Home

Developments in the Wallenberg Case

On July 6, 2018, the Presidium of Moscow City Court (Judge S. E. Kurtsinsh presiding) upheld the decision of Moscow City Court of February 20, 2018, to support the decision of the Meshchansky District Court (Moscow) of September 18, 2017, to deny access of Mme Marie Dardel-Dupuy, Raoul Wallenberg’s niece, to the documents in the FSB Central Archive. The reason provided by judge Kurtsinsh was weak and had nothing to do with the request of Mme Dardel-Dupuy: “There are no grounds to suggest that the defendant provided unreliable information in the answer.” In her appeal Mme Dardel-Dupuy requested access to full information (access to the original, uncensored documents) and did not claim that the FSB had released “unreliable” information.

On September 10, 2018, Dariana Gryaznova, Mme Dardel-Dupuy’s lawyer, submitted an appeal to the highest court in Russia, the Collegium on Administration Cases of the Supreme Court of the Russian Federation. The appeal requests: 1. To recognize as illegal the FSB decision to refuse to provide archival information to Mme Dardel-Dupuy; 2. Require the FSB to provide an opportunity have access to seven particular archival documents connected with the Wallenberg case; 3. Require the FSB to provide uncensored copies of these documents. The appeal was registered on September 21 and it takes 2-3 months for the Court to consider an appeal.

One more complaint, now about the answer of the General Military Prosecutor’s Office, was submitted on September 14, 2018 to the Khamovnichesky District Court, Moscow. Previously, on June 21, 2018, Senior Military Prosecutor A. E. Sozhigaev informed Gryaznova that neither she, nor her clients Mme Dardel-Dupuy, Susanne Berger, and Vadim Birstein, can see the archival documentation that the General Prosecutor’s Office collected for issuing the rehabilitation of Raoul Wallenberg in 2000 because these materials can only be seen by a narrow circle of persons (in other words, they are secret) and “materials on Wallenberg do not affect the rights, freedoms and interests of E. M. Dupuy, S. Berger, and V. J. Birstein.” Clearly, Sozhigaev’s statement is inacccurate because the materials directly affects the rights and interests, in particular, of Mme Dardel-Dupuy, Wallenberg’s niece.

Additionally, inquiries were made about the rehabilitation of Vilmos Langfelder, Wallenberg’s driver, who was detained along with Wallenberg and, like Wallenberg, disappeared after an interrogation on July 23, 1947. The FSB was asked to clarify the real date of Langfelder’s death, and the General Prosecutor’s Office was asked to present the materials that were used for his rehabilitation.

Articles by Date

Posts by Date