On Friday, April 17, Micah H. Naftalin, National Director of the Union of Councils for Soviet Jews (UCSJ) will speak on a panel on environmental violations and human rights in Russia at the Sierra Club's Film and Video Festival in New York City. Naftalin will discuss human rights violations in the prosecution of Alexander Nikitin, a Russian environmentalist whose critical report on Russia's nuclear submarine fleet has resulted in years of harassment at the hands of the Federal Security Service (FSB). UCSJ has supported Nikitin's legal efforts and publicized his case since 1996, due to the serious implications on the protection of human rights in the Russian Federation.

Nikitin is being prosecuted for violating state secrets, even though his report for Norway's Bellona Foundation was based on publicly available information. He was jailed for 10 months, and he and his wife have been harassed by Russian security agents. Furthermore, his legal team has been foiled by the Russian authorities' use of secret decrees that cannot be disclosed to Nikitin and his attorneys.

The symposium will take place at 7:00 PM at the New School's Tishman Auditorium (66 West 12 Street). Other panelists will be Dr. Allen Hershkowitz, senior scientist with the Natural Resources Defense Councils; and Thomas Jandl, Director of Bellona USA. The panel will be moderated by Stephen Mills, Human Rights and Environment International Campaign Director of the Sierra Club in Washington. The panel will be held in conjunction with the screenings of "A Sinking Radioactive Nightmare," a Swedish-Finnish documentary on the dangers posed by Russia's nuclear fleet, and "Secret Ecology," an account of Nikitin's whistle-blowing report and his consequent legal struggles. To purchase tickets, call 212-229-5488 or 212-302-6826.

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