HL Deb 29 July 1982 vol 434 cc446-8WA
Earl Fortescue

asked Her Majesty's Government:

What progress has been made in the implementation by the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics and Eastern European countries of the provisions of the Helsinki Final Act during the last six months.

Lord Belstead

During the last six-month period up to 30th June 1982 there has been no improvement in the record of implementation by the Soviet Union and the Eastern European countries of their commitments under the Helsinki Final Act, and in Poland there has been a marked deterioration. There have been clear violations by the Polish and Soviet authorities of the Final Act, particularly in the field of human rights and fundamental freedoms.

Basket I: "Security in Europe: Principles guiding relations between participating States: Confidence building measures and certain aspects of security and disarmament".

Principles

The imposition of martial law in Poland in December 1981 and the resultant suspension of civil and human rights there contravened Principle VII "Respect for human rights and fundamental freedoms". More than 7,000 people have passed through the internment camps since the imposition of martial law and some 2,000 remain interned including the Solidarity leader Mr. Lech Walesa. An estimated 3,000–4,000 people are believed to have been arrested for martial law offences. Notwithstanding the Polish Government's stated intention to terminate as rapidly as possible their restrictive measures, there have been few signs that the Government is ready to lift martial law and release those in detention.

In other Eastern European countries there has been no significant improvement during the period under review.

In the Soviet Union persecution of those seeking to exercise their human rights in the various fields continued. On 1st April, Mr. I. Kovalyov of the Moscow Helsinki monitoring group was sentenced to five years in the camps and five in internal exile. The Moscow group has thus been reduced to three active members, including Mrs. E. Bonner, the wife of Academician Sakharov who continues to be confined in internal exile in Gorky. Other Helsinki groups have been silent. Information has belatedly been received about the resentencing of three members of the Ukrainian and one of the Georgian Helsinki groups in the last nine months or so, before they had completed their previous sentences. Arrests and trials of religious believers—particularly members of unregistered evangelical groups—continued at a high level. In the first five months of 1982 some 1,350 Soviet Jews emigrated via Vienna compared to 4,500 in the same period last year. Permission to emigrate was granted to some members of a small "Divided Families Group" but only after they had gone on lengthy hunger strikes. Teachers of Hebrew and Jewish culture were subjected to increasing pressure. Several Jewish scholars who had applied to emigrate were deprived of their higher degrees (a practice which also affects non-Jewish scholars involved in dissent).

The Soviet Union applied clear and strong pressure on the Polish authorities to apply martial law, in contradiction of Principle I "Sovereign equality, respect for the rights inherent in sovereignty" and Principle VI "Non-intervention in internal affairs".

Confidence Building Measures

Only one Warsaw Pact manoeuvre was notified: DRUZHBA 82, which took place in Czechoslovakia from 25th to 30th January 1982, involving 25,000 troops from the ground and air force units of the Czechoslovak, Soviet and Hungarian armies. Her Majesty's Embassey In Prague received notification of this manoeuvre 21 days in advance: observers were not invited.

Basket II: "Co-operation in the field of economics, of science and technology, and of the environment"

There has been little change in this field. Difficult economic conditions in Eastern Europe have continued to hamper the development of trade relations with the West. Western commercial dealings in Poland have been disrupted by the imposition of martial law and by Poland's deteriorating economic situation. Western credits to Poland have been suspended in present circumstances and the resumption of the 1982 debt rescheduling negotiations has been held in abeyance. Overall there has been no significant change in conditions for Western businessmen in Eastern Europe. The Soviet Union has again failed to publish full statistics concerning its economic performance.

Basket III: "Co-operation in humanitarian and other fields"

Human Contacts

There have been no significant changes except in the case of Poland. In all Eastern European countries it is difficult and expensive for individuals to obtain the necessary documents for emigration: but older people have, in general, a far greater chance of emigration and travel than young people. After the imposition of marital law in Poland severe restrictions were imposed on foreign travel. In mid-March some relaxation of these measures was introduced in the case of elderly or disabled persons, but the ability of Poles to travel abroad remains severely curtailed by comparison with the situation prevailing before 13th December 1981.

Information

Information from the West remains strictly controlled in all Eastern European countries. In Poland working conditions for Western journalists have improved somewhat although they remain difficult; extensive censorship, introduced after the imposition of martial law, is still in force; and Western broadcasts in Polish (except Deutsche Welle) are still being jammed. Radio transmissions to Bulgaria and Czechoslovakia by Deutsche Welle and Radio Free Europe have continued to be jammed and since 1st February the Bulgarians have also jammed Voice of America broadcasts. The Soviet Union has continued to jam broadcasts in Russian from Western radio stations.

Culture and Education

With the exception of Poland there have been no significant changes in the record of Eastern European countries in these areas. The imposition of martial law in Poland has reduced exchanges in this field with Western countries.