Amnesty International: The Kremlin sees the threat of their power in human rights activists

The human rights organization of Amnesty International, on the eve of the elections in Russia, published a report with the conclusion that in Russia from year the main freedom is increasingly limited: there are less and less space for dissent, independent media and activities of independent organizations. In some cases, "an expression of disagreement with an official point of view can cause persecution and turn into an infringement of rights." In the activities of human rights organizations, the Kremlin sees the threat of their power, human rights activists come to the conclusion in their report.

“Human rights activists, independent public organizations, political opposition and ordinary citizens were in one way or another as a result of an advance to civil and political rights,” the human rights activists conclude.

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According to Amnesty International, "human rights activists and human rights organizations receiving foreign financing most often become objects of persecution and intimidation against the backdrop of accusations of" non -poatriics "by representatives of the government and the media. According to the authors, a violation of the law of human rights activists and activists of civil society to freedom of expression of opinions was also manifested in the fact that criminal cases were initiated against them in connection with a crime of an “extremist” character, such as “inciting racial hatred or enmity”.

For example, the prosecutor’s office repeatedly requested a deciphering program from the Echo of Moscow in connection with a preliminary investigation on charges of “extending extremist views on the air,” the site of “human rights in Russia” notes.

Examples of pursuit of human rights defenders are also given. NPO "Voice", whose goal is to promote honest elections and preparation of observers, was involved in a legal dispute to prevent the closure of the organization’s department in Samara. NPO "Rainbow House", uniting defenders of the rights of lesbians, gays, bisexuals and transsexuals, generally refused registration. In addition, the "Society of Russian-Chechen Friendship" was previously closed -an organization that collected and distributed information about the situation with human rights in Chechnya and other regions of the Russian Federation.

The deep concern of Amnesty International is also caused by the fact that the investigation in the case of the murder of human rights activist and journalist Anna Politkovskaya, apparently, has not yet reached the main customers.

Freedom of assembly is the right to organize private and public meetings and demonstrations, including processions and pickets, as well as participate in them. The organization is worried that law enforcement agencies allowed the excess of force during some demonstrations and mass events and infringed on the right of many citizens to freedom of assembly, prohibiting or disrupting the demonstrations allegedly for security reasons and in order to protect the interests of the public. In 2007, the authorities brutally dispersed the manifestations, while pro -government measures took place without interference. In addition, the authorities prevented many citizens from expressing their views on demonstrations of opposition movements, detaining, taking off the trains or not letting them on board the aircraft.

The right to freedom of associations refers to the right of persons to unite groups and carry out collective activities and includes the right to create an organization of civil society. In 2006, significant amendments were made to legislative acts governing the work of non -governmental organizations that seriously infringed the right to freedom of associations.

Amnesty International is alarmed by the fact that these amendments are unreasonably burdensome and allow arbitrary interpretation from the authorities: "The authorities can use them (and have already applied) in order to pursue some NGOs, including human rights organizations in which the state sees the threat of its power."

Recommendations

Amnesty International calls on the Russian authorities to observe the right to freely expression of opinion, as well as to freedom of assembly and associations. In order to fulfill the country's obligations within the framework of international human rights, AI calls on the Russian authorities to take the following measures:
eliminate flaws in the law on public associations and law enforcement practice;
to refrain from the application of laws such as the Law "On Combating Extremist Activities", in order to restrict the work of independent media and civil society organizations;
to develop instructions for law enforcement agencies on maintaining order during public events taking into account the right to freedom of assembly; make sure that journalists can carry out legal activities without arbitrary intervention of law enforcement officials;
Unterminedly, comprehensively and impartially investigate all statements about violations of the rights of civil society activists, journalists and representatives of political opposition, as well as bring all suspects in such violations liable in compliance with the procedures that meet the international laws of fair trial.