NCO: A point attack

How do human rights activists and lawyers evaluate the actions of the authorities in relation to NGOs in 2014? And are they waiting for any changes in 2015?

In December 2014, Vladimir Putin, at a meeting with members of the Council for the Development of Civil Society and Human Rights, stated that the Law on Foreign Agents needs to be improved and that "some things" are conflicting with the initial meaning of what was supposed to do. " Immediately after this, in December, the Ministry of Justice almost in a row included several more organizations in the list of “foreign agents” - the “Institute of Regional Press”, the Moscow School of Civil Education, the Movement for Human Rights, the Sakharov Center and others. Now in the register of non -profit organizations performing, according to the Ministry of Justice, the functions of "foreign agents" , 30 organizations. How do human rights activists and lawyers evaluate the actions of the authorities in relation to NGOs? Are they waiting for any changes?

In the summer of 2014, the Russian Duma adopted a law that significantly aggravated the situation of non -profit organizations, which allowed the Ministry of Justice independently , without a court decision to include NPOs in the register of "foreign agents" if they "act in such a capacity, but are not registered" on their own initiative.

After the entry into force of this law, the register of “foreign agents” was replenished with almost thirty organizations - before that there was only one NPO - a non -profit partnership “Promoting the development of competition in the CIS countries”, which, according to rumors, was not quite voluntary: as Kommersant reported with reference to the situation well familiar with the situation, the organization initially applied to the Ministry of Justice For information purposes, however, when the department got acquainted with the documents of the NPO, it was decided to include it in the register of "foreign agents".

I intervene in domestic policy, but with presidential money. If this grant is given to me regularly, then my activity is useful

In the last one and a half months of 2014, the Ministry of Justice actively replenished the ranks of “foreign agents”, including the “Institute of Regional Press” in the register, the Memo.ru information portal is a partner of the Memorial human rights center, the Moscow Civil Enlightenment School , the Youth Public Organization “The Union of Young Political Sciences”, and the organization of socio-psychological and legal assistance "Territory", human rights movement "For human rights" , Sakharovsky Center and others. For the refusal to voluntarily join the register of “foreign agents” of organizations, which, according to the Ministry of Justice of the “foreign agent”, and their leaders can be fined in the amount of several hundred thousand rubles .

Lev Ponomarev , the head of the “For Human Rights” movement, which was included in the register of “foreign agents” on December 22, says that he does not intend to recognize himself as a “foreign agent” and through the courts will seek the abolition of the “Kleim”, which the Ministry of Justice hung on his organization without his consent. According to Lev Ponomarev, the basis for inclusion in the register was an unscheduled audit of the Ministry of Justice. Prior to this, in August, the organization had already passed one check, the results of which did not cause complaints from the Ministry of Justice:

- Two months later, the Ministry of Justice, somewhat apologizing, informed us that, on behalf of the General Prosecutor's Office, is obliged to check if we were a “foreign agent”. We submitted documents for 2013 and 2014, in which we reported on all the expenses that we have. We did not receive foreign grants, only donations, which make up about 5-6% of our budget. We receive the main amount from the presidential administration, the last grant that we received - from "civil dignity". The project under which we were given a grant is called the "Civil Ombudsman". It is understood that the movement "for human rights" is a "civilian ombudsman" in Russia. It is clear that this name is somewhat defiant and claims to serve the population over the entire range of human rights. We are trying to do this - we are monitoring the rights of military personnel, the rights of socially unprotected citizens, the problems of housing and communal services, prisoners.

The Ministry of Justice reported that there is no mechanisms from this registry yet, so stay there and tolerate all the consequences

The Law on Foreign Agents accuses people of getting foreign money and affect Russia's domestic policy. I really influence Russia's domestic policy, but not through the elections, as political parties do, but criticize. I am publishing a messenger in defense of the rights of prisoners. I submitted a report, and there it is clear that I published it at the expense of the money of the presidential grant. That is, I intervene in domestic policy, but with presidential money. If this grant is given to me regularly, it means that my activity is useful and I help the president, you can even speak the role of a guarantor of human rights guarantor. I spent 5% of foreign money for utility bills, there were no comments on me. But the Ministry of Justice told me that 5% is enough, it is enough to even get $ 10 from abroad and do what is called political activity, and they call political activity any active activity of a human rights organization that attracts public attention that affects the policy of state structures, and I undoubtedly do this. A completely ridiculous situation, it must be stopped. Of course, I never admit myself to a foreign agent, because I am not them, and now I will in court to cancel the stigma that they put without my consent, ”promises Lev Ponomarev.

The human rights activist connects the current claims of the Ministry of Justice with his open anti -war position:

- I myself wrote almost nothing, I brought the letters with whom relatives and contractors themselves, who are sent to Ukraine, addressed me. I just betrayed publicity those facts that are hushed up by official propaganda. A very simple thing is being done: contractors change into another form, remove the insignia and send there. It would all look curious if it were not so tragic. In general, I have a bright anti -war position: Russian citizens should not fight there. If only volunteers fought there, then I think that the war would have been stopped for a long time, ”said Lev Ponomarev.

Member of the Presidential Council of Human Rights Ilya Shablinsky notes that the situation of non -profit organizations remains difficult: the pressure is selectively - on specific organizations that openly criticize the power. In addition, NGOs are faced with the problem of lack of funding:

- NGOs have problems related to the search for grantors. There are very few domestic ones, foreign ones - either leave the Russian market, or it is dangerous to contact them. There is an attack on civil society. The other side of the matter is that the pressure is on specific organizations. At the beginning of the year, the next amendments were made to the law, and the Ministry of Justice received the right to independently submit to the register of organizations performing the functions of a foreign agent, all that it would want. The ministry became this right of users, apparently, it was somehow fingered. In addition, those organizations that were there - they were introduced on the basis of the representations of the prosecutor's office in 2013 - remained there. Even if they did not receive more foreign financing and had favorable court decisions, for example, the Voice association through the court managed to prove that the organization did not receive foreign financing , it has no reason to add it to this register. And nothing! The Ministry of Justice reported that there is no mechanisms from this registry yet, so stay there and tolerate all the consequences.

The presidential administration started an attack on all civil society

The register also included the organization "Agora" - the association of lawyers providing services to human rights organizations and civil activists. Of course, this is non -profit activity and it can only be conducted on grants. "Agora" has always been engaged in legal assistance. I was at the court in Kazan, where lawyers from Agora proved that they were engaged in the activities provided for in Grant conditions - legal activities: they performed in courts, and provided consulting assistance. What is the political activity? The representative of the prosecutor’s office - I remember his gloomy muttering - said: they say, yes, but still it is all political activity. Did you perform in the Constitutional Court? Yes, this is political activity. The court defended this, the third one? This is also political activity. Political activity can now be understood as anything you want. I remember that the collection under a letter to the governor in one of the regions of Russia with a request to ban spring hunting was also assigned to political activity. The publication of the organization’s report on its website is also regarded as political activity. In general, the presidential administration started an attack on all civil society. Of course, there are organizations that, according to the Presidential Administration, are somehow especially dangerous for the authorities from the point of view of criticism expressed from the point of view of help provided to other people, ”summarizes Ilya Shablinsky.

Lawyer Kirill Koroteev , representing the interests of non -profit organizations in the courts, also adheres to a similar point of view. According to him, in 2014, the Law on "foreign agents" struck the Russian civil society:

- 2014 was marked by one very vivid trend: the Russian civil society shared the fate of General Miloradovich. They have one in common - this is a place of death. Miloradovich, as we know, was killed in Senate Square during the uprising of the Decembrists. From Senate Square, a fatal shot for the Russian civil society also sounded: on April 8, 2014, the Constitutional Court issued a decision, which he recognized the constitutional law on "foreign agents". Since then, starting literally from the afternoon of April 8, 2014, NGO has lost all cases under the law on "foreign agents". Before the CS resolution, some organizations in a number of regions, such as Perm, Yekaterinburg, Novosibirsk, could win such cases, even in Ryazan and Ingushetia. Now the courts, in spite of any shortcomings of the argument of the prosecutor's office or the Ministry of Justice, blindly support the investigating authorities in any matters-about fines, introducing in the register or some other coercion measures on the basis of this law, ”said Kirill Koroteev.

Russian civil society shared the fate of General Miloradovich. They have one in common - this is a place of death

In early December, the situation with non -profit organizations was discussed at a meeting of President Vladimir Putin with members of the Council for the Development of Civil Society and Human Rights. At this meeting, Putin agreed with the assessment of human rights activists and admitted that the law on "foreign agents" is imperfect and requires improvement. “Nobody initially set a goal to offend or humiliate someone,” the president said. The day after that, the Ministry of Justice proposed excluding non -profit organizations from the register of "foreign agents" at the request of the NGOs itself, if an unscheduled inspection of the ministry confirms this possibility. But against the background of this, it became known about the new restrictions for NGOs. In particular, the Duma adopted a law prohibiting non-profit organizations included in the register of "foreign agents", in any form to participate in election campaigns . This actually puts on a blow to the possibility of independent election observation.

Lawyer Kirill Koroteev does not believe that the president’s attention to the law on “foreign agents” will actually change the situation of non -profit organizations:

- The situation will only worsen, because it is foolish to rely on Putin’s words, who signed these laws. What place did he think when he signed these laws? Now he says: "Oh, they are imperfect." So, when he signed them, he did not consider them imperfect. For me, as a lawyer, the law is of great importance, how he is signed, and not what someone who put his signature under this law said about this. Now the law - and the Ministry of Justice confirmed this - does not provide at all any exclusion procedure from the registry. So far, there is not even a bill introduced into the Duma to ensure that such an exception becomes possible, ”said Kirill Koroteev.

According to Lev Ponomarev, now the power elite has split into two camps: some believe that human rights organizations need the state, others insist on their liquidation. The position of NGOs also depends on which camp will have the greatest influence on the president:

I don’t know if there is a person who is a list of the “fifth column”, or is the president himself, but one thing is clear - this is a taste

- From the point of view of the authorities and the president, we are surrounded by enemies, which means that we must be cleaned of the fifth column. They destroy NPOs and destroy not only human rights organizations. The Sakharov Center is also recognized as a foreign agent, and the Memorial human rights center was also included in the register. We are talking about independent civilian institutions that criticize the power most consistently, and not just protect social rights. Apparently, the authorities want to eliminate them, because martial law is introduced in the country de facto. The president recently said that the opposition supposedly has the right, and he recognizes it, but that the border between the opposition and the “fifth column” is very thin. I don’t know if there is a person who is a list of the “fifth column”, or is the president himself, but one thing is clear - this is a taste. The president is influenced by two groups. Some want to liquidate all human rights organizations under the root, others believe that they are useful and necessary in order to survive the country and the state. Now, with regard to my organization, success on the side of the security forces. I once had such a case when we were put out onto the street with the help of riot police, they were beaten. But then I managed to restore the organization, therefore, probably, those who threw me out into the street and beat me - personally with their feet, did not want me to be restored. But through the presidential administration, I was restored, and we allocated a premises in Moscow. Therefore, once we went through such a round, maybe we’ll go through the second, ”Lev Ponomarev hopes.

The so -called law on "foreign agents" entered into force in Russia two years ago - at the end of 2012. According to this document, non-profit organizations that receive funding from abroad and are engaged in political activities must be registered as "foreign agents". Many Russian human rights organizations said that they did not intend to voluntarily hang this lab.