The Prague Post
http://www.aaaradiotaxi.cz/index.php?xSET=lang&xLANG=2
July 7th, 2008
Endowment Fund     Book of Lists ONLINE      Reservations      Classifieds    Subscriptions
Real Estate Prague Prague Rentals Prague Apartments Prague Art & Antiques

Home » Archives » News

People in Need to return to Russia

Russian officials retract terrorism allegations against rights NGO

By Curtis M. Wong
For The Prague Post
October 31st, 2007 issue

Photo by IVA ZIMOVÁ
People in Need's prior humanitarian work in Chechnya included running tent schools for young children in the Sputnik Refugee Camp.
enlarge
Prague-based humanitarian organization Člověk v tísni (People in Need) reclaimed the right to operate on Russian soil last month following a controversial two-and-a-half year ban.
The nongovernmental organization had been prohibited from working in Russia since April 2005 when national officials withdrew their working license, saying they suspected the group of funding terrorist activity.
Director Simon Pánek is unsure as to the reason why People in Need was finally granted approval for a work license by Russian authorities this year after applying unsuccessfully in 2005 and 2006.
“Honestly, it could’ve happened by mere coincidence,” Pánek says. “It’s a large country and we’re a relatively small organization. Plus none of their original suspicions were ever proven.”
Prior to the ban, People in Need initiated a series of charitable projects, including educational programs and funding for small businesses particularly in the southern regions of Ingushetia and Chechnya, which had been the epicenter of civil conflict in the 1990s.
With their working license back in order, People in Need officials say they are developing a variety of humanitarian projects in preparation for their return to the region. Establishing programs for vocational education is a top priority.
“To say exactly what People in Need will do from here will, of course, be based on our future assessment,” Pánek says. “I think what’s needed most now is strong support for the people, to get citizens back to their original lifestyles. It’s almost an entire generation that didn’t receive proper education, mostly because they were fighting or living in hiding.”
Another goal is to resurrect the program for traumatized children. Under People in Need’s supervision, the program provided therapy, support and group activities for over 1,000 children.
Although most of their activities were relinquished to local NGOs prior to their departure, People in Need officials felt no one had the proper expertise or funding to maintain the program and were forced to discontinue it.
Political tool
Russia has long had a reputation for being administratively challenging for international humanitarian charities. NGO officials say Ingushetia and Chechnya are particularly daunting because of unstable security measures in both regions.
“All international and foreign NGOs [have to undergo] a registration process, which can be seen not only as a complicated administrative process, but also as a political tool,” says Vojtěch Rálek, head of the humanitarian and development aid department at Caritas Czech Republic, a group which has also been involved in various Russian aid projects including preschool education and HIV prevention.
“It is more and more difficult to raise funds for humanitarian and development work in Chechnya,” Rálek says. “The overall atmosphere there is not favorable for NGOs, especially international ones.”
When People in Need’s original work license expired in mid-December 2004, the organization applied for an extension, only to be rejected by Russian authorities the following April. Officials say Russian administrators suspected the group had been linked to terrorist activity, although they gave no basis for the accusation and provided no official written explanation.
“During some of our ongoing negotiations, Russian officials had basically told us that they didn’t trust our activities,” Pánek says, citing the 2005 arrest of one former employee on criminal charges unrelated to the organization as possible rationale. “We weren’t given any official explanation.”
Once their application was denied, People in Need workers were allowed to continue their work within the country until July 2005, after which their projects were either taken over by local NGOs or discontinued entirely.
Officials are confident that the Oct. 25 detention of Czech charity worker Hana Demeterová on fraud charges in the Chechen capital of Grozny will not affect the future work of international humanitarian groups working there, despite the fact that the situation has shed a negative light on the work of NGOs.
“We do hope that it was an individual case, and, as such, it will not negatively influence the work of other NGOs,” Rálek says.
Adds Pánek: “Our position is that everything from this point will proceed according to the law. We will apply for visas and move without any personal restrictions as normal. We’re not predicting any additional obstacles, but we’ll have to wait and see how we will be allowed to work within that environment.”

Curtis M. Wong can be reached at news@praguepost.com


Other articles in News (31/10/2007):

Browse the Current Issue

If you enjoyed this article, why don't you subscribe to the print version!
We accept secure online transactions provided by PayPal and Moneybookers

Be the first to add a comment!


Full Name: *
City: *
E-mail: **
This comment can be published in the print version of The Prague Post
Enter the text on the right:
 visual captcha
Comment: *
* Required field. In order to be approved for display, comments must have a first and last name and a city.
** E-mails are required and will only be used for internal purposes.

Most visited in Book of Lists

Hotel booking
The Prague Post Online contains a selection of articles that have been printed in
The Prague Post, a weekly newspaper published in the Czech Republic.
To subscribe to the print paper, click here.
Unauthorized reproduction is strictly prohibited.