FSKN against NGOs

FSKN has developed amendments to the "anti -drug law" that cause fears of human rights defenders

The Federal Drug Control Service has developed amendments to the law "On measures of influence on persons involved in the illegal circulation of narcotic drugs and psychotropic substances, which is of transnational." In accordance with these amendments, "Russian NPOs receiving financing from foreign drug dealers can be closed.

As follows from the FSKN document, a special “black list” of foreigners will appear in Russia who were convicted of drug trafficking. Foreign officials who, with their actions contributed to the release of drug dealers, will also get there. According to the leader of the “For Human Rights” movement Lev Ponomarev , The amendment, which looks quite logical, does not take into account how the Russian law enforcement system acts in reality:

The main problem I see here is anonymous donations

- At first glance, this amendment is natural. If the drug dealer gives NGO money, then it is necessary to somehow stop it. And I - undoubtedly for it. But you need to understand that any judicial system is not impeccable. The main problem I see here is anonymous donations. Our organization practically does not have such. And I warned my accountant that you need to be extremely careful about it. Usually, if a person wants to sacrifice money, he calls and asks: "How to send you?" But if the FSB officers, drug control officers have information that this person is a former drug distributor, they should warn, first of all, this NPO. In our country, law enforcement agencies act, as a rule, in a completely different way.

Lev Ponomarev resembles Igor Sutyagin’s case, which does not concern drug lords, but demonstrates a scheme according to which law enforcement agencies can accuse NPO of relations with drug dealers:

- Sutyan, an employee of the Institute of the United States and Canada, was a specialist in Russian weapons. He was given a grant to write a book. Moreover, he worked at the Academic Institute. The leadership of the institute knew about this. He had no admission, so he calmly wrote a book that was distributed both in Russia and in the West, it was known. And then it turned out that the FSB officers had information, either a legal entity, or a person who gave this grant, is “in a special account” by the Russian special services. But instead of warning Sutyagin on time that this person should not take a grant, they calmly traced that he took this grant, and then open a criminal case. The man served, as we now know, almost 11 years! From my point of view, the FSB in this case played an absolutely vile role. And here it is all inherent in these amendments to the law. In a sense, it is a "presumption of the guilt of a public organization." It would be very difficult to prove that you did not know who actually offers help, ”concludes Lev Ponomarev .

In a sense, it is a "presumption of the guilt of a public organization"

Now in Russia there is a law on NGOs, which prescribes the norms "On foreign agents". Organizations are allowed to receive foreign donations and grants, but at the same time they should register through the Ministry of Justice as a foreign agent. The Ministry of Justice will be regulated by the suspension of the activities of non -profit organizations. It is this department that registers NPOs.