The Venice Commission criticized the law of the Russian Federation on “foreign agents” | News from Germany about Russia | Dw

Russian legislation on “foreign agents” violates international standards. This statement was made by the Venice Commission on Wednesday, December 30, two days after the Supreme Court of the Russian Federation issued a decision to liquidate one of the country’s oldest NGOs, International Memorial.

Recalling that International Memorial is one of the most famous civil society organizations involved in the protection of human rights in Russia, the authors of the statement indicated that the closure of the NGO was carried out at the request of the Prosecutor General’s Office of the Russian Federation in accordance with the legislation on “foreign agents” and “unwanted activity of foreign and international non-governmental organizations “.

In July 2021, the Venice Commission recommended that Russia abandon the “foreign agent” label in favor of a more neutral term. In addition, Council of Europe experts advised the Russian authorities to abolish the special registration, reporting and public disclosure requirements for organizations, individuals and the media that receive foreign support.

According to the Council of Europe, sanctions for violation of the legislation on “foreign agents” should be mitigated and even fines should be applied in exceptional cases when democracy is threatened.

Activities of the Venice Commission

The Venice Commission, or European Commission for Democracy through Law, was created by 18 member states of the Council of Europe shortly after the fall of the Berlin Wall in 1990. The Commission has played a key role in the adoption by Eastern European countries of constitutions that meet the standards of European constitutional heritage.

Venice Commission logo

The main task of the commission is to provide constitutional and legal assistance, mainly to states that participate in its activities. The Commission provides opinions at the request of not only states, but also the statutory bodies of the Council of Europe and international organizations participating in its work.

In addition to its opinions, the commission also prepares general reports on the functioning of democratic institutions and the protection of fundamental rights, on elections, referendums and political parties, as well as on topics related to constitutional justice.

See also:

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  “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.

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  “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.

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  “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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