Surprisingly the first 9 months of the group’s work went by almost without disruption. Of course, the group was followed and the telephones and flats of members were tapped. But despite interrogations and searches, no arrests were made. Possibly the powers in control hoped that the group’s efforts would not receive any response, just as the action committee were ignored by the UN for 8 years before the founding of the Moscow Helsinki Group. For a long time there were no responses to the documents, even from the democratic countries. Unexpectedly, however, the group received the support of the public, first of all in its own country and then others. Half a year later, Ukrainian and Lithuanian ‘Helsinki Groups’ were created Next Georgian and Armenian groups were formed. In Moscow, a committee for the protection of the rights of believers was created. In January 1977 the charter of 77 was born in Czechoslovakia and in the Helsinki committee of Poland. The Moscow Helsinki Group found itself with more resources at its disposal, and started to work more intensively. As a result the committee of state security decided to respond with arrests. The Soviet government had a choice whether to decrease control over the country or to lose the respect of the western partner states. It was the latter path the Soviet powers took, and thus decided to have difficulties in their relationships with the west. In February 1977, Xxxx Xxxxx and MHG member X. Xxxxxxxx were arrested. There were also a range of arrests in the Ukrainian Helsinki group. Soon all groups were suffering arrests – in USSR, in Czechoslovakia and in Poland. All verdicts for the “Helsinki activists” were very severe. For example Xxxx Xxxxx was sentenced to seven years of imprisonment in a camp with a strict regime and to five years in jail. As it was expected, these arrests brought indignation of society in the democratic countries of the Helsinki process. Helsinki groups appeared in those countries and they were designed to follow the lead of the MHG – thus the Helsinki movement became international. Meanwhile, in democratic countries participants of Helsinki movements aimed to force their government to press USSR and its satellites with the following demands: to release arrested members of Helsinki groups and to observe the Helsinki accords in full, including the humanitarian articles. In October 1980, during the Madrid conference, the USA, Canada and all democratic countries of Europe united and demanded the USSR and i...
