The Foundation sociological research is of great importance, especially taking into consideration the fact that it is the only alternative to the existing official statistics. The independent and objective data on the situation with parents of dead servicemen and causes of Army deaths are necessary for working out draft laws and improving the situation in general.
In 2009, we continued our work on questionnaires for parents of dead soldiers. The data were processed with the help of the ‘Memorial' computer database. In 2009, 234 new questionnaires entered the database, thus on December 31, 2009 it contained the data for 6515 dead servicemen and their family members. The data were organized according to 86 parameters. For some parameters, we sent additional questionnaires to parents and updated the data. To do it, we also used the data from the letters and applications to the Foundation.
Filling-in questionnaires is absolutely voluntary, and not all applicants fill them in. That's why the number of questionnaires is much smaller than the number of our applicants.
The personal data were processed by the Foundation according to Federal Law ‘On Personal Data', No. 152, Article 10, p. 6, and in connection with the legal protection of the applicants.
We continued administrating the computer database on Russian Organizations of Soldiers' Parents. At present, our database contains the information on 159 regional organizations of Soldiers' Mothers. Since 2001, we have been working on the ‘Legal Practice' database which contains the information on all trials with the participation of our lawyers.
In 2009, the Foundation negotiated with the Human Rights Information and Documentation Systems (HURIDOCS) on the modernization of the Foundation's databases.
In 2009, we analyzed the questionnaires filled in by judges of 2600 federal courts of the RF within the frame of the opinion poll, conducted by the Mother's Right Foundation in 2008. We sent them the Foundation's book "Lawyer Advice, No. 4" and asked to evaluate it. The majority evaluated the book positively: "The book is an accessible source of legal knowledge useful for the wide public. The information is comprehensive. The trial documents are actual and true to the court practice." (District Court, Altai Region) One of the question was as to how the information on the court practice in the country and neighbouring regions influence the work of courts (helps, hinders, no difference). The majority of judges were of the following opinion: "The information helps to build the common court practice and avoid errors." (Chairman of the District Court, Chita Region) "The more information the more grounded are decisions. The practice in regions helps to take into consideration the smallest nuances." (Court of the Khabarovsk Region) At the same time, many judges marked the lack of information on the court practice in the country.
Another question touched upon the necessity of free legal consultations. The majority of judges answered that such consultations were in great need: "This kind of service is necessary because advocates work for fees, and the poor are deprived of the chance to receive assistance for restoring their rights. It's a pity but not all advocates can render qualified legal assistance." (District Court, Kursk Region) Another question: do advocates (for their part) provide access to justice? Half of the judges answered no: "No. Advocates can't render qualified legal assistance because of their low qualifications. (District Court, Krasnodar Region) "Advocates and Advocate Agencies are numerous but experts are few. Experienced advocates demand high fees, young advocates have no experience." (Judge of the Criminal Panel, Tambov Region) For more detailed information see: http://mright.hro.org/research
