Fefelov Valery Andreevich

While working as an electrician, in 1966 he received an industrial injury (he fell from a power line support and broke his spine), after which he remained disabled for the rest of his life, and could only move around in a wheelchair. In May 1978 together with Yuri Kiselev (Moscow) and Faizulla Khusainov (Chistopol), he created the Initiative Group for the Protection of the Rights of Persons with Disabilities in the USSR. 10/25/1978 members of the group held a press conference in Moscow at which they announced their existence to foreign correspondents.
The activities of the Initiative Group were considered anti-Soviet by the authorities. Like other members of the Initiative Group, Fefelov was subjected to pressure from the authorities, repeated searches and surveillance, persecution in the Soviet press, and received “warnings”; pressure was also put on his wife and parents.
In May 1982 A criminal case was opened against Fefelov under the article “resistance to authorities.” Under threat of arrest, he agreed to the KGB's demand to go abroad and in October 1982. went to Germany, where in 1983. he and his family received political asylum. Settled in Frankfurt am Main. While working at the International Society of Human Rights, he continued to work on the problem of protecting the rights of people with disabilities in the USSR.