Human Rights Watch 2011 Report – Russia

The following are extracts from the Human Rights Watch 2011 World Report that pertain to the 2018 host of the FIFA World Cup, Russia. The full HRW report on Russia can be read here.

Olympic spirit - workers' rights abused, property seized

“In 2010 Russia demonstrated increased openness to international cooperation on human rights, but the overall human rights climate in the country remained deeply negative. President Dmitry Medvedev's rhetorical commitments to human rights and the rule of law have not been backed by concrete steps to support civil society. The year 2010 saw new attacks on human rights defenders, and the perpetrators of brazen murders in the previous year remained unpunished.”

“The Islamist insurgency in the North Caucasus republics remained active in 2010. In countering it, law enforcement and security agencies continued to commit grave violations of fundamental human rights, such as torture, enforced disappearances, and extrajudicial killings.”

“To date the European Court of Human Rights (ECtHR) has issued more than 150 judgments holding Russia responsible for grave human rights violations in Chechnya. Russia continues to pay the required monetary compensation to victims but fails to meaningfully implement the core of the judgments, in particular conducting effective investigations and holding perpetrators accountable. The Russian authorities have also failed to take sufficient measures to prevent the recurrence of similar abuses and new complaints are lodged with the ECtHR every year. The failure to fully implement the court's judgments denies justice to the victims and fuels the climate of impunity in Chechnya.”

“Throughout 2010, police continued to disperse, sometimes violently, the public rallies held in large cities on the thirty-first day of each month in support of Article 31 of the constitution, which guarantees freedom of assembly. Yet there was also a breakthrough in autumn 2010, when the authorities allowed an October 31 rally that drew at least 1,000 peaceful protesters to Triumfalnaya Square in central Moscow. This development stands as a great victory for Russia's civil society movement and its international supporters.”

The following quotes focus on the 2014 Winter Olympics, all set as ever to showcase global harmony through sporting endeavour:

“To complete the large-scale construction projects necessary for Russia to host the 2014 Winter Olympic Games in Sochi, employers are hiring large numbers of migrant workers from other parts of Russia and from other countries. Some workers have reported employers' failure to provide contracts, non-payment or severe delays in payment of wages, and substandard employer-provided housing.”  

“To make way for venues for the 2014 Winter Olympics, hundreds of families living in the Adler region of Sochi will lose their property through state expropriations. Some will also lose their livelihoods, such as small hotels and farms. Although the regional government has in most cases promised compensation, serious concerns remain about the compensation amounts and procedures, and the means of challenging official actions.”