Lyudmila Alexeyeva
Encyclopedia
Lyudmila Mikhailovna Alexeyeva is a Russia
n historian, human rights
activist, founding member of the Moscow Helsinki Watch Group, and one of the few veterans of the Soviet
dissident
movement still active in modern Russia.
, then part of Russian SFSR (now part of Ukraine
). She was trained as an archeologist, graduating from the History Department of the Moscow State University
in 1950 and finishing the graduate school of the Moscow Institute for Economics and Statistics in 1956. In 1952, Alexeyeva joined the Communist Party of the USSR. In 1959-1968, she worked as a editor in the ethnography and archeology section of the publishing house “Science”. During 1970-1977 Alexeyeva worked at the Institute of Information on Social Sciences affiliated with the Science Academy of the USSR. Having become completely disillusioned with the Soviet ideology, Alexeyeva decided not to defend her Candidate of Sciences (roughly equivalent to a PhD) thesis and forgo the career as a scholar.
Alexeyeva’s worldview was significantly affected by the Khrushchev Thaw
that lasted from the mid-1950s through the early 1960s. She belonged to the group of people, mostly intellectuals, who formed the dissident movement in the USSR in the 1960s. In 1966, Alexeyeva campaigned in defense of Daniel and Siniavsky, the writers who were arrested and tried for publishing their works abroad. In the late 1960s she signed petitions in defense of other dissidents who were prosecuted by the Soviet authorities, including Alexander Ginzburg
and Yuri Galanskov
. In April 1968, Alexeyeva was expelled from the Communist Party and fired from her job at the publishing house. Nonetheless, she continued her activities in defense of human rights. In 1968-1972 she worked clandestinely as a typist for the first underground bulletin “The Chronicle of Current Events” devoted to human rights violations in the USSR.
In early 1976, Alexeyeva became a founding member of the Moscow Helsinki Group
. As a member, she signed a number of documents issued by the Group, helped compose some of them, and collected information for some of the documents. Her responsibilities also included editing the Group’s documents and hiding copies of them from the authorities.
, where she continued her human rights activities as a foreign representative of the Moscow Helsinki Group. She regularly wrote on the Soviet dissident movement for both English and Russian language publications in the US and elsewhere, and in 1985 she published the first comprehensive monograph on the history of the movement, “Soviet Dissent” (Wesleyan University Press). In addition, after moving to the United States, Alexeyeva took up freelance radio journalism for Radio Liberty and the Russian language section of the Voice of America
. In 1990 she published an autobiography that described the formation of the Soviet dissident movement. (The “Thaw Generation”, co-written with Paul Goldberg
).
, she returned to Russia and became a Chairperson of the Moscow Helsinki Group
in 1996. In 2000, Alexeyeva joined a commission set up to advise then-President Vladimir Putin
on human rights issues, a move that triggered criticism from some other rights activists.
In December 2004, Alexeyeva co-founded and co-chaired, with Garry Kasparov
and Georgy Satarov
, the All-Russian Civic Congress which Alexeyeva and Satarov left due to disagreement with Kasparov in January 2008. Subsequently, she co-founded the All-Russia Civic Network with Satarov. As of February 10, 2009, Alexeyeva joined the Council for Promoting the Institutions of Civil Society and Human Rights under the President of the Russian Federation.
Alexeyeva has been critical of the Kremlin’s human rights record and accused the government of numerous human rights violations including the regular prohibitions of non-violent meetings and demonstrations and encouragement of extremists with its nationalistic policies, such as the mass deportations of Georgians
in 2006 and police raids against foreigners working in street markets.
She has also criticized the law enforcers’ conduct in Ingushetia
and has warned that growing violence in the republic may spread to the whole Russian Federation. In 2006, she was accused by the Russian authorities of involvement with British
intelligence and received threats from nationalist groups.
– the regular protest rallies of citizens on Moscow
’s Triumphalnaya Square in defense of the 31st Article (On the Freedom of Assembly) of the Russian Constitution
. Since October 31, 2009, she has been one of the regular organizers of these rallies. On December 31, 2009, during one of these attempted protests, Alexeyeva was detained by the riot police (OMON
) and taken with scores of others to a police station. This event provoked strong reaction in Russia and abroad. Jerzy Buzek
, the President of the European Parliament
, was “deeply disappointed and shocked” at the treatment of Alexeyeva and others by the police. The National Security Council of the United States expressed “dismay” at the detentions. The New York Times
published a front page article about the protest rally (“Tested by Many Foes, Passion of a Russian Dissident Endures”). Leonid Gozman, Co-Chairman of the Right Cause party, called the breakup of the peaceful demonstration and the detention of L.A. foolish and a disgrace for Moscow authorities.
.
At the Lake Seliger youth camp
, the Nashi
youth movement branded her "a Nazi" and one of Russia's worst enemies.
Russia
Russia or , officially known as both Russia and the Russian Federation , is a country in northern Eurasia. It is a federal semi-presidential republic, comprising 83 federal subjects...
n historian, human rights
Human rights
Human rights are "commonly understood as inalienable fundamental rights to which a person is inherently entitled simply because she or he is a human being." Human rights are thus conceived as universal and egalitarian . These rights may exist as natural rights or as legal rights, in both national...
activist, founding member of the Moscow Helsinki Watch Group, and one of the few veterans of the Soviet
Soviet Union
The Soviet Union , officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics , was a constitutionally socialist state that existed in Eurasia between 1922 and 1991....
dissident
Dissident
A dissident, broadly defined, is a person who actively challenges an established doctrine, policy, or institution. When dissidents unite for a common cause they often effect a dissident movement....
movement still active in modern Russia.
Soviet period
Alexeyeva was born in Yevpatoria, CrimeaCrimea
Crimea , or the Autonomous Republic of Crimea , is a sub-national unit, an autonomous republic, of Ukraine. It is located on the northern coast of the Black Sea, occupying a peninsula of the same name...
, then part of Russian SFSR (now part of Ukraine
Ukraine
Ukraine is a country in Eastern Europe. It has an area of 603,628 km², making it the second largest contiguous country on the European continent, after Russia...
). She was trained as an archeologist, graduating from the History Department of the Moscow State University
Moscow State University
Lomonosov Moscow State University , previously known as Lomonosov University or MSU , is the largest university in Russia. Founded in 1755, it also claims to be one of the oldest university in Russia and to have the tallest educational building in the world. Its current rector is Viktor Sadovnichiy...
in 1950 and finishing the graduate school of the Moscow Institute for Economics and Statistics in 1956. In 1952, Alexeyeva joined the Communist Party of the USSR. In 1959-1968, she worked as a editor in the ethnography and archeology section of the publishing house “Science”. During 1970-1977 Alexeyeva worked at the Institute of Information on Social Sciences affiliated with the Science Academy of the USSR. Having become completely disillusioned with the Soviet ideology, Alexeyeva decided not to defend her Candidate of Sciences (roughly equivalent to a PhD) thesis and forgo the career as a scholar.
Alexeyeva’s worldview was significantly affected by the Khrushchev Thaw
Khrushchev Thaw
The Khrushchev Thaw refers to the period from the mid 1950s to the early 1960s, when repression and censorship in the Soviet Union were partially reversed and millions of Soviet political prisoners were released from Gulag labor camps, due to Nikita Khrushchev's policies of de-Stalinization and...
that lasted from the mid-1950s through the early 1960s. She belonged to the group of people, mostly intellectuals, who formed the dissident movement in the USSR in the 1960s. In 1966, Alexeyeva campaigned in defense of Daniel and Siniavsky, the writers who were arrested and tried for publishing their works abroad. In the late 1960s she signed petitions in defense of other dissidents who were prosecuted by the Soviet authorities, including Alexander Ginzburg
Alexander Ginzburg
Alexander Ilyich Ginzburg , was a Russian journalist, poet, human rights activist and dissident.During the Soviet period, Ginzburg edited the samizdat poetry almanac Sintaksis. Between 1961 and 1969 he was sentenced three times to labor camps...
and Yuri Galanskov
Yuri Galanskov
Yuri Timofeyevich Galanskov was a Russian poet, historian, human rights activist and dissident. For his political activities, such as founding and editing samizdat almanac Phoenix, he was incarcerated in prisons, camps and forced treatment psychiatric hospitals ...
. In April 1968, Alexeyeva was expelled from the Communist Party and fired from her job at the publishing house. Nonetheless, she continued her activities in defense of human rights. In 1968-1972 she worked clandestinely as a typist for the first underground bulletin “The Chronicle of Current Events” devoted to human rights violations in the USSR.
In early 1976, Alexeyeva became a founding member of the Moscow Helsinki Group
Moscow Helsinki Group
The Moscow Helsinki Group is an influential human rights monitoring non-governmental organization, originally established in what was then the Soviet Union; it still operates in Russia....
. As a member, she signed a number of documents issued by the Group, helped compose some of them, and collected information for some of the documents. Her responsibilities also included editing the Group’s documents and hiding copies of them from the authorities.
Emigration
In February 1977 Alexeyeva was forced to emigrate from the USSR. She and her family settled in the United StatesUnited States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
, where she continued her human rights activities as a foreign representative of the Moscow Helsinki Group. She regularly wrote on the Soviet dissident movement for both English and Russian language publications in the US and elsewhere, and in 1985 she published the first comprehensive monograph on the history of the movement, “Soviet Dissent” (Wesleyan University Press). In addition, after moving to the United States, Alexeyeva took up freelance radio journalism for Radio Liberty and the Russian language section of the Voice of America
Voice of America
Voice of America is the official external broadcast institution of the United States federal government. It is one of five civilian U.S. international broadcasters working under the umbrella of the Broadcasting Board of Governors . VOA provides a wide range of programming for broadcast on radio...
. In 1990 she published an autobiography that described the formation of the Soviet dissident movement. (The “Thaw Generation”, co-written with Paul Goldberg
Paul Goldberg
Paul Goldberg is an American jazz/rock/R&B drummer.Goldberg was born in Washington DC. At age seven, relocated to Atlantic City, New Jersey, where he began studying the drumset w/ jazz great Don Hirsh, and continued studying drumset through grade school...
).
Return to Russia
In 1989 she again joined the Moscow Helsinki Group that was restarted after its dissolution in 1981. In 1993, after the dissolution of the Soviet UnionDissolution of the Soviet Union
The dissolution of the Soviet Union was the disintegration of the federal political structures and central government of the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics , resulting in the independence of all fifteen republics of the Soviet Union between March 11, 1990 and December 25, 1991...
, she returned to Russia and became a Chairperson of the Moscow Helsinki Group
Moscow Helsinki Group
The Moscow Helsinki Group is an influential human rights monitoring non-governmental organization, originally established in what was then the Soviet Union; it still operates in Russia....
in 1996. In 2000, Alexeyeva joined a commission set up to advise then-President Vladimir Putin
Vladimir Putin
Vladimir Vladimirovich Putin served as the second President of the Russian Federation and is the current Prime Minister of Russia, as well as chairman of United Russia and Chairman of the Council of Ministers of the Union of Russia and Belarus. He became acting President on 31 December 1999, when...
on human rights issues, a move that triggered criticism from some other rights activists.
In December 2004, Alexeyeva co-founded and co-chaired, with Garry Kasparov
Garry Kasparov
Garry Kimovich Kasparov is a Russian chess grandmaster, a former World Chess Champion, writer, political activist, and one of the greatest chess players of all time....
and Georgy Satarov
Georgy Satarov
Georgy Alexandrovich Satarov , is a Russian mathematician, politician, political scientist and a former aide to Russia President Boris Yeltsin...
, the All-Russian Civic Congress which Alexeyeva and Satarov left due to disagreement with Kasparov in January 2008. Subsequently, she co-founded the All-Russia Civic Network with Satarov. As of February 10, 2009, Alexeyeva joined the Council for Promoting the Institutions of Civil Society and Human Rights under the President of the Russian Federation.
Alexeyeva has been critical of the Kremlin’s human rights record and accused the government of numerous human rights violations including the regular prohibitions of non-violent meetings and demonstrations and encouragement of extremists with its nationalistic policies, such as the mass deportations of Georgians
2006 deportation of Georgians from Russia
2006 deportation of Georgians from Russia refers to a controversial displacement of several hundreds of citizens of Georgia by the government of Russia during the 2006 Georgia-Russia crisis....
in 2006 and police raids against foreigners working in street markets.
She has also criticized the law enforcers’ conduct in Ingushetia
Ingushetia
The Republic of Ingushetia is a federal subject of Russia , located in the North Caucasus region with its capital at Magas. In terms of area, the republic is the smallest of Russia's federal subjects except for the two federal cities, Moscow and Saint Petersburg...
and has warned that growing violence in the republic may spread to the whole Russian Federation. In 2006, she was accused by the Russian authorities of involvement with British
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
intelligence and received threats from nationalist groups.
Strategy-31
Since August 31, 2009, Lyudmila Alexeyeva has been an active participant in Strategy-31Strategy-31
Strategy-31 is a series of civic protests in support of the right to peaceful assembly in Russia guaranteed by Article 31 of the Russian Constitution...
– the regular protest rallies of citizens on Moscow
Moscow
Moscow is the capital, the most populous city, and the most populous federal subject of Russia. The city is a major political, economic, cultural, scientific, religious, financial, educational, and transportation centre of Russia and the continent...
’s Triumphalnaya Square in defense of the 31st Article (On the Freedom of Assembly) of the Russian Constitution
Constitution of Russia
The current Constitution of the Russian Federation was adopted by national referendum on 12 December 1993. Russia's constitution came into force on 25 December 1993, at the moment of its official publication...
. Since October 31, 2009, she has been one of the regular organizers of these rallies. On December 31, 2009, during one of these attempted protests, Alexeyeva was detained by the riot police (OMON
OMON
OMOH is a generic name for the system of special units of militsiya within the Russian and earlier the Soviet MVD...
) and taken with scores of others to a police station. This event provoked strong reaction in Russia and abroad. Jerzy Buzek
Jerzy Buzek
Jerzy Karol Buzek is a Polish engineer, academic lecturer and politician who was the ninth post-Cold War Prime Minister of Poland from 1997 to 2001...
, the President of the European Parliament
European Parliament
The European Parliament is the directly elected parliamentary institution of the European Union . Together with the Council of the European Union and the Commission, it exercises the legislative function of the EU and it has been described as one of the most powerful legislatures in the world...
, was “deeply disappointed and shocked” at the treatment of Alexeyeva and others by the police. The National Security Council of the United States expressed “dismay” at the detentions. The New York Times
The New York Times
The New York Times is an American daily newspaper founded and continuously published in New York City since 1851. The New York Times has won 106 Pulitzer Prizes, the most of any news organization...
published a front page article about the protest rally (“Tested by Many Foes, Passion of a Russian Dissident Endures”). Leonid Gozman, Co-Chairman of the Right Cause party, called the breakup of the peaceful demonstration and the detention of L.A. foolish and a disgrace for Moscow authorities.
Assault
On March 31(?), 2010, Lyudmila was assaulted on live television in the Park Kultury metro station by a man as she was paying respect to the victims of the 2010 Moscow Metro Bombings2010 Moscow Metro bombings
The 2010 Moscow Metro bombings were suicide bombings carried out by two womenduring the morning rush hour of March 29, 2010, at two stations of the Moscow Metro , with roughly 40 minutes interval between...
.
At the Lake Seliger youth camp
Seliger (forum)
«Seliger» is an educational forum held since 2005 at Lake Seliger in the Russian Tver Region .Seliger forums bring together young people to study and discuss issues in political science, economics, art, literature and culture...
, the Nashi
Nashi
Nashi may refer to:*Nashi , a Russian youth movement*Nashi , a former Russian political movement*Nashi pear*Nashi , a northeast wind which occurs in winter on the Iranian coast of the Persian Gulf...
youth movement branded her "a Nazi" and one of Russia's worst enemies.
Awards and Prizes
Alexeyeva has received the following awards and prizes for her human rights activities:- 2004 — Olof Palme PrizeOlof Palme PrizeThe Olof Palme Prize is an annual prize awarded for an outstanding achievement in the spirit of Olof Palme. The Prize consists of a diploma and 75,000 US dollars.-Receivers of the Olof Palme Prize :*1987 Cyril Ramaphosa...
- 2005 — Person of the Year Prize of the Federation of the Jewish Communities of Russia
- 2007 — The Order of the French Legion of Honour (Ordre national de la Légion d'honneur)
- 2008 — Order of the Lithuanian Grand Duke Gediminas (Lietuvos Didžiojo Kunigaikščio Gedimino ordinas)
- 2009 — The Order of Merit of the Federal Republic of Germany (Großes Verdienstkreuz der Bundesrepublik Deutschland)
- 2009 — Sakharov Prize for Freedom of Thought
Books
(The Russian text of the book in full is available online on the Memorial website by click)External links
- Lyudmila Alexeyeva's blog on LiveJournalLiveJournalLiveJournal is a virtual community where Internet users can keep a blog, journal or diary. LiveJournal is also the name of the free and open source server software that was designed to run the LiveJournal virtual community....