Sofia Kalistratova

Sofia Kalistratova or Sofiya Vasilievna Kallistratova ( _ru. Софья Васильевна Каллистратова) (1907 – 1989), was a public defense lawyer in Russia during the Soviet period. She defended various Soviet dissidents and from 1977 was a member of the Moscow Helsinki Group (MHG), distributing information about violations of human rights in the Soviet Union.

Born in stown Rylsk (Рыльск), graduated from the Moscow State University (see pic) by the specialty Jurisprudence.Could not found a position in procuraduria, begun her activity as public defensor at the Moscow collegy of advocats (Московская Коллегия адвокатов), see pic.

According to legend, around years 1960s, the officer, emitting the new passport, misspelled the last name Kallistratova (Каллистратова) as Kalistratova (Калистратова).Sofia was not upset: "You may call me even 'Pot', but don't put me in a stove" (Назовите хоть горшком, толко в печку не ставте),and since that time, marked herself in her documents as Kalistratova. Therefore, in the historical sources, both names appear; they refer to the same person. This article also undergoes frequent corrections of "ll" to "l" and back by various editors.

Sofia joined the Moscow Helsinki Group as consultant on the law. The KGB searched Kalistratova's flat several times and confiscated typewriters and documents. Friends of Kalistratova were arrested. The activity of the Moscow Helsinki Group become impossible, while head of KGB Andropov was making his career on the repression of dissidentsLetter by Andropov to the Central Committee (10 July 1970).http://www.yale.edu/annals/sakharov/sakharov_english_txt/e014.txt] .Supporters claim that all their work defending the human right to obtain, discuss, and distribute information was legalUniversal Declaration of Human Rights. United Nations Department of Public Information,http://www.unhchr.ch/udhr/lang/eng.htm] CONFERENCE ON SECURITYAND CO-OPERATION IN EUROPEFINAL ACT. Helsinki, 1975. http://www.osce.org/documents/html/pdftohtml/4044_en.pdf.html] .As with many other defenders of human rights, she was accused of anti-Soviet activity(more precisely by article 190-1 of the Code of USSR, distribution of presumably wrong opinions which defame thesoviet government and public order, "распространение заведомо ложных измышлений, порочащих советский государственный и общественный строй").Thе case against her started in 1981 was dropped, with reasons for discontinuing,but Sofia insisted in her innocence, and the formula was changed and reported as absence of any criminal element in her activity.

During perestroyka and glasnost, many materials about violation of law during 1917-1985 were published in the mass media in Soviet Union.The popular question of correspondents of newspapers was: "In your family, how did your point of view on the politics of Sovier Union changed since the Glasnost?",and the relatives of Kalistratova could answer: Our point of view did not change during this glasnost.
That time, various literators used to say "We did not know" about period 1917-1986, and, especially, about Brezhnev stagnation (1966-1985). Sofia usually replied: "You are lying. You do not look as idiot. You DID knew, but you were afraid to talk about that". Sofia Kallistratova. Se were not silent! Open letter to writer Chingiz Aitmatov, May 5, 1986. In Russian: С. В. Калистратова. Открытое письмо писателю Чингизу Айтматову, http://www.memo.ru/library/books/sw/chapt55.htm]

Sofia is buried at Vostryakovskoe Cemetery (Востряковское кладбище), Moscow.

For her activity, she is awarded the medal of guildia of Russian Advocates (Орден Гильдии Русских Адвокатов).

In 2003, the editorial «Звенья» published the book about life and Activity of S. Kallistratova (in Russian). Заступница. С. В. Калистратова. Составитель: Е.Печуро. «Звенья», 2003.http://lib.web-malina.com/getbook.php?bid=5700&page=1http://lib.prometey.org/?id=1844http://bookz.ru/authors/pe4uro-e/kallistr.htmlhttp://bibliotera.org.ua/book.php?id=1153866711&s=81]

References

* http://query.nytimes.com/gst/fullpage.html?res=9404E3DB1338F93AA15754C0A963948260&sec=health&pagewanted=all "New York Times" July 29, 1985
* http://www.mhg.ru/english/18E49C2 Moscow Helsinki Group (Sophia Kallistratova), in Russian
* http://www.mhg.ru/history/1B327A0 Софья Васильевна Каллистратова, in Russian