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MAINE LEGISLATORS VISIT ARCHANGEL
NARRATIVE DESCRIPTION OF ACTIVITIES (This Report
largely reflects the input of Representative Dunlap, who submitted notes of his
trip for inclusion in this Report.)
January 20-24, 2003 Program in Arkhangelsk
Arrival - Monday, January 20, 2003
Upon arrival in Arkhangelsk we were greeted by officials of the Arkhangelsk
Oblast Assembly ("Duma") and officials of the Portland-Arkhangelsk Sister City
Committee. We were greeted by a large contingent of press, including TV, and a
brief press conference was held. During this press conference Stanislav Vtory,
one of the Duma deputies who had visited Maine as part of Duma 2, commented that
they had gained a number of useful ideas during their visit. For example, they
had been impressed by as simple a thing as the playing of the national anthem at
the beginning and end of each session. This practice has now been implemented at
the Duma. Vtory also commented that the rules of procedure governing the Oblast
Assembly, which are being developed right now, are based in many ways on the
American model which they were exposed to in Maine.
Later we had dinner with Deputy Vtory and others at a restaurant owned by Duma
Deputy Ernesto Belokorovin. There was a lengthy discussion on food distribution,
and how geographical, transportation and climate problems are overcome. It
appears that the ability to move high-quality food around the country is similar
to that of the U. S.
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First Day Of Official Discussions - Tuesday, January 21, 2003
Our first official meeting centered on general discussion of the nature of the
legislative process
in Arkhangelsk. There was discussion of the upcoming change from fractional
representation to proportional representation. Under proportional
representation, the party will be entitled to name a certain number of seats
based on its proportion of the electoral vote. The Duma has 39 deputies from 27
communities. They have a 4 year terra; 9 standing commissions. There was a
lengthy discussion of the rules of procedure; party voting; regional charter
(constitution) and the relationship with the federal duma,. They were very
interested in the role of our leadership hierarchy, especially the powers of
speaker. There was also discussion of the role of lobbying and advocacy in our
system.
There was discussion of the practice in Russia of having minimum mandatory voter
turnout, which has caused problems in the Arkhangelsk Oblast with not having a
quorum of deputies to convene sessions.
The press coverage later highlighted certain aspects of the discussion. For
example, they focused on the fact that voting on bills in the Maine legislature
is open. The press found it significant that any constituent can find out how
his representative voted with respect to a particular issue. In addition, they
commented on the extent to which the representatives in Maine are apparently
concerned about the opinions of the voters. They picked up on a portion of the
discussion in which Rep. Trahan explained that when considering a bill a
representative might receive several
calls from constituents, and that this would be enough for the representatives
to pay particular attention to a controversial provision and perhaps modify it.
They quoted Rep. Trahan as stating that the main lobbyist in our country is the
people, the populace.
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Wednesday, January 22, 2003
A high level meeting was held at the Oblast Administration building. The main
topic was separation of powers: the relationship between different branches of
government and enforcement of laws. In addition to our delegation those present
included the First Deputy Governor, Victor Pavlenko; the Chief Prosecutor of the
Oblast, Alexander Apanasenko; the Deputy Chairman of the Oblast Court, Vladimir
Bunkov; several Duma Deputies, including Stanislav Vtory; and the legal liaison
between the Administration and the Duma. The discussion included the respective
systems for implementation of laws, as well as the bill drafting process in
Maine and the Arkhangelsk Oblast. Reps Dunlap and Trahan were interested to
learn that the right to initiate legislation is possessed not just by the Duma
deputies, but also by the Governor, the Court and the Prosecutor's Office, and
that the Prosecutor's Office reviews bills to determine whether they are
preempted by Federation law. Rep. Dunlap felt that one positive aspect of this
system is the close working relationship that seems to have developed between
the federal government and the regional duma, something that is lacking in the
U.S.
There was discussion of the veto power and override of the Governor veto, which
seems to be nearly identical in both systems. Other discussion revolved around
citizen respect for the law, executive orders, and financial issues; how the
U.S. government can "encourage" states to adopt federal policies by withholding
revenues. We also discussed emergency powers of the Governor, e.g., the Maine
governor's ability to hospitalize people against their will in times of
suspected terrorist biological attack. The Arkhangelsk governor also has the
right to take emergency action in times of trouble, but has not had to exercise
this right. We also discussed the power of the Prosecutor's Office; consequences
of non-compliance with federation law; the role of the Arkhangelsk constitution.
There was an afternoon meeting with Deputy Anatoly Frolov, a Chechen native who,
in addition to being a member of the duma, is also employed by the company
Archangel Geological Recovery. There were discussions on economics and the
environment. Also present was Federal Council Member Yuri Sivkov, who explained
how regional dumas interact with the federal government to make their regional
priorities and concerns heard. If two-thirds of the regional dumas so vote,
federal vetoes can be overridden. Governmental finances are complicated, and
bonding is for short-term issues only. Russian companies are increasingly
reliant on long-terra financing from outside the country. The relationship
between courts and businesses is seen as strengthening. Environmental concerns
are growing. Ten percent of the cost of new construction is set aside for
environmental mitigation. Deputy Frolov was concerned that such
concerns may have swung too far in the direction of protecting the environment
at the expense of the economy. He cited the potential of nuclear power as a
thwarted promise alter the Chernobyl disaster; no one wants to tank about
nuclear power anymore. The discussion then turned to the need for government to
deal honestly with business on environmental matters and also to maintain public
trust over stewardship of environmental and financial resources to benefit the
public.
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Thursday, January 23, 2003
There was a roundtable discussion of domestic violence issues with Duma Deputy
Stanislav Vtory and Raisa Danilova, Pomor University Professor and director of a
domestic violence clinic in Archangelsk. We expressed sensitivity and deference
to our hosts as to how far they wanted to pursue the elements of the problem,
given the differences in the culture and the sensitivity of the issue. In
actually they appeared quite eager to discuss the problem. Raisa Danilova began
with the background of her project: she began delivery of services in 1998. The
clinic now offers Saturday psychological and legal consulting sessions. This is
done through personal interviews. The clinic utilizes 32 volunteers, including 4
attorneys, who frequently "burn out" due to the intensity of the work. Two of
the volunteers are faculty at Pomor State University. They take telephone calls
for assistance from 3-7 pm daily. They have had 3,532 calls since 1998. They do
not work holidays. Because of resource constraints, they work strictly
part-time. They average 3-4 calls per day. Psychological consulting usually
begins with a 40-50 minute phone conversation. The psychologist tries to help
the victim find ways to break cycle of violence. Meetings continue if the
situation is very serious. Stanislav Vtory pointed out that one great difficulty
in domestic violence situations is the housing shortage--even divorced couples
frequently are forced to remain together in the same household, further
exacerbating a potentially explosive situation.
A recent study done of victims reveals that the bulk of domestic violence
victims (out of a survey of 1,500 cases) tends to be between ages of 22-50, with
39% made up of age group 30-40. Elderly women make up 15% of the victim
database. Aggressors are mostly husbands and boyfriends. Children and
grandchildren make up the bulk of those who abuse the elderly; many of these are
cases of younger household members becoming predatory because of the housing
shortage, trying to leverage, through threats, violence, and intimidation,
access to family properties.
A training school for volunteers is beginning; this organization has made
contact with advocacy groups in Scandinavia. The Clinic also received a small
IREX grant of $4900 in 1999 which enabled them to train all 32 of their
volunteers. Danilova said that her lawyers would benefit from the training
program being planned in May for Justices of the Peace. Danilova also said she
could benefit from any information that participants in the May program could
bring concerning grant programs that she might apply for. Her phone number is
8182-65-67-48, fax 8182-61-90-29.
We passed out copies of the Project Harmony training booklet (in Russian)
"Cooperation of Local Agencies in the Problem of Domestic Violence". We also
left copies of Maine statutes dealing with the subject for possible future
translation into Russian in preparation for the May delegation on Domestic
Violence.
Stanislav Vtory is an ally in the Duma with regard to domestic violence reform.
He has promised to meet with Danilova, assist in obtaining domestic violence
statistics from the prosecutor' office, and lobby the federal government for
more Oblast jurisdiction with respect to domestic violence. For example, he
would like the Oblast to be given the power to impose
administrative sanctions for failure to obey support orders. Stanislav also
feels that the biggest obstacle to date is convincing local police of the
seriousness of domestic violence. He explained, however, that the divorce code
and criminal codes as they relate to domestic violence are within the exclusive
jurisdiction of the Federation. |
Friday, January 24, 2003
During the morning there was a tour and round table meeting at Sawmill #2, which
dates from 1899. The equipment is old, and by their own admission labor
intensive; a modern plant of the same capacity would have around 150 employees:
they have nearly 900. They are trying to do some updating, but financing is
difficult to obtain and money tight. Much of their market is western Europe, but
their lumber is expensive due to high labor intensity. Their lumber is actually
more expensive than the same product in the U.S. Their lumber is very high
quality, but grows slowly; a harvestable tree in Maine takes some 40 years to
grow; in Archangel oblast, roughly 120 years, or three times as long.
Approximately 94% of this plant's product is exported. Approximately 340,000
cubic meters of lumber is cut per year. Of this approximately 140,000 cubic
meters of finished product is shipped; much of the scrap is shipped to Egypt to
make furniture. Most exports are to Europe; some to Canada, mostly pine, spruce
and fir. They are now trying to ship dimension boards to the U. S. in
containers. Approximately 70% of their exports go to Denmark, Holland, Germany;
10% to France. Sea transport is seasonally expensive: $23/ cubic meter in
summer, $40 in winter. Approximately 30% of ail logs are chipped for pulp mills.
There was a fascinating discussion concerning global competition, renewal of the
resource, and other economic aspects.
The trip ended with a press conference in the Duma chamber. There were a number
of probing questions, indicating a high level of genuine interest in the subject
matter of the visit. |
| Press Coverage Throughout our stay in Arkhangelsk there was significant press coverage,
including daily TV news coverage. Members of the press were in attendance during
most of the meetings, and frequently asked questions. Attached are translations
of the articles which appeared in various newspapers during our visit.
Click here for the report.
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