector. Additionally, the report contains data on the conditions of children during war and intense migration and the deprivations and burdens experienced by children as a result of such events.

Included in the report's list of negative factors impacting families in Central and Eastern Europe were poor nutrition, alcoholism, smoking, stress, and the growth of violence in society. Also cited as a problem was the unprecedented rise (particularly in the countries of the former Soviet Union) in the death rate of working-age men. Hundreds of thousands of children have lived through the untimely death of both parents, who have died at the very time when they should be raising their offspring. According to data from the UNICEF report, the number of children in Central and Eastern Europe who lost a parent during the period of 1990-1995 grew to over 700,000. Three-fourths of these children live in the Russian Federation.

Similarly, the report cites the burdens of the transition period as contributing to the destruction of families and to the erosion of parental responsibilties. As the divorce rate grows, so does the percentage of fathers refusing to contribute to the support of their children. Consequently, parents are a risk factor for children. Also, data in the report indicates that the rate of illness for children is on the rise, especially for infectious diseases such as tuberculosis and diptheria.

In the opinion of UNICEF specialists, the elimination of these risk factors for children may turn out to be a more difficult task than it appeared to be at the end of the 1980s. Therefore, in every region of Central and Eastern Europe an urgent need exists for a new infrastructure to support families and children, a flexible system focused on parents and children at the local level, involving not just government agencies, but also the private and non-profit sectors.

Ezio Murzi, the UNICEF representative who presented the report, expressed the hope that cooperation between UNICEF, the Russian Federation government and Russian NGOs would prove fruitful for all.

III. Human Rights Activists Under Attack in St. Petersburg

A hearing date has been set for December 5 for Aleksei Oding, a member of the human rights group "Soldiers' Mothers of St. Petersburg" who has been accused of malicious behavior.

The story began on April 29 of this year, when members of "Soldiers' Mothers," including Oding, Irina Poryvko and Sergei Klebatskii, attempted to enter the offices of the St. Petersburg city draft commission, where a hearing was in session on the topic of Klebatskii's draft deferment. The group had passed the security checkpoint at the draft commission offices when they were spotted by Officer Gusev (of the St. Petersburg military committee), who demanded that Oding quit the premises. According to Oding, he refused the order on the basis that he had been given permission to enter by the military committee. Officer Gusev then called on some soldiers who began to beat up Oding. The fight continued outside the offices on the street, where Oding, who by that point had lost his glasses, managed to take out a can of tear gas and spray his attackers, which, incidentally, had no effect. The soldiers quit beating Oding only after passersby began to gather, attracted by the screams of Ms. Poryvko. After the incident, the city military committee accused Oding of malicious behavior.

Oding's lawyer, Andrei Erikhin, has characterized the official inquiry into the events as unobjective and disorganized. Furthermore, Oding has no doubts that persons in the military committee were sources for an article about the events written by Tatiana Fedorova in the "Evening Petersburg" newspaper. Oding and other members of the "Soldiers' Mothers" group consider the article to be slanderous, and since the editorial board of the paper has refused to print their version of the events, they are preparing to sue "Evening Petersburg." Contact Telephone: (812) 259-4968

IV. Citizens in Archangelsk Oblast Obtain the Right to Choose Elements of Local Government

Recently a citizen's initiative in Archangelsk was given legal recognition: the head of the oblast's administration signed a bill allowing citizens to gather and discuss general government issues (on both the federal and local level) and also to pass resolutions regarding decisions made by the local government. To participate in the "town meetings" one must be 18 years of age and a legal resident of the oblast. Archangelsk citizens will be able use the meetings to elect members of the local administration, to hear reports of local government activities from deputies and administrators, and to discuss projects and proposed legislation created by local government organs. At the meetings, citizens will have the opportunity to meet with deputies, administrators and other members of the local government and question them about government activities and issues. The officials will be obliged to give answers to these questions within a month.

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