Consistent promotion of human rights must be an integral part of the United States bilateral relationship with Russia, asserts Human Rights First in a new Blueprint on promoting human rights in Russia, issued today. The Blueprint calls on the new administration to demonstrate support for independent human rights organizations and sets out practical steps the new administration should take to enhance cooperation with the Russian authorities in combating the surge in violent hate crimes.

A brutal double murder in downtown Moscow claimed the lives of Stanislav Markelov, a prominent lawyer and human rights defender, and Anastasia Baburova, a freelance opposition journalist. Both Stanislav and Anastasia have worked on issues relating to hate crimes and the growing neo-Nazi movement in the Russian Federation. The Fighting Discrimination Team mourns the untimely deaths and condemns the murders of our colleagues. Take action below to join us in calling for an immediate investigation.

In a letter to the U.S. Secretary of State and other high-ranking Department of State officials, Human Rights First argued that the latest brazen shootings of Stanislav Markelov and Anastasia Baburova have underlined the urgency of promoting human rights in the Russian Federation. HRF identified two areas that are crucial to enabling Russians to secure human rights and promote rule of law and provided key recommendations aimed at protecting human rights defenders and combating racism, xenophobia, and violent hate crimes.

A high number of country delegations raised the need to strengthen initiatives to combat extremism and hate crimes in Russia during the Universal Periodic Review (UPR) of the Russian Federation at the United Nations Office at Geneva. The rise of violent hate crimes in Russia has been at the focus of the Fighting Discrimination Program, which urged UN Member States to address this important issue at the Human Rights Council.

On February 24, 2009, the Saint Petersburg City Court issued a ruling against a Russian human rights organization Memorial. The decision allows the authorities to remain in possession of all materials confiscated from Memorial’s St. Petersburg offices during a police raid in December 2008. Human Rights First is deeply concerned by the ruling and calls on the authorities to return the confiscated materials.

Lev Ponomarev, a prominent Russian human rights defender was attacked and seriously injured by unidentified assailants on March 31, 2009, in Moscow. This is part of a string of attacks on human rights activists in Russia that largely go unaccounted for. Human Rights First urges the Russian authorities to investigate this and other violent attacks against activists in a joint letter signed with seven other international human rights organizations.

In Moscow, Yury Samodurov, a human rights activist, and Andrey Erofeev, a museum curator, are facing criminal prosecution for organizing an exhibition entitled "Forbidden Art 2006" at the Andrei Sakharov Museum. The two men could be sentenced to up to five years imprisonment. The Tagansky District Court in Moscow is scheduled to resume hearing the case behind closed doors on June 5, 2009.