The Centre of International Protection – a Russian interregional non-governmental organization was established in 1994. The Centre unites practising lawyers as well as professionals in the field of human rights protection.
Main activities of the Centre – providing legal aid to victims of human rights violations in applying to international human rights bodies (mainly, European Court of Human Rights in Strasbourg, France, and UN Human Rights Committee in Geneva, Switzerland).
Since 1999 the Centre is a Russian affiliate of the International Commission of Jurists (“ICJ”), an international organization which has a consultative status with the Council of Europe, the United Nations and other international organizations.
The Centre of international protection is a non-governmental organization. It was established in 1994, and registered as an interregional non-governmental organization in 1995. The Centre unites practising lawyers, professional jurists specializing in the field of international protection, senior students of Moscow Law Schools.
Oxana Vladimirovna Preobrazhenskaya is currently the head of the Centre. The Supervisor of all programs of the Centre is Karinna Akopovna Moskalenko, a lawyer of the Moscow City Bar. The Centre consists of: Directorate, six lawyers, two legal consultants, Secretariat, who provide qualified help in the field of international protection.
The main purposes and goals of the Centre are promotion of full and unhampered enjoyment of political, social, civil and economic rights and freedoms, revelation of human rights violations, their analysis and review, developing of general and specific recommendations for restoration of violated rights, as well as formation of legal consciousness of respect of human rights and fundamental freedoms.
For realization of these goals the Centre renders free legal aid that includes consultations on applying to the European Court of Human Rights and the United Nations Human Rights Committee as well as other international organizations, consultations on documents submitted to the Centre, filing applications with the European Court of Human Rights and the UN Human Rights Committee. At the same time lawyers of the Centre may consult for fees and represent a client in Russian national courts. Since its establishment the Centre has received more than 7,000 letters, each was considered and checked for a violation of human rights. The Centre has prepared and submitted to the UN Human Rights Committee more than 50 applications, some of which were declared admissible and will shortly be heard on the merits; there have already been 2 final decisions on violations by the Russian Federation of the rights guaranteed by the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights. From 1998 to 2003 the Centre prepared about 70 applications to the European Court of Human Rights.
There is a great number of people appealing to the Centre, among them prisoners stand out. Mainly, the reasons for appealing to the Centre are violations of the right to a fair trial, torture, illegal arrest and depravation of liberty, violation of the right to peaceful enjoyment of property and other rights protected by the European Convention for the protection of human rights and fundamental freedoms (except the right to peaceful enjoyment of property) and the International Covenant of Civil and Political Rights.
In 1999 the Centre acquired the status of the affiliate of the International Commission of Jurists, an international organization promoting principles of the “state ruled by law” in the European Union and elsewhere in the world. The International Commission of Jurists has a consultative status with the United Nations, the Council of Europe and other international organizations.
In July and August of 1999 members of the Centre, as representatives of the ICJ, exercised non-governmental control over the administration of justice in Moscow district courts. The results of the action were published in some mass media. Members of the Centre participate in litigations as counsels or observers. The object in the latter case is whether the proceedings are consistent with standards of a fair trial established by the European Convention for the protection of human rights and fundamental freedoms.
The Centre also invites volunteers (students of Moscow Law Schools) to contribute to its work. Members of the Centre take an active part in seminars for practising lawyers and human rights lawyers. The main purposes of inviting volunteers and participating in seminars are proliferation of information about the mechanisms of international protection of human rights and formation of legal consciousness based on internationally recognized legal principles. The Centre is willing to cooperate with other human rights organizations and provide any necessary information to those interested in mechanisms of international protection of human rights.
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