7/7/21
A Council of Europe legal advisory body has sharply criticized recent Russian amendments to laws regulating so-called ‘'foreign agents," saying they constitute “serious violations” of basic human rights and will have a “chilling effect” on political life. Russia's so-called "foreign agent" legislation was adopted in 2012 and has been modified repeatedly. It requires noncommercial organizations that receive foreign assistance and that the government deems to be engaged in political activity to be registered, to identify themselves as "foreign agents," and to submit to audits. In a report analyzing the amendments, published on July 6, the Venice Commission, which is composed of independent experts in the field of constitutional law, called on Russia to reverse aspects of its "foreign agents" laws such as registration and reporting requirements, or alternatively revise “the entire body” of the legislation by narrowing the definition of a "foreign agent." The commission warned in its 26-page report that the amendments will have a “significant chilling effect...on the free exercise of the civil and political rights which are vital for an effective democracy.”
“The designation is more likely to undermine transparency by stigmatizing entities and individuals and misleading the public about their relationship to foreign entities,” the commission said. “With regard to the aim of national security, the designation is likely to provoke a climate of distrust, fear and hostility, instead of countering any real threat.” The commission also warned that the expansion of the label to a larger subset of individuals "is more likely to increase the risk of entities and individuals becoming ‘foreign agents’ inadvertently or against their will.” Russian officials told the commission that the designation did not carry a stigma, contradicting not only the view of civil society but what the commission said was the Kremlin's own logic for passing the laws in the first place -- to alert citizens of supposed "foreign influence" in its internal affairs. As of July 2021, Russia had labeled 76 organizations and 20 media outlets or individual persons as "foreign agents," according to the commission. More than 60 organizations have turned to the European Court of Human Rights to challenge that designation.
www.rferl.org
