The Kremlin may establish a prize for human rights activists

Vladimir Putin will soon sign a presidential decree on the creation of a state award for human rights activists and philanthropists, Kommersant reports .

According to the publication, the award was conceived a long time ago, but it took a long time to find funding for it and coordinate the document between departments. The first awards should take place in 2016. As Vedomosti writes, citing its own sources, the establishment of the award is a signal to entrepreneurs that they need to support philanthropists and human rights activists. The total amount of the bonus fund will be six million rubles; previously these funds were allocated to support research work.

According to the concept of the project, applicants for the award should be selected by a special public commission, the composition of which will be determined by the Presidential Administration. It may include two representatives of the Commissioner for Human Rights in the Russian Federation, the Public Chamber (PC) and the HRC, as well as three ombudsmen and representatives of the OP from the constituent entities of the Russian Federation.

The head of the Human Rights Council under the President of the Russian Federation, Mikhail Fedotov, believes that it is necessary to determine candidates for the award taking into account the wishes of public organizations. Nevertheless, Fedotov praised the establishment of the prize. “There are state awards in the fields of culture and art, science and technology. But there was no such award in the field of human rights activities. It is simply necessary to do this in order to increase the prestige of such activities and remove the suspicions of part of society towards human rights defenders,” he said.