Freedom of Assembly Demonstration Dispersed

On May 31, Moscow opposition activists held their traditional demonstration in support of Article 31 of the Russian Constitution (freedom of assembly). As usual, the demonstration was banned by the authorities and dispersed by the police. More than 100 demonstrators were detained.

http://lenta.ru/news/2010/05/31/moscow/
http://lenta.ru/news/2010/05/31/moscow1/

Customs Union to Start without Belarus

Russia and Kazakhstan agreed to launch the Customs Union on July 1, leaving Belarus out of the process for the time being. Earlier it was announced that the plan to form a three-country union failed because Belarus and Russia could not agree on customs duties on oil exported from Russia to Belarus.

http://lenta.ru/news/2010/05/28/customs/

Poet Claims $2 Mln from Pasta Producer

Maral Ospanova, a Kazakhstan retiree, sued a local pasta manufacturer for placing her poem “My Country” on pasta packs. While Ospanova admits she has given a “preliminary agreement” for using her works in advertising, she denies entering into a valid license agreement. Ospanova claims copyright infringement and demands statutory damages in the amount of $2 mln.

http://lenta.ru/news/2010/05/28/poet/

Court Hearings to be Broadcasted Online

Starting in June, Russia’s Supreme Arbitrazh [Economic] Court will broadcast its hearings on the internet and place the video records on its web site. The video of Constitutional Court hearings will similarly be broadcasted. In contrast, Russia’s Supreme Court does not intend to broadcast its hearings because of possible detriment to the interests of parties. It is also notable that from July 1, 2010, courts of all instances must publish on their web sites the texts of their judgments. Currently, the judgments of general-jurisdiction courts are mostly unavailable to the public.

http://old.vedomosti.ru/newspaper/article.shtml?2010/05/27/235629

Investigator Takes $1.5 Mln Bribe

Grigory Dymovets, a Russian Prosecution Investigation Committee senior official, was detained while receiving a $500,000 bribe. Allegedly, Dymovets had earlier received a $1 mln bribe for releasing a shipment of meat imported from the U.S. that was seized as evidence of smuggling, but failed to release the shipment and demanded $500,000 more.

http://www.kommersant.ru/doc.aspx?DocsID=1375951

No Unemployment Benefits for LLC Members

Russia’s Constitutional Court upheld the constitutionality of legislation that excludes owners of limited liability companies from unemployment benefits. Under current employment legislation, members of “organizations” (apparently including both LLCs and joint-stock companies) are deemed “employed.” Nikolay Gushchin lost his job and applied for unemployment compensation, but his application was denied on the grounds he was an LLC member (Gushchin’s investment was $20, and his annual dividend was $30). The Constitutional Court held that LLC members voluntarily assume “the burden of care for own welfare.”

http://www.ksrf.ru/News/Pages/ViewItem.aspx?ParamId=781

Newspaper's Libel Claim against Duma Speaker Dismissed

A court in Moscow dismissed a libel claim by Vedomosti newspaper against State Duma (Russia’s parliament) Chairman Boris Gryzlov. After a Vedomosti article criticized Russian authorities' in connection with the recent terrorist attack in the Moscow subway, Gryzlov said: “I suspect that such publications and terrorist actions are connected to each other.” The court has not yet issued its explanation of the dismissal.

http://lenta.ru/news/2010/05/25/vedomosti/

Ukraine Claims USSR Assets

Ukrainian President Viktor Yanukovich stated in an interview that the foreign assets of the USSR should be divided among all former Soviet republics. When the USSR was dissolved, Russia assumed all its foreign assets and debts. Ukraine, unlike the other post-USSR countries, has not ratified the assets-for-debts treaty.

http://lenta.ru/news/2010/05/24/yanukovich/

Ex-Premier Testifies in Favor of Khodorkovsky

Former Prime Minister Mikhail Kasyanov, now an opposition activist, testified in the trial of Mikhail Khodorkovsky and Platon Lebedev, former managers of oil giant Yukos. Kasyanov stated that the defendants could not possibly steal 350 million tons of oil (of which they are accused), because the oil industry was under thorough governmental control. Kasyanov opined that Yukos business practices were identical to those of other major oil companies.

http://www.kommersant.ru/doc.aspx?DocsID=1374832