The prosecutor's office demanded that Agora identify itself as a "foreign agent"

The Tatarstan prosecutor's office found signs of political activity in the work of the human rights organization "Agora" and demanded that it register as a "foreign agent." This was reported on Tuesday, April 30, by the Kommersant newspaper with reference to the prosecutor's office.

In particular, the Tatarstan prosecutor's office decided that Agora's work was political during mass protests - lawyers helped activists, and then those involved in the Bolotnaya case, for free. “Activities to assist political activists in preventing them from being held legally accountable constitute participation in political events and, therefore, political activity,” the prosecutor’s submission states.

Agora faces a fine of 500 thousand rubles if the NPO does not register as a “foreign agent.” Agora says that it is not going to register as a “foreign agent” because the organization, back in January 2013, stated in its charter that it would refuse to engage in political activities or support any political movements.

The Agora Association has been operating since 2005, receiving funding both from Russia and from abroad - from the MacArthur Foundation and the Soros Foundation. "Agora" protects victims of the police, participants in protests, and people with HIV, monitors prosecutorial inspections of NGOs and helps them legally.

On November 21, 2012, a law officially came into force in Russia requiring NPOs with foreign funding to register as “foreign agents.”

The Ministry of Justice stated that inspections of NPOs are needed to identify “foreign agents.”