Ahead of the steam locomotive

The Ministry of Justice of Russia, without waiting for court decisions, arbitrarily brought five more NPOs to the so -called register of "foreign agents"

Among the NPOs who are obliged to perform the functions of a foreign agent - the Human Rights Association "Memorial", the Association "Agora", the Foundation "Public Verdict", the organization "Yuriks" and "Eco -Protection! - Zholinvrad. Earlier, the Voice Association, the Union of the Don and others - in total in the registry are now eleven organizations.

The official statement was published on the website of the department on July 21 in the evening. It follows from it that the introduction of new organizations in the register was made by the Ministry of Justice on the basis of the representations of the prosecutor's office and the act of planned inspection of organizations. However, NPOs will still appeal to prosecutorial inspections and submission in the courts, and there is no final court decision on this case yet.

The Memorial International Society issued a statement in connection with the incident: “On July 21, 2014, the Ministry of Justice of the Russian Federation included the register of non -profit organizations that perform the functions of a foreign agent“ Five more human rights associations. Among them is the Human Rights Center “Memorial”, the basic organization in this area. We are convinced that these organizations, like all previously introduced in this will in this will in this will in this will in this will. The register act exclusively in the interests of Russia, as they effectively help to protect the rights of citizens from the encroachments of government officials.

Instead of the fight against violations of citizens' rights, the state wages a war with those who identify these violations

Instead of the fight against violations of citizens' rights, the state wages a war with those who identify these violations. This practice (including the very use of the term "foreign agent") has already been tried in Soviet times and did not lead to anything good. The currently adopted norms on "foreign agents" are not aimed at solving the real problems facing the country, but only to weakening the civil society of Russia. It remains for us to repeat again what we have said for the past two years since introducing the law on "foreign agents" to the State Duma: this law will disgrace Russia, it is not subject to improvement or correction and must be canceled, " the international" memorial " said.

“Our most important claim to the Ministry of Justice is that it put in the register of our applicants contrary to the fact that we are in the process of judicial appeal of prosecutorial ideas,” says lawyer Furkut Tishaev , representing the interests of NPOs in court. “The Ministry of Justice in his own release wrote that the human rights center Memorial, and Yuriks were delivered to the Ur. The registry on the basis of the very one that we will appeal to the Moscow City Court, we will have a chance that we will win the Mosgorsud, but for some reason the Ministry of Justice did not even wait for the decision to enter the register that the Ministry of Justice runs our legal certainty, because it is like theoretically we can, we still have a chance to prove that we are not engaged in political activity, and the Ministry of Justice is no longer interested in another legal problem, that if the Moscow City Court approves the decision of the Zamoskvoretsky court and it comes into force, roughly speaking, this decision will mean that incriminated acts are the right to compare. The registry in court, but how will we do it, the Moscow City Court will already decide that this is political activity? I do not seem to be real that the Tver court has made a decision opposite to the Moscow City Court if the Moscow City Court is now a decision against us. In theory, it should be different so that we can at least theoretically expect that we can win this dispute. ”

This is a very strong cooling effect, organizations will now think ten times before publishing something

According to the law "On Foreign Agents" of the Organization that were entered in the register, are obliged to additionally report to officials, conduct an annual audit, as well as mark all their products (reports, performances, press releases, and so on) as made by a "foreign agent". And any non -profit organization is obliged to register in this register, which, according to this law, is engaged in "political activity" and receives "foreign financing". Moreover, what is meant by these terms, it is not entirely clear from the text of the law.

All NPOs ( except for one, created with the assistance of the Federal Antimonopoly Service) categorically refused to register as foreign agents and began the process of appealing prosecutors in the courts. However, this fact has not been reflected in the decision of the Ministry of Justice, and since yesterday five NPOs became, according to the department, "foreign agents".

“This is a very strong cooling effect, the organizations will now think ten times before publishing something,” says lawyer Furkat Tishaev . “The registry in the register significantly limits the organization in his substantive activity. It is in terms of publicity.”

NPOs will still wait for the decision of the Moscow City Court, which should take place next month. Indeed, in order to appeal to the Law "On Foreign Agents" to the European Court of Human Rights, they must use all the means of legal protection in their country, that is, to pass all Russian courts.