The Agreement on Mutual Understanding of the parties was signed by the Human Rights Commissioners in the Republic of Abkhazia and in the Russian Federation on Thursday, July 13 at the Human Rights House in Moscow.
The document states that:
The Parties will cooperate in the field of protection of the rights and freedoms of citizens of the Republic of Abkhazia and the Russian Federation within their competence defined by the national legislation of each Party;
The Commissioner for Human Rights in the Republic of Abkhazia and the Commissioner for Human Rights in the Russian Federation will promptly inform each other about their activities to protect the rights and freedoms of citizens of the Russian Federation on the territory of the Republic of Abkhazia, as well as citizens of Abkhazia on the territory of Russia, about which they have been informed through the submitted appeals;
The Commissioner for Human Rights in the Republic of Abkhazia and the Commissioner for Human Rights in the Russian Federation, within their competence, will consider and accept complaints from citizens of the Republic of Abkhazia on the territory of the Russian Federation and citizens of the Russian Federation on the territory of the Republic of Abkhazia, respectively;
The Commissioner for Human Rights in the Republic of Abkhazia and the Commissioner for Human Rights in the Russian Federation will exchange information and materials concerning the rights and fundamental freedoms of citizens, forms and methods of their protection;
The Commissioner for Human Rights in the Republic of Abkhazia and the Commissioner for Human Rights in the Russian Federation will hold joint receptions of citizens of the two states; The Commissioner for Human Rights in the Republic of Abkhazia and the Commissioner for Human Rights in the Russian Federation will conduct joint activities in the field of legal education; organize scientific and practical conferences, seminars and trainings in order to improve the mechanisms of human rights activities at the local, national and regional levels;
The Commissioner for Human Rights in the Republic of Abkhazia and the Commissioner for Human Rights in the Russian Federation will help each other in expanding cooperation with foreign national human rights institutions, international organizations and inform each other about organized events;
The Commissioner for Human Rights in the Republic of Abkhazia and the Commissioner for Human Rights in the Russian Federation will hold regular bilateral consultations on the protection and promotion of human rights;
In order to speed up the exchange of information, the Commissioner for Human Rights in the Republic of Abkhazia and the Commissioner for Human Rights in the Russian Federation can receive requests by e-mail and treat them as official documents.
Each Party will respond to the requests of the other Party as soon as possible, which usually do not exceed a month from the date of their receipt. During the meeting, Anas Kishmaria and Tatiana Moskalkova discussed cooperation on issues related to the appeals of Russian tourists and citizens of Abkhazia in case of violation of their rights. The Ombudsmen also discussed a wide range of issues and outlined tasks requiring attention from the working department of the two organizations in order to develop cooperation.