Meduza correspondent Kristina Safonova facing misdemeanor charge for covering Moscow protest without foreign ministry accreditation

Meduza correspondent Kristina Safonova is facing a misdemeanor charge for violating Russian Administrative Code article 19.20, “Conducting activities which are not connected with deriving profits, without a special permit (license),” says her lawyer, Alexey Pryanishnikov from the human rights organization Pravozashchita Otkrytki.

This comes after Moscow police summoned Safonova to give a statement about her work covering a protest rally in Moscow on April 21.

Safonova, who attended the rally as a journalist, had all the necessary paperwork — including an editorial assignment. She later handed copies of these documents over to the police. In turn, Moscow police sent an inquiry to the Russian Foreign Ministry, which maintained that Safonova was lacking accreditation as a foreign correspondent.

The Russian Foreign Ministry issued Meduza a confirmation concerning the opening of a correspondent office in Moscow and accepted Safonova’s accreditation application in October 2020.

According to the government-approved accreditation rules that guide the Foreign Ministry, the set deadline for decisions on accreditation is no longer than two months. However, Meduza has yet to receive a response from the Foreign Ministry on Kristina Safonova’s accreditation. According to Safonova herself, the Foreign Ministry attributed the delay to the coronavirus pandemic, among other things.

A court date for the consideration of the misdemeanor charge has yet to be scheduled. Russian Administrative Code article 19.20 provides punishments ranging from a warning to 500–1,000 rubles in fines (about $7–$14).

• In 2020, journalist Roman Yanchenko received a warning for working with Belsat TV, which is based out of Poland. According to Mediazona, this was the first instance of a journalist working with a foreign media outlet not accredited by the Russian Foreign Ministry facing misdemeanor charges under Russian Administrative Code article 19.20.