The internationally distinguished high energy physicist Yuri Orlov held
top research and honorary posts in the Soviet scientific world until
authorities took note of his growing leadership role in the human
rights movement.In retaliation for founding the Moscow chapter of
Amnesty International in 1973, Orlov was dismissed from his post at
Moscow's Institute of Terrestrial Magnetism. Undaunted, in 1976 he
proceeded to help found and to chair the Moscow Helsinki Watch Group,
which was dedicated to promoting Soviet compliance with the human
rights provisions of the Helsinki accords. This led to his arrest in
1997 and trial after 15 months' incommunicado detention on a charge of
"anti-soviet agitation and propaganda." He received the maximum
sentence for his "crime" -- seven years at hard labor followed by five
years of internal exile. While in the strict regime labor camp, Orlov
was repeatedly singled out for harsh treatment, spending nearly half of
his term in special punishment cells and solitary confinement. On
completing his sentence he was remanded to internal exile in Siberia,
where he endured untold hardship. Throughout his long ordeal CCS
advocated for him in diverse ways. We wrote letters, dispatched cables,
issued press releases and action alerts, and circulated petitions at
scientific meetings -- all designed to build pressure on Soviet
officialdom for his release. We also rallied some of his American
colleagues to "adopt" him, by writing to him. During his two and a half
years in Siberia, we helped subsidize his membership in the American
Physical Society and subscriptions to its journals. Yuri Orlov came to
the United States in 1986 and took a position as senior scientist at
the Newman Laboratory of Nuclear Studies of Cornell University. Not
surprisingly, this veteran activist devotes much time to promoting
human rights by writing articles and books on the subject, by serving
on human rights committees, and by addressing scientific colleagues at
various forums.