Eurasia Program Highlights Eurasia Grantee Spotlight 2006 Eurasia Descriptions: Armenia Azerbaijan Belarus Georgia Kazakhstan Kyrgyzstan Russia Tajikistan Turkmenistan Ukraine Uzbekistan Central Asia/Caucasus Regional East Central Europe/ Eurasia Regional Jump to Regional Programs

Nongovernmental organizations and democratic political forces came under intensified pressure in Russia throughout 2006. While headlines were dominated by the murders of journalist Anna Politkovskaya and ex-KGB agent Alexander Litvinenko, equally important were the Kremlin's redoubled efforts to suppress civil society, rein in the media, restrict political space, and bring private businesses under state control. A new law requiring NGOs to report extensively on their activities and finances was used to shut down NED grantee the Russian-Chechen Friendship Society. Another grantee was physically attacked in St. Petersburg and numerous regional activists were arrested to prevent them from attending a NED-supported event in Moscow.

Such threats notwithstanding, NED grantees continued to advocate on behalf of Russian citizens whose rights have been violated, provide legal assistance to NGOs at risk from the new law, push for a more accountable political system, and report on developments in the troubled North Caucasus region. The Moscow Helsinki Group was instrumental in convening the Other Russia, a conference of activists of widely divergent views, to lay the foundation for a broader democratic movement. The Institute for Information Freedom Development worked to ensure that Russian government agencies complied with laws mandating freedom of information and official transparency. In the North Caucasus, NED grantees include Mashr, working to end impunity in Ingushetia by investigating and intervening in cases of forced disappearance; the Kabardin-Balkar Social Center for Human-Rights Activism, serving as the only human rights organization in Kabardino-Balkaria; and Dagestanski Rakurs, providing an important perspective on local events as the only independent newspaper in Dagestan.

In Ukraine, 2006 began with the campaign for the March parliamentary elections which resulted in most seats in the Verkhovna Rada, Ukraine's Parliament, being taken by the party headed by former Prime Minister Viktor Yanukovych, whose effort to falsify the 2004 presidential election sparked the Orange Revolution. After again becoming Prime Minister, Mr. Yanukovych repeatedly clashed with President Viktor Yushchenko over the balance of powers between the two offices, provoking a constitutional crisis.

Despite these developments, NED grantees have been able to continue building a stronger foundation of democratic practices in the country. Young Rukh continued its efforts to democratize young people's lives by supporting the formation of student governments in Ukrainian universities. The Center for Research on Social Perspectives in the Donbas provided unbiased coverage of the 2006 parliamentary elections and their aftermath in Ukraine's largely Russophone Eastern regions, while the Institute of Mass Information protected such efforts through its monitoring of violations of press freedoms. Finally, Youth Alternative helped strengthen Ukraine's national and regional legislatures by arranging internships with the Verkhovna Rada and with local legislatures in 14 cities.

Belarus experienced two important election cycles in 2006. The democratic opposition united behind a single candidate, Alexander Milinkevich, to challenge Alexander Lukashenka, "Europe's last dictator," in March presidential elections. To forestall a resurgent opposition, the regime stepped up its attack on civil society and closed down NGOs and independent newspapers. The Endowment helped level the playing field by supporting more than 20 nonpartisan voter education and mobilization programs which contributed to the best ever performance by an opposition candidate. But Lukashenka falsified the election's results and the U.S., EU, and OSCE denounced the contest as not being free, fair, or transparent. In response, tens of thousands of Belarusians took to the streets in protest. During the ensuing crackdown, in which more than a thousand were arrested, imprisoned, beaten, dismissed from jobs, or expelled from schools, NED grantees provided humanitarian and legal assistance to those whose rights had been violated. NED also continued to assist the shrinking independent press and increased its support for "alternative media," including samizdat publications, websites, and on-line newspapers. With an eye toward local elections scheduled for January 2007, the Endowment supported the election-related programs of more than a dozen local and regional coalitions of NGOs, political parties, and trade unions.

In the Caucasus, NED funding focused on increasing the capacity of independent media, fostering youth participation in civil society, NGO development outside the capital cities, and ensuring human rights and rule of law. In Armenia, NED supported two programs that linked Yerevan based groups and regional networks of television stations and NGOs to inform voters about the parliamentary elections. Supporting independent media and providing legal assistance to the population were the main priorities for NED in Azerbaijan. Independent newspapers Gyun, Yukselish Namine, and Janub Khabarlari, as well as internet sites Media Forum and Ganzha Media Center, were published with NED support while the Media Rights Institute conducted trainings to inform journalists about the new law on freedom of information. Other groups supported by NED conducted a campaign to persuade parliament to publish its voting records, monitored abuses in the judiciary, and organized forums for constituents to meet with members of parliament. Three years after the "Rose Revolution," civil society continues to work to expand democratic reforms in Georgia. ACILS began to train trade union leaders and NDI worked to expand the capacity of the election monitoring NGO International Society for Fair Elections and Democracy. Several NED grantees, including Former Political Prisoners for Human Rights, Human Rights Information and Documentation Center, and Georgian Association of Young Lawyers, took the lead in organizing a new NGO coalition "Civil Society for a Democratic Georgia," which coordinates joint actions to curb human rights abuses.

Central Asia is among the most authoritarian regions in the world and, despite some gains in Kyrgyzstan, most countries in the region continue to endure harsh conditions for NGOs and the deterioration of basic freedoms. Against this bleak background, NED's grantees in Central Asia are laying the foundation for the long-term development of democratic values. The core areas of NED activity in Central Asia in 2006 were human rights and the rule of law. In Kazakhstan, NED supported the Bureau for Human Rights and Rule of Law, the Almaty Helsinki Committee, and Journalists in Danger which conducted a range of activities to protect the rights of journalists, refugees, and minorities. NED sought to build on the momentum of the 2005 "Tulip Revolution" in Kyrgyzstan by expanding programs that fostered the rule of law, youth participation in civil society, and human rights. NED supported three organizations—Youth Human Rights Group, Kel Kel, and Institute for Public Policy—which aimed to increase the rhetorical, organizational, and political skills of youth activists and expand their ability to defend their rights and freedoms. Other programs focused on improving electoral legislation and conducting human rights monitoring. Programs in Tajikistan fostered freedom of information by supporting two independent internet publications, Avesta and Asia Plus; a local Uzbek language newspaper, Tong; a journalism resource center in Khuzhand; and legal assistance for independent journalists through the National Association of Independent Mass Media. Despite a deepening crackdown against NGOs in Uzbekistan, NED's support for regional human rights efforts were critical to protecting refugees and documenting and distributing information about human rights abuses. NED supports several rule of law and human rights programs in Turkmenistan and will expand on this foundation if the new government permits greater freedom for civil society.