16 in Unofficial Soviet Peace Group Seized in Moscow
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MOSCOW — Sixteen members of Moscow’s unofficial peace group were arrested after they tried to hold a meeting, and at least one woman was badly beaten by police, a group member said Wednesday.
Yuri Medvedkov said that members were arrested Tuesday en route to his apartment, where they planned to discuss at a weekly meeting a letter they want to send this month to the 27th congress of the Communist Party.
Nina Kovalenko was beaten during her arrest and detention and was not released until 1 a.m. Wednesday, Medvedkov said.
He said three religious members of the group were also “brutalized” when they were arrested as they approached his apartment, but their whereabouts and conditions were not known this morning.
The group, believed to be the only independent peace organization active in the Soviet capital, was established four years ago to promote trust betwen the Soviet Union and the United States. Some of its original members have been exiled or imprisoned.
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