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Russian
undesirable organizations law
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Undesirable organizations law
Undesirable NGOs law |
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On
Amendments to Legislative Acts of the Russian Federation
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Citation
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129-FZ
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Date
enacted
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23 May 2015
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Legislative
history
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662902-6
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The
Russian undesirable organizations law (officially Federal Law of
23.05.2015 N 129-FZ "On amendments of some legislative acts of the Russian
Federation"; Федеральный закон от 23.05.2015 № 129-ФЗ "О внесении
изменений в отдельные законодательные акты Российской Федерации") is a law that was signed by President Vladimir
Putin on 23 May 2015 as a follow-up to the 2012 Russian foreign agent law. The law
gives prosecutors the power to extrajudicially declare foreign and international
organizations "undesirable" in Russia and shut them down.
Organizations that do not disband when given notice to do so, as well as
Russians who maintain ties to them, are subject to high fines and significant
jail time. Critics say the terms are unclear and lead to dangerous precedent.
Supporters of the bill reference organizations that have become actively
involved in supporting political dissent.
INTERNET
SOURCE: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Russian_undesirable_organizations_law
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Pro-Kremlin activists at the Anti-Maidan rally
in Moscow, Russia on February 21, 2015. Photo: Kommersant via Getty Images
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Implications for NGOs
Under
the law, Russian prosecutors are able to target foreign groups which they deem
to present "a threat to the foundation of the
constitutional order of the Russian Federation, the defense capability of the
country or the security of the state."
Groups
designated undesirable are forbidden from holding public events and from
possessing or distributing promotional materials, including via mass media. All
Russian banks and financial institutions are forbidden from cooperating with
such organizations and are required to inform Russia's financial watchdog
agency about any such organizations that attempt to contact them.
Given
a notice from the prosecutors, such organizations have to disband. Violators
face fines or prison terms of up to six years. People cooperating with such
entities are subject to fines and can be banned from entering Russia. Russians
who maintain ties with "undesirables" face penalties ranging from
fines to a maximum of six years in prison.
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Protestors hold up a sign that shows U.S.
President Barack Obama wearing an Adolf Hitler-style mustache.
The sign reads: "Obama Kills Donbass Childrens [sic]" alongside
the Russian words "No to War."
The sign on the right reads: "Wake up, barbarians. The world will not forgive you for this." It is accompanied by images of Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko, German Chancellor Angela Merkel and Obama. |
Duma
deputy Aleksandr Tarnavsky, one of the legislation's coauthors, stated that "I do not think that there is a particular company that
has to fall under this list. But if a company suddenly starts causing a lot of
trouble, starts acting arrogantly and impudently, then in theory it could fall
under the list of undesirable organizations."
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A National
Liberation Movement protest in front of the U.S. Embassy in Moscow, March 7,
2015. Some of the signs read, “The bloody U.S. democracy kills,” “Murder
Nemtsov — U.S. provocation,” “[U.S. Ambassador to Russia John F.] Tefft is a
bloody ambassador.”Sergei Ilnitsky/EPA
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Targeted NGOs
On
25 May 2015, a first proposal of undesirable NGOs to the General Prosecutor's
office was made by a parliamentarian from LDPR. The list
included the think tank Carnegie Moscow Center, the international
history and human rights society Memorial, as well as the Moscow offices of Human Rights Watch and Amnesty International.
On
7 July 2015, RIA Novosti published an alleged shortlist by the Federal Council of Russia of
organizations to be branded undesirable. Those include the US-based Open Society Institute, the National Endowment for Democracy,
the MacArthur Foundation and the Charles Stewart Mott Foundation.
The list also includes the Polish-based Education for Democracy
foundation and the East European Democratic Centre as well as three
Ukrainian organizations: The Ukrainian World Congress, the Ukrainian
World Coordinating Council and the Crimean Field Mission on Human Rights.
After
the Federal Council's vote to include it on the recommended list of
"undesirable organizations", the MacArthur Foundation announced the
closing of its Russian division, operating since 1992.
In
July 2015, the National Endowment for Democracy became the first organization
to be officially blacklisted by the Russian authorities under the law. The
decision by the Office of the Prosecutor General of the Russian
Federation was announced on its website in which it claimed that NED's
activities "pose a threat to constitutional order of the Russian
Federation, defense potential and security of the state". Among NED's
alleged infractions were its donations to commercial and non-profit
organizations that independently monitor elections, as well as for undefined "political
activities" and "discrediting service in the [Russian] armed
forces".
In
November 2015, two branches of George
Soros' charity network, the Open Society Foundations and the Open
Society Institute Assistance Foundation, were banned under the law in Russia.
The infractions were not listed, but the Office of the Prosecutor General of the
Russian Federation released a statement stating that "the activity of the
Open Society Foundations and the Open Society Institute Assistance Foundation
represents a threat to the foundations of the constitutional system of the
Russian Federation and the security of the state".
As
of April 2017, the registry of "undesirable organizations" includes
the following organizations:
- National Endowment for Democracy (July 27, 2015);
- OSI Assistance Foundation and Open Society Foundation (December 1, 2015);
- U.S. Russia Foundation for Economic Advancement and the Rule of Law (December 7, 2015);
- National Democratic Institute for International Affairs (May 17, 2016).
- International Republican Institute (16 August 2016);
- Media Development Investment Fund (16 August 2016).
- Open Russia (United Kingdom) (April 2017);
- Institute of Modern Russia (United States) (April 2017);
- Open Russia Civic Movement (April 2017)
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Activists of the National Liberation Movement
of Russia carry placards with slogans suach as: 'The bloody US democracy kills'
(L) during a protest in front of the US embassy in Moscow, Russia. (Sergei
Ilnitsky / EPA)
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Reactions
Russia's
human rights ombudsman
Ella Pamfilova said the power given to the Prosecutor General to tag groups
"undesirable" without going to court contradicts the Russian constitution and condemned the lack
of a right to appeal.
German
Chancellor Angela Merkel's spokesman said that the law was an
attempt to further isolate and discredit members of civil society who were
critical of the government.
Britain's
Minister for Europe, David Lidington, said it
was "yet another example of the Russian authorities' harassment of NGOs
and those who work with them in Russia".
The
US state department stated it was "deeply
troubled" by the law and expressed concern that it "will further
restrict the work of civil society in Russia and is a further example of the
Russian government's growing crackdown on independent voices and intentional
steps to isolate the Russian people from the world". The Deputy Chief of
the US Mission to the OSCE
Permanent Council urged the Russian government "to uphold its
international obligations and OSCE commitments to respect the freedoms of
expression, peaceful assembly and association, and the rule of law."
Amnesty International said the bill would
"squeeze the life" from civil society, while Human Rights Watch warned it would be locals who
would be worst-hit. Veteran human rights activist Lyudmila Alexeyeva described the law as
"another step toward lowering the curtain between our country and the
West."
See
also
Putin signs
bill on ‘undesirable foreign groups’ into law
Published time: 25 May, 2015 09:52
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The protest was held outside the US Embassy in
Moscow
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The
Russian president has signed a bill banning the activities of foreign groups
that pose a threat to national security or defense capability, and to punish
those who continue to cooperate with such groups.
The
bill, initially drafted by two opposition MPs, was passed by both chambers of
the Russian parliament last week. It tasks the Prosecutor General’s Office and
the Foreign Ministry with creating a proscribed list of “undesirable foreign
organizations” and to outlaw their activities in the country. The main
criterion for putting a foreign or international NGO on the list is a “threat
to the constitutional order and defense capability, or the security of the
Russian state.”
Once
the group is recognized as undesirable, all its assets in Russia must be
frozen, its offices closed and distribution of any of its information materials
must be banned.
If
the group does not comply with the ban, its leaders and members would face
punishments ranging from administrative fines to prison sentences of up to six
years for repeated and aggravated offenses. Russian citizens and organizations
that continue to work with banned groups would face administrative fines only.
The
new law faced criticism from foreign NGOs and the Russian rights community when
it was first drafted. The chairman of the Presidential Council for Human Rights,
Mikhail Fedotov, described the new law as “exotic,”
and said that many foreign groups were “shocked”
by it. Another member of the council, lawyer Aleksandr Brod, said in comments
to the media that the new law was redundant, as there were enough ways in existing
legislation to ensure national security and prevent foreign interference with
Russian domestic politics.
The
European Union and the United States have officially expressed their concern
over the new Russian law. The US State Department said in a statement that the
move banning cooperation with various foreign groups could bring about the
isolation of the Russian people from the outside world.
Russian
officials have not yet reacted to these accusations. Previously, the sponsors
of the bill, however, have described it as a preventive measure and denied that
it was targeting any specific foreign organizations.
The
new law is in line with the “Foreign Agents Law” introduced in Russia in late
2012. That law specifies that all NGOs who receive funding from abroad, and
that are even partially engaged in political activities, must register as
foreign agents or risk substantial fines. Groups with “foreign agent” status
are banned from sponsoring Russian political parties, but otherwise their
activities are not restricted.
OTHER
LINKS:
PROSECUTOR GENERAL YURI CHAIKA
FOREIGN
MINISTRY OF RUSSIA PRAISES LAW BANNING UNDESIRABLE FOREIGN GROUPS (3 JULY 2015)
RUSSIA BANS SOROS CHARITY AS 'SECURITY
THREAT'
PUTIN AGAINST THE EUROPEAN COURT OF
HUMAN RIGHTS
SOROS BOOKS BURNED IN RUSSIA
THE LIST OF BANNED
ORGANISATION IN THE D.P.R (15 AUGUST 2016)
Barack Obama told to 'BURN
IN HELL' by masked Russians outside US Embassy [17 January 2017]
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