Originally posted by the Voice of America.
Voice of America content is produced by the Voice of America,
a United States federal government-sponsored entity, and is in
the public domain.


US Senator Cardin: Russia's Jailing of Activists Demand US-led Response

Danila Galperovich

   This story originated in [1]VOA's Russian Service. Some information is
   from AFP and Reuters.

   WASHINGTON - The Senate's ranking Democrat on the U.S. Helsinki
   Commission says Russia's jailing of human rights activists during
   recent protests in Moscow demands a coordinated U.S.-led response.

   "The international community needs to be concerned about what's
   happening in Russia," Senator Ben Cardin of Maryland told VOA's Russian
   Service on Thursday.

   "Russia is a signatory to the Helsinki Final Accords, which gives every
   signatory country a responsibility to challenge what's happening in
   other countries," he said. "Secondly, Congress made it clear with the
   passage of the Magnitsky law that we will not allow people to be abused
   in other countries, to have their basic human rights taken away, and
   still enjoy the benefits of our country through the use of our banking
   system for the use of the ability to visit our country.

   "The uptick of imprisonment of people who are standing up for basic
   human rights in Russia requires an international response led by the
   United States," he added, referring to a [2]recently published report
   by the Moscow-headquartered Memorial Human Rights Center.

   Produced in partnership with various international human rights groups,
   the report, which says at least 200 political prisoners are unlawfully
   held in Russian prisons--a number "increased significantly" from
   2015--was the centerpiece of a bipartisan letter that Cardin, along
   with 10 fellow senators, sent to Secretary of State Mike Pompeo and
   Treasury Secretary Steve Mnuchin on Tuesday.

References

   1. http://www.golos-ameriki.ru/
   2. https://www.perseus-strategies.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/04/The-Kremlins-Political-Prisoners-May-2019.pdf

.