The Action Group to Defend the Rights of the Disabled in the USSR (CCE 51.17) is continuing its activities.
*
DISABLED PRISONERS
Document No. 4 (20 October 1978), addressed to the Presidium of the USSR Supreme Soviet, the International Red Cross and the UN Commission for the Defence of Human Rights, examines the position of the disabled in places of imprisonment.
It reports that in camps and prisons the system of over-strenuous compulsory labour, camp penalties, etc is imposed on disabled prisoners (excluding Group I disabled) as well as able-bodied ones. Often, to make punishment more severe, a disabled person in camp is deprived of his disabled person status (I. A. Svetlichny and N. A. Budulak-Sharygin are examples). Moreover, a disability resulting from an accident during work in the camp is classified as resulting from general illness.
Attached to the document is a list of political prisoners with official disabled person status: Group II — O. Popovich, I. Senik, V. Bondarenko, A. Burbulis, N. Rudenko and B. Chuiko; Group III — Valery Marchenko), together with a list of disabled political prisoners without this status, or deprived of it in the camps (11 people).
*
BULLETIN NO 4
On 11 November 1978 the Action Group issued its Bulletin No 4.
As well as the above-mentioned document, it also contains: a ‘press statement’, dated 19 October, by Yury Valov — on 27 October Yu. Valov was forcibly hospitalized, CCE 51.17; an essay by Valery Fefyolov entitled ‘Forge of the Disabled’, about psychiatric hospitals; and articles entitled ‘Budget’ (about the standard of living of the disabled in the USSR), and ‘From the History of Cooperative Management’ (about cooperative associations formed by disabled workers in the pre-war years).
*
DEMOLITION
On 10 November 1978 the soviet of peoples’ deputies of Planerskoye settlement (near Koktebel in the Crimea) decided to petition the Feodosia town soviet executive committee to demolish the house of a member of the Action Group, Yury Kiselev, on the grounds that it was built without authorization.
Certain that Kiselev did not possess any documents about the house, the local authorities fabricated a false entry in the archive-records stating that Kiselev’s request for a plot of land had been refused.
In fact, permission to allot land and build a house had been granted in 1956. The house comprises a total of 24 metres of living area, a small kitchen and an unheated art studio not designed for habitation. Kiselev built the house himself with the active help of his friends and with money they had earned themselves.
The second argument produced by the soviet was that the house had not been built according to the standard design of the local Architectural Board.
Neither in 1956 nor afterwards have Soviet architects involved themselves in the building of special dwellings for the disabled. The Architectural Board had not replied to Kiselev’s inquiry about a special house for a Group I disabled person who had lost both legs. Kiselev and his friends — Moscow architects — drew up a design for such a house. The house has stood for over 20 years. Only after the Action Group to Defend the Rights of the Disabled was founded was a decision taken to demolish it.
The decision to demolish the house was preceded by a month of harassment. Almost every day either the police or electricity board officials or sanitary inspectors, etc., would pay visits.
A month before the soviet’s decision was taken the Chief Architect of Feodosia, Monokhin, announced that the house would be demolished.
Kiselev’s, friends, who were using the house for their holidays and constantly helped him with housework, started to be continually pestered by the police. They were interrogated at the police station like criminals, and subjected to blackmail and threats. When they demanded that this form of interrogation be stopped and appealed for legality, they were threatened with being taken to Feodosia: ‘You’ll talk differently there …’ Local policeman Borisov boastfully declared: ‘Talk! I could take you Muscovites by the beard and drag you across the floor a lot more yet!’ Tolmasov and L. Filippova were fined 10 roubles, ostensibly for breaking the residence regulations.
*
KISELYOV
After completing a course at the Artistic Trades School Yury Ivanovich KISELYOV (b. 1932) was seriously injured while doing industrial training in 1948; he had to have both legs amputated. He is a Group 1 Disabled Person.
In 1956 Yu. Kiselev took part in a demonstration held by 30 disabled people in powered wheel-chairs outside the CPSU Central Committee building. He was among five people elected to take part in discussions with Central Committee officials. It was at this time that Kiselev first attempted to form a group to defend the rights of the disabled.
In 1958 Kiselev graduated from the Stroganov Institute (his qualifications were in applied decorative arts). He was unable to find a job for many years. Finally, in 1964 he entered a Special Art-Design Office, where he worked as a designer and was awarded eight copyrights. Several years later he moved to the Decorative Arts and Interior Design Combine, where he did contract work. He is still on the books there, but no longer receives any contracts.
*
LETTER TO ACTON ET AL.
In November 1978 members of the Action Group Yury Kiselev and Valery Fefelov sent a letter in which they related the persecution to which they had been subjected: to Norman Acton, the Chairman of the World Federation of Disabled Persons; to the UN Commission for Human Rights; and to correspondents of foreign press agencies.
They wrote that they did not know the current position of Faizul Khusainov, the third member of the Action Group (who lives in Chistopol, Tatar ASSR): “We no longer receive any information from him and are very worried.”
On 6 December 1978 four men visited Valery Fefelov at his flat.
They were Semyonov, the Chairman of the Yurev-Polsky district soviet executive committee; Glushchenko, the Director of the district Department of Social Security; and two officials from the Vladimir KGB: Lieutenant-Colonel Shibayev and Korovushkin, the Head of the Kolchugino district Office of the Vladimir Regional KGB.
The subjects discussed were the publishing of the Bulletin of the Action Group, which was termed an ‘underground publication’, and the Action Group itself — ‘an illegal organization’, At this point Shibayev flourished Bulletin No. 2, which had been in his file (Fefyolov had sent this copy to the district Social Security Office on 30 October with a request to forward it to the Ministry of Social Security and the government to inform them about the formation of the Group. The Social Security Office had replied that the bulletin had been ‘passed on as directed’.)
During the discussion, which lasted about two hours, it was suggested to Fefelov that he halt the publication and ‘have a think’. He was threatened with criminal prosecution and reminded of the cases of Yu. Orlov and V. Osipov. Shibayev made all kinds of remarks discrediting Yury Kiselev.
On 10 December 1978 V. Fefelov sent a letter to the Presidium of the USSR Supreme Soviet and to Andropov, the Chairman of the KGB. After again informing them that the Action Group had been formed and describing its aims, he appealed to them not to obstruct our movement to defend the rights of the disabled, but, on the contrary, to give us full freedom to advance and improve the social and cultural level of our disabled people.
*
VISITORS
On 28 December Fefelov received a second visit from a delegation in which the Chairman of the Vladimir Regional Court took the place of the Chairman of the Yurev-Polsky district soviet executive committee. The question of halting the Action Group’s activities was again put to Fefelov. They said that the Group was illegal, that its work was tied up with the activities of the equally ‘illegal’ Moscow Helsinki Group. They mentioned the names of Ye. Bonner and V. Nekipelov, members of the Helsinki Group.
The visit lasted from 1.30 pm to 2.30 pm. At roughly the same time, from 1.00 pm to 3,00 pm, the light in Fefelov’s flat was cut off. Evidently this was done because during the first visit Fefelov had twice attempted to make a tape-recording of the discussion, although Korovushkin had promptly gone over to him and, ignoring his protests, turned the tape-recorder off.
In December the Action Group published an Open Letter:
The Action Group again informs the ruling bodies of the USSR and the public that it is engaged only in the question of the rights of the disabled and their immediate needs, within the framework of the Soviet legal system, and that it has no underlying political motivation.
By collecting information on the lives of disabled people, the Action Group prepares material to demonstrate the need to form a society for the disabled in the USSR — similar to the All-Russian Society of the Deaf and the All-Russian Society of the Blind.
All the work of the Action Group is openly set out in documents published in the group’s Bulletin.
The Action Group is prepared to work (on a cultural-exchange basis) with Soviet and international organizations engaged in work to safeguard the rights of the disabled and in problems of occupational therapy.
As a result of the repressive harassment of Action Group members, and because we intend to continue our work as normal, we feel we must state the following: — ’
The Action Group will continue to operate even if its members are arrested. Their place will be taken by disabled people who have earlier stated that they would be willing to take part in the common cause. The Action Group appeals once again to all disabled people in the USSR to remember their human dignity, join this mutual-aid group, and campaign ceaselessly for the formation of a society for the disabled.
In December 1978 the Action Group prepared a report entitled ‘Transport’ (Document No, 8). For the disabled person the car is not a luxury, but a necessity of the first order. Despite this fact, powered wheel-chairs are sold to disabled people (apart from war veterans) at a price of 1,030 roubles, and a hand-operated ‘Zaporozhets’ costs 3,500 roubles, which is beyond the means of anybody on a meagre invalidity pension. Thus disabled people are deprived of the opportunity to be mobile and have no chance of finding a job.
*
REPORT & BULLETIN NO 5
In January 1979 the Group prepared a report entitled “The Treatment of Spinal-Injury Cases in the USSR”.
*
On 27 January it issued Bulletin No. 5.
As well as these two reports, the Open Letter (see above), and letters to Acton and Andropov, Bulletin No. 5 contains:
- a letter to the Action Group from disabled Vladimir Prokopchuk;
- an appeal in defence of Yury Valov (CCE //); and
- a letter from Yury Kiselyov to D. P. Komarova, RSFSR Minister of Social Security.
In February the Action Group appealed to Norman Acton and the presidents of all societies of the disabled for their support and for information.
*
NEKIPELOV
The activities of the Action Group to Defend the Rights of the Disabled in the USSR are the subject of “Erased from the Facade”, an article by Victor Nekipelov.
The following is an extract:
“Erased from the façade, as though intentionally removed from the front lines of life, disabled people are making an attempt to unite.
“They do not wish to be second- and third-class citizens any longer, they do not want to drag out the miserable existence to which they are condemned — by beggarly pensions; the frequent non-availability, great cost and technical backwardness of invalid vehicles; the wretched quality of artificial limbs; the absence of specially designed housing; and the impossibility of finding worthy and interesting occupations for hands and soul.
“Some months ago, an Action Group to Defend the Rights of the Disabled in the USSR was formed.
“One can only welcome the formation of such a group, for these people, more than any others, need to be united, if they are to impress on the State their right to get out on to the street and join the stream of life.“
=======================================
A Chronicle of Current Events 