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Ella Pamfilova: “A new ground for the international problem discussion on the level of NGOs is being set up in Moscow”


Moscow, Feb. 9th, INTERFAX – “Within the frameworks of the Russian presidency in the G8, Moscow holds a number of subject matter expert round tables”, said Ella Pamfila, the coordinator of the “CivilG8” project.

“Our main goal is to give the ground for all of the opinions on the matters that the world community is concerned with”.

According to Pamfilova, “CivilG8-2006”, from with the support of the RF president, “in no way monopolizes the process of discussion”, on the contrary, invites all the NGOs for cooperation.

The three round tables are taking place in Moscow on the 16th February – they will gather Russian and foreign experts in energy, education and health, as well as the representatives of the International non governmental organizations.

E. Pamfilova also said that the Consulting Counsel of the CIvilG8 is being formed now. 50 people are expected to enter it. The experts from UK, Germany, Canada and other countries have already expressed their agreement.

“We should not get absorbed by merely Russian problems, but become a ground for the NGO discussion of the international problems”, the coordinator of the project pointed out.

Pamfilova hopes that the death penalty will be soon cancelled in Russia

Ella Pamfilova, the chairman of the President Counsel on the Civil Society Institution and Human Rights Development, thinks that the death penalty should be cancelled in the nearest future.

“We are the only country out of the European Counsel that has not ratified the death penalty paragraph. Hopefully, we will do it in the nearest future”, she said.

Russia has death penalty moratorium but this penalty is not cancelled once and for all. And this was the obligatory condition for entering the European Counsel.

E.Pamfilova said that she will not make comment on the request of the State Prosecutor to prepare Nurpashi Kulaev, participant of the Beslan school seizure, for the exceptional penalty – death penalty.

“I do not want to comment the process. The major point is that the decision of the court was not correlated to the political structure”, E. Pamfilova said.

Meanwhile, she pointed out that in Russia the majority of the population is for the death penalty. “I think that political government should be directed in the ways that the majority is not agree with, at least in the as principle question as this one”, she said.

”Death penalty cannot solve the problem of terrorism”, she said.

According to Pamfilova, to confront terrorism, we need a complex of preventive measures, including those on the part of the special services.

”As for the death penalty, our society is enough tough without it”, E. Pamfilova concluded.


Public organizations should be independent of officials and of business. – Pamfilova

”The RF President Counsel on the Civil Society Institutions and Human Rights Development plans to work out an effective mechanism of NGO financing”, the Counsel chairman, Ella Pamfilova said.

“Our aim is to offer modern and effective mechanisms that will allow public organizations function well, prove their opulence in the course of natural selection and at the same time be independent of the officials as well as of business”, Ella Pamfilova claimed, when answering journalists’ questions whether she thinks it necessary to reconsider financing of the NGOs after the so-called espionage scandal in Moscow.

She reported that back in July the RF president, when meeting the Council representatives, insisted on developing “mechanism of investments into the Civil Society, considering the experience of the democratic countries”.

“Unfortunately the president’s task is delayed: the government officials are trying to make it as simple as money division – we are not going to participate in that”, Ella Pamfilova claimed.

She stressed that the p[resident’s task will be completed.

“I hope will make our position clear and evident and will complete the president’s task the way it was set”, E. Pamfilova said.

Alexander Auzan, the president of the National Project Institute “Public Agreement” reminded that some of the NGOs were involved in the so-called espionage scandal. So this question is not closed yet.

“I think that the case is not closed and we will be dealing with it applying common civil measures”, Auzan said. According to his opinion, the Authorities either have to prove “NGOs participation in the scandal or bring their excuses”.

“If the countries are launching wide espionage wars – it is 18th century, God save the Queen! – then we have complaints to the governments, they can behave the way they want to but should not involve the society”, said Auzan.

He pointed out that the scandal left claims towards the Authorities and Press.

“If the government says that they do not have any claims to the organizations (mentioned above as involved in the espionage conflict) then we say that we have claims to the government and press that presents information in such a distorted way.

He believes that journalists in particular have to “take responsibility for their words in the society”


Pamfilova believes that the Danish Refugee Counsel has to start anew its work in Chechnya

The chairman of the RF President Counsel on the Civil Society Institutions and Human Rights Development, Ella Pamfilova said a word for the Danish Refugee Counsel taking up their work in Chechnya.

”It’s not fair to let this large amount of the work be made in vain, everything will be restored and they will be working”, - said Ella Pamfilova.

She believes that the worker of the Danish Counsel “should not pay for the tactless actions of their compatriots”.

Chechen representatives said that because of the number of Mohamed’s cartoons in the press publication will allow no more Danish humanitarian help in Chechnya.

“I know the Danish Refugee Counsel, which has been working in the region for several years in the system of the youth employment. They have a very effective system, in particular in giving micro credits”, said Ella Pamfilova.

Commenting “cartoon scandal”, Ella Pamfilova said : “It is necessary to think what to do with the tension in the Muslim world”. She believes that if we do not deal with the situation, it may “lead to serious problems afterwards”.

As it was reported, Danish Refugee Counsel, one of the biggest humanitarian organizations in the region, reported that it temporarily stops its work in Chechnya.

“The activities in the North Caucuses are not seized but we decided to stop for now the work in Chechnya”, - Per Ilsaas, the director of the Danish Counsel Department, said to INTERFAX earlier.

“Temporary pause in the work in Chechnya is connected to the questions of the security and we hope that in the near future we will have an opportunity to continue our work”, he said.

Expert opinion

Halter Marek

02.12.06

Halter Marek
Le College de France
Olivier Giscard d’Estaing

02.12.06

Olivier Giscard d’Estaing
COPAM, France
Mika Ohbayashi

02.12.06

Mika Ohbayashi
Institute for Sustainable Energy Poliñy
Bill Pace

02.12.06

Bill Pace
World Federalist Movement - Institute for Global Policy
Peter I. Hajnal

01.12.06

Peter I. Hajnal
Toronto University, G8 Research Group


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