Participants of the fourth annual Finnish-Russian Civic Forum have appealed to the presidents of both countries with a request to allow Russian opposition activists to exercise their constitutional right to free assembly, Kasparov.ru reports.
The forum, which is being held in Helsinki from July 21-22, brings together approximately 100 representatives of Russian and Finnish civil society "to promote cooperation between the peoples of Finland and Russia by supporting civic initiatives for democracy, human rights, and freedom of speech,” reads the forum’s website.
On Wednesday, representatives agreed on a statement asking that Russian President Dmitri Medvedev and Tarja Halonen turn their attention to the fact that Russian society continues to be deprived of the freedom of assembly.
"We are united all across Europe in our support of Russian activists who hold peaceful demonstrations under the Strategy 31 campaign. In another week, we will again express our ...
