Russian human rights issues

NGO Grafitti
Russian human rights issues, Russian NGO law

Another nature conservancy group falls afoul of Russia’s ‘foreign agent’ law

The Russian group Sakhalin Environmental Watch earlier this week became Russia’s 14th ecological non-profit to get slapped with the Justice Ministry’s “foreign agent” label. The Justice Ministry was in June 2014 given broad powers by President Vladimir Putin to name foreign agents on its own, instead of waiting for alleged foreign agents to voluntarily comply. […]
Barbed wire and fences at the Sadovaya Prison Colony. (Photo: Charles Digges)
Russian human rights issues, Sochi Olympic Games

Early release for Olympic eco-prisoner Vitishko rejected again

A hearing highly anticipated to lead to Sochi Olympic environmental prisoner Yevgeny Vitishko’s early release ended in disappointment today based on his refusal to undergo counseling by his prison colony’s psychiatrist, according to his colleagues. The court also said Vitishko had yet to fulfill the conditions of certain disciplinary reprimands, although guards testified all reprimands […]
russian ministry of justice
Russian human rights issues, Russian NGO law

Russian NGOs struggle with Justice Ministry warning to call themselves ‘foreign agents’ in print

Russia’s Justice Ministry has warned 12 homegrown non-profits that they’ll face more fines and shutdown unless they display in their printed, distributed, and Internet publications that they “perform [their] functions as a foreign agent,” Interfax reported. The new edict was greeted by one NGO head, who while speaking with Bellona via Skype asked to remain […]