Russia targets internationally renowned NGO

Amnesty International has been declared "undesirable" by Russia's Prosecutor General's Office. The human rights NGO must close its offices in Moscow, and any Russian collaborating with it risks prosecution.

Increasingly repressive, Putin's Russia has already declared 223 organisations "undesirable" since 2015. Amnesty International is the latest to join this banned list. The human rights NGO, famous for its candles and letters sent to leaders urging the release of political prisoners, can no longer operate on Russian territory. Furthermore, any Russian collaborating with or funding Amnesty International’s activities is now subject to legal proceedings. The Russian Prosecutor General has particularly asserted that Amnesty International is, via its London headquarters, "the centre for preparing global Russophobic projects financed by accomplices of the Kyiv regime".

The indictment also mentioned the NGO's activities as "doing everything possible to strengthen military confrontation in the region" and thus "justifying the crimes of Ukrainian neo-Nazis and calling for increased funding". Moscow has probably reacted negatively to the NGO’s report on the state of freedom of expression and association in Russia, as well as the claim that Russia "continues its war of aggression against Ukraine".

(MH with Olivier Duquesne – Source: Le Soir with AFP – Picture: © picture alliance/dpa | Hannes P. Albert)