Civil Society Under Assault in Russia

http://www.humanrightsfirst.org/2013/09/05/civil-society-under-assault-global-repercussions-and-u-s-responses/

On Thursday, September 12 the organization I am currently interning for, Human Rights First, paired up with Freedom House to put on an event titled "Civil Society Under Assault: Global Repercussions and U.S. Responses." The live footage from the event is available here. 

The event consisted of two panels and a keynote speaker. I was interested in what one of the panelists, Mr. Pavel Chikov, had to say during the second panel. He spoke along with Mr. Hernan Charosky, Dr. Nancy Okail and Mr. Aung Maw Zin about the topic of government repression of civil rights organizations. Mr. Chikov will also be speaking at Human Rights First's upcoming 2013 Human Rights Summit in December. 

Mr. Chikov is the Chairman of AGORA, an association of human rights organizations based in Russia. He began his work as a human rights lawyer in 1999 when Vladimir Putin first served as Prime Minister of the country. Since then NGOs in Russia have faced intermittent pressure from the government, and a slew of new laws and regulations under Putin's Presidency in 2012 have targeted numerous NGOs.

Currently the Foreign Agents Law requires any non-profit organizations in the country who receive foreign funding and are active politically to register as "foreign agents." Mr. Chikov views this law as Putin's attempt to gain complete control of any organizations that could potentially interfere Russia's internal affairs. Putin has stated that if an NGO is funded by a foreign country, he views its involvement as a threat because the country will undoubtedly expect some kind of influence from the NGO in return. 

Mr. Chikov states that as a result of these new regulations many NGOs in the country are being targeted. Many foreign-based NGOs including USAID, Amnesty International and the World Health Organization have already been instructed told stop their operations in the country. 

It is unclear what the best approach is for NGOs to take in Russia. Mr. Chikov points out that any organizations that are registered as foreign agents appear suspicious to the government, however any organizations that fail to register and that receives foreign funding puts the organization at risk of closure or fines. Because the definition of a foreign agent includes both foreign funding and political involvement, one woman in the audience suggested that organizations try to take non-political stances. Mr. Chikov responded that the government's loose definition of political involvement allows almost any issue to be deemed political. This includes speaking about nonpolitical issues such as opiate abuse, since such talk implies an innate desire to influence government policy. 

Although the Russian government continues to provide funding for non-profit organizations that are not deemed foreign agents, many individuals including Mr. Chikov feel that the government is abusing its power through the loose definition of the definition of the term "foreign agent," and that Putin's grasp for control is restricting aid in a way that is ultimately harmful for Russian citizens. 


© Elizabeth "Elise" Sidamon-Eristoff September 16, 2013