from writers, actors and journalists handed into presidential administration

Izbrannoye, 11.11.2008

The open letter to the President of Russia from the country’s writers, actors, journalists and other leading Russian cultural figures has been delivered to the presidential administration by director Vladimir Mirzoyev, one of the organisers of the campaign. It carries more than 80 signatures.

The campaign, organised by Mirzoyev and writer Grigory Chkhartishvili, lasted three weeks.

Dear Dmitry Anatolevich,

On the Russian internet an unprecedented, spontaneous campaign is under way. Tens of thousands of people are gathering signatures on an Appeal addressed to you. It has turned into an important public phenomenon, the scale of which is growing with every day. However, those who have signed the petition are not confident that you will hear their voices. That is why we have decided to speak out in support of this initiative, as representatives of Russian culture which by long tradition has always called for “mercy to the fallen”.

We refer to the fate of Svetlana Bakhmina, the mother of two under-age children, who was convicted of an economic crime. She has served more than half of her sentence, does not have any black marks against her name in the colony, and was even allowed a vacation for her exemplary behaviour. Now Svetlana is expecting a child and is due to give birth in December. Despite all these circumstances the court has refused her release on parole. This unjustified cruelty has aroused a feeling of protest in many people who have resolved to speak out in support of compassion. Is this not a step towards the establishment of civil society, the importance of which you have talked about in your speeches?

The individual case of Svetlana Bakhmina has drawn attention to a problem that has great social and humanitarian significance. We ask you to use the right the Constitution gives you to pardon not only her but all women prisoners who have served more than half their sentence and have under-age children, and especially those among these unfortunate creatures who are expecting a child. By keeping mothers in prison the numbers in children’s homes increase, and this gives rise to new demographic problems, crippling the lives and souls of those affected.

We ask you to do all in your power to ensure that compassion and magnanimity may triumph.

Lia Akhedjakova, actress
Yury Arabov, writer
Alexander Arkhangelsky, critic
Tatyana Arno, TV presenter
Yevgeny Ass, architect
Oleg Basilashvili, actor
Yegor Beroyev, actor
Andrei Bitov, writer
Sergei Bodrov, Sr, director
Dmitry Bykov, writer
Grigory Chkhartishvili, writer (Boris Akunin)
Marietta Chudakova, writer
Inna Churikova, actress
Georgy Danelia, director
Leonid Desyatnikov, composer
Daniil Dondurei, film specialist
Olga Drozdova, actress
Tatyana Drubich, actress
Ivan Dykhovichny, director
Andrei Eshpai, director
Margarita Eskina, director of Actors’ Club
Alexander Feklistov, actor
Alexander Filippenko, actor
Sergei Gandlevsky, poet
Sergei Garmash, actor
Alexei German, director
Alexei German, Jr, director
Kama Ginkas, director
Boris Grebenshchikov, musician
Yekaterina Guseva, actress
Sergei Kapitsa, professor
Svetlana Karmalita, screenwriter
Tigran Keosayan, director
Konstantin Khabensky, actor
Chulpan Khamatova, actress
Alyona Khmelnitskaya, actress
Yelena Koreneva, actress
Mikhail Kozakov, actor & director
Alexander Kushner, poet
Igor Kvasha, actor
Lev Losev, poet
Pavel Lungin, director
Sergei Machilsky, cameraman
Vladimir Makanin, writer
Sergei Makovetsky, actor
Pyotr Mamonov, actor
Alexander Mindadze, screenwriter
Vladimir Mirzoyev, director
Natalya Negoda, actress
Olga Ostroumova, actress
Leonid Parfyonov, journalist
Dmitry Pevtsov, actor
Vladimir Pozner, TV presenter
Yury Rost, journalist
Lev Rubinstein, poet
Kirill Serebrennikov, director
Alexei Serebryakov, actor
Yelena Shanina, actress
Vladimir Sharov, writer
Yefim Shifrin, actor
Yevgenia Simonova, actress
Venyamin Smekhov, actor & director
Sergei Solovyov, film director
Boris Strugatsky, writer
Maxim Sukhanov, actor
Andrei Tashkov, actor
Natalya Tenyakova, actress
Valery Todorovsky, director
Artemy Troitsky, music critic
Alexei Uchitel, director
Ludmila Ulitskaya, writer
Galina Volchek, director
Henrietta Yanovskaya, director
Igor Yasulovich, actor
Mikhail Yerofeyev, actor
Victor Yerofeyev, writer
Sergei Yursky, actor & director
Mark Zakharov, director
Alexander Zbruyev, actor
Mikhail Zhvanetsky, writer
Andrei Zvyagintsev, director