Russian authorities added two more NGOs to the list of “foreign agents” | News from Germany about Russia | Dw

The Russian Ministry of Justice has added two more non-profit organizations (NPOs) to the list of so-called “foreign agents”. As reported on Friday, December 17, on the ministry’s website, the status of “foreign agent” was assigned to the Far Eastern public movement “Mayak” and the autonomous non-profit organization (ANO) “Lilith”, which implements social and legal programs.

The website of the Mayak movement states that it provides legal and socio-psychological assistance to representatives of the LGBT community and women who have suffered from violence. The goal of the movement is “to create conditions for inclusion in society, improving the quality of life and realizing the activist potential of stigmatized groups, as well as for freeing them from negative perceptions by society.”

ANO “Lilith” is registered in Vladivostok and has been operating since 2019. Regina Dzugkoyeva is the head of both organizations.

Law on “foreign agents” in Russia

In 2012, State Duma deputies amended the law “On non-profit organizations”, according to which the status of “foreign agent” is assigned to Russian NGOs engaged in “political activities” on the territory of the Russian Federation and receiving funding from abroad.

In 2017, Russia also adopted a law on media “foreign agents”, according to which this status can be assigned to any media outlet that receives funding and property from abroad. In 2018, a law was passed that allows individuals to be counted among media-“foreign agents”, including for publications on social networks.

Possible amendments to the law on “foreign agents”

On December 9, the State Duma of the Russian Federation proposed to amend the law on “foreign agents” so that it would be possible to enter the media, non-profit organizations and individuals in the corresponding register only by a court decision. Earlier, in November, members of the Presidential Council for Human Rights (HRC) and the Union of Journalists of Russia submitted to the State Duma their proposals on amendments to the law on “foreign agents.” In particular, we are talking about allowing individuals not to label private publications and giving people time to eliminate violations.

Meanwhile, under the petition of the human rights project “OVD-Info” against the law on “foreign agents”, which the authors submitted to the State Duma in early December, were signed by about 260 thousand people and more than 240 organizations.

See also:

• “Foreign agent” is a Kremlin label for NGOs and the media

  Political activity is a loose concept

  Non-profit organizations, by law, are included in the register of “foreign agents” if they engage in political activities in Russia with foreign money. At the same time, the profile of NGOs included in the list of the Ministry of Justice of the Russian Federation makes it clear: the range of their activities is very wide, and the focus of the work of many of them is not associated with politics.

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  “Foreign agent” is a Kremlin label for NGOs and the media

  In which regions of the Russian Federation are there the most NPOs recognized by “foreign agents”

  DW has calculated in which regions of Russia NPOs – “foreign agents” are most often found. There are few surprises: Moscow is ahead. The capital is followed by St. Petersburg by a large margin. In third place in terms of the number of non-profit organizations – “foreign agents” – Yekaterinburg.

• 

  “Foreign agent” is a Kremlin label for NGOs and the media

  What happened to the recognized “foreign agents” of NPOs

  Since 2012, 200 organizations have been entered into the register of “foreign agents” of the Ministry of Justice of the Russian Federation. Today, 75 of them are continuing their work. It is very difficult to dispute the status of “foreign agent”, and new rules and restrictions for such organizations appear almost every year. Most of these regulations hinder the work of the commercial sector and force organizations to stop working, human rights activists believe.

• 

  “Foreign agent” is a Kremlin label for NGOs and the media

  Any citizen of the Russian Federation can be recognized as an “foreign agent”

  In December 2019, Russian President Vladimir Putin signed a law allowing individuals to be counted among the media “foreign agents”. Among the first citizens of the Russian Federation to receive this status are the founder of the For Human Rights movement Lev Ponomarev, St. Petersburg activist Daria Apakhonchich and individual journalists of the Pskov Province, 7×7 and Radio Liberty publications.

  Author: Elena Barysheva, Mikhail Bushuev, Elena Gunkel

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