The exhibition “Russia’s political prisoners”, which has just opened in Krasnoyarsk, caused a scandal. The Public Prosecutors of the region demanded the removal of one of the exhibits – a portrait of the physician Valentin Danilov, who was convicted of treason. After a discussion between the director of the museum and the Public Prosecutor in charge of regional matters the portrait was not touched upon for a certain while; however, the attempt to “censor a cultural event” annoyed a number of human rights’ activists.
Last Tuesday about one hundred Russian human rights’ activists addressed an open letter to Chief State Prosecutor Yuriy Chaika, requesting him to take care of the situation that came up in Krasnoyarsk in connection with the exhibition “Russia’s political prisoners”. The letter says that Liudmila Gurskaia, worker of the reginal Public Prosecutor’s office, requested the organizers of the exhibition prior to its opening in the premises of the Center of History and Culture, to remove one of the photographs (showing the protrait of the physician Valentin Danilov, who was convicted of treason to 13 years). The letter furthermore says that, by acting in this way, she did not only “demonstrate and introduce censorship on a cultural event”, but also offended at several sections of the Russian Federal Constitution at the same time – sections which Russia ratified in acceptance of the “European Convention for the Protection of Human Rights” and the “International Alliance of Civil and Political Rights”. – “We request you to admonish the regional Public Prosecutors to not disregard law and regulations and to impose penalty on the guilty persons” – the appeal further says.
The exhibition “Russia’s political prisoners” was organized by the Sakharov Museum in Moscow. It is dealing with prisoners, who – according to the opinion of the artist Aleksander Kholopov – presently serve a sentence due to their position in our civilian society. The series of portraits are exhibited in the form of postage stamps, showing the prisoners behind bars. Visitors were supposed to find Valentin Danilov in the company of Mikhail Khodorkovsky, Platon Lebedev, Grigoriy Pasko and others.
Mikhail Shubskiy, director of the Center of History and Culture, informed that “they succeeded in solving the problem after a meeting with the responsible person working for the Public Prosecutor’s office”. – “As far as I was informed, the assistant of the Public Prosecutor promised “difficulties with the FSB”, in case the exhibition was, in fact, to be opened. The problem was solved, however, after Mikhail Schubskiy had talked to Sergey Feoktistov, the Public Prosecutor of the region. They agreed that it would be more reasonable to open the exhibition than provoke a scandal with human rights’ activists” – said Olga Podgurskaia, who took part in the organization of the exhibition and its coordination with the regional human rights’ centers.
Yesterday the Department of Public Prosecution quite grudgingly commented on the incident. Ms. Gurskaia herself was not available in her office for the whole day. Elena Pimonenko (who is in charge of commenting the position of the Public Prosecutor and coordinationg the cooperation with the mass media) revealed to the newspaper “kommersant” that, according to what had come to her attention, “Ludmila Gurskaia merely informed the employees of the museum that Valentin Danilov was no political prisoner at all, but a true criminal; for that reason it would neither be relevant nor correct to show his portrait among the exhibits”.
The exhibition will be open to the public until the end of November.
Aleksander Konovalov Nonna Goncharenko, Krasnoyarsk
“Kommersant-Sibir”, 02.11.2006
The organizers of the exhibition were of the opinion that, judging from the long
term of confinement (Valentin Danilov was sentenced for having committed treason),
there was sufficient reason to held back the portrait.
Photo: KONSTANTIN USHAKOV