Magnitsky’s Mother Challenges Russian Senators Over Posthumous Defamation of Her Son in DC, Russian Senator Leading Delegation to DC is Linked To Organized Crime
July 16, 2012
Today, Natalia Magnitskaya, mother of the late Sergei Magnitsky, wrote an open letter to Valentina Matvienko, head of the Russian Federation Council (the upper chamber of the Russian Parliament), demanding answers over the defamatory remarks made posthumously against her dead son in Washington DC last week by Russian multi-millionnaire senator Vitaly Malkin, who was previously named as “a member of a group engaging in organized or transnational crime” by the Canadian government in court proceedings.
“I believe that an attempt to slander the good name of my son posthumously looks shameful and not deserving of the honorable title of people’s representative,” said Natalia Magnitskaya in her open letter to the leader of the Russia’s Federation Council (http://russian-untouchables.com/rus/docs/D524.pdf). Read more
Мама Сергея Магнитского потребовала ответов от Совета Федерации по распространенной в отношении ее погибшего сына клевете
July 16, 2012
Мама Сергея Магнитского обратилась с открытым письмом к Председателю Совета Федерации Валентине Матвиенко, потребовав объективной оценки акции по распространению клеветы против погибшего юриста, осуществленной четырьмя российскими сенаторами на прошлой неделе в Вашингтоне в попытке остановить принятие закона Магнитского в американском Конгрессе, где законопроект будет обсуждаться в эту среду, 18 июля, в комитете финансов Сената.
“Я полагаю, что попытка посмертно опорочить доброе имя моего сына выглядит позорно и недостойно высокого звания народного представителя”, — заявила Наталья Магнитская (http://russian-untouchables.com/rus/docs/D524.pdf).
“Эти люди позволили себе, злоупотребляя своим статусом, оскорбить память моего сына. Они воспользовались тем, что мой сын уже не в состоянии себя защитить”,- подчеркивает Наталья Николаевна Магнитская. Read more
Slanderous Russian Federation Council Report on Magnitsky to the U.S. Congress Was Not Approved by the Russian Parliament
July 13, 2012
One day following a major lobbying campaign in Washington DC against the Magnitsky Act by four Russian Federation Council members who presented a “parliamentary investigation” posthumously defaming Sergei Magnitsky as their main evidence against the legislation, Mikhail Margelov, Chairman of the Russian Federation Council’s Foreign Affairs Committee, disavowed the findings of their report saying they were not part of the parliamentary investigation.
“This was not a parliamentary investigation in the common sense of the word..Members of the Russian delegation summarized materials on Magnitsky case and submitted them to U.S. colleagues in the form of a short report. The main idea of this summary was to urge the U.S. side to move from political to legal aspects of the case of the lawyer,” said Mikhail Margelov (http://www.rbc.ru/fnews.open/20120712200216.shtml). Read more
Российские сенаторы поглумились над памятью Сергея Магнитского во время визита в США, пытаясь остановить принятие «Закона Магнитского»
July 12, 2012
Вчера группа российских сенаторов (Виталий Малкин, Валерий Шнякин, Александр Савенков и Асламбек Аслаханов), находящаяся в США, распространила заведомо ложную информацию, касающуюся обстоятельств незаконного ареста, пыток и убийства Сергея Магнитского, пытаясь предотвратить принятие «Законопроекта Магнитского» Конгрессом США.
Стремясь любой ценой предотвратить принятие «Закона Магнитского», сенатор Виталий Малкин обвинил Сергея Магнитского в алкоголизме и назвал это косвенной причиной его смерти. Не останавливаясь на моральной оценке этого заявления, которое прекрасно иллюстрирует общий нравственный и интеллектуальный уровень российской делегации, следует указать, что Сергей Магнитский никогда не злоупотреблял алкоголем и нет ни одного объективного свидетельства, подтверждающего слова сенатора, в том числе, ни одно медицинское обследование или экспертиза не указали на наличие алкоголя у него в крови. И уж тем более алкоголь не мог стать причиной смерти Магнитского, который умер на 358 день нахождения в СИЗО, где любая возможность употребления алкогольных напитков была исключена. Read more
OSCE Parliamentary Assembly Adopts Tough Resolution Calling on All OSCE Countries to Implement Magnitsky Sanctions
July 10, 2012
OSCE Parliamentary Assembly Adopts Tough Resolution Calling on All OSCE Countries to Implement Magnitsky Sanctions
8 July 2012 – Today, the OSCE Parliamentary Assembly passed a resolution calling on all OSCE member states to impose visa sanctions and asset freezes on people who are responsible for the false arrest, torture and murder of Sergei Magnitsky, and the corruption he had uncovered.
The OSCE Parliamentary Assembly brought together 320 members of parliament from 56 OSCE countries to discuss human rights, conflict prevention and promotion of democracy throughout OSCE countries. The resolution was approved by an overwhelming majority. Only 18 deputies voted against it and 11 abstained.</more>
The OSCE PA resolution entitled “Rule of Law in Russia: Case of Sergei Magnitsky” says:
“The OSCE Parliamentary Assembly supports the legislative initiatives on the Magnitsky case in the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe, and in the national parliaments of the US, UK, Canada, Netherlands, Poland, Italy, Sweden, Germany, France, Estonia, Lithuania, Czech Republic, Spain, Portugal and Georgia, as well as and the resolutions of the European Parliament.”
“The OSCE Parliamentary Assembly calls on national parliaments to take action to impose visa sanctions and freezes on persons responsible for the false arrest, torture, denial of medical care and death of Sergei Magnitsky, for the conspiracy to defraud the Russian Federation of taxes on corporate profits through fraudulent transactions and lawsuit against legitimate businesses; to take action against those officials who participated in the cover-up of all the above mentioned crimes and for other gross violations of human rights in the Russian Federation,” says the resolution.
In the resolution, the OSCE Parliamentary Assembly stated that the harassment and torture of Sergei Magnitsky in custody was and remains politically motivated. The OSCE resolution expressed “regret” that the Russian authorities exonerated officials involved and deplored the posthumous prosecution launched against Magnitsky by the Russian government.
At the discussion of the resolution, U.S. Senator John McCain addressed the OSCE Parliamentary Assembly calling upon OSCE assembly to speak with one voice and express their support for Sergei Magnitsky’s ideals of justice and human freedom (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YncIqP7IWZg).
“Let us align this Assembly to the aspirations of the Russian people and for Sergei’s aspirations for justice, for equal dignity under the law, and for the indomitable spirit of human freedom,” said U.S. senator John McCain.
“The resolution represents the future that most Russian want for themselves and their country,” said U.S. senator McCain.
“I believe that supporting the rule of law is pro-Russia, defending the innocent and punishing the guilty is pro Russia, and ultimately I believe that the virtues that Sergei Magnitsky embodied – integrity, fair dealing, fidelity to truth and justice, and the deepest love of the country, is pro Russia,” added senator McCain.
Sergei Magnitsky, a 37-year old Russian lawyer who was investigating the serial thefts from the Russian treasury, was falsely arrested by the same police officers he had accused, tortured and killed in police custody two and a half years ago. His killers have not been brought to justice in Russia.
“The Magnitsky Files,” a 18-minute movie premiered in Washington by U.S. Senator John McCain and Freedom House’ David Kramer (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mL9b5LP4Ubc)/, shows close links between Russian government officials and persons involved in the thefts.
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