Russian NGOs Demand an End to Intimidation Tactics

Democracy Alert

[September 22, 2010]

Russian NGOs Demand an End to Intimidation Tactics

Eurasia

On September 17, the World Movement issued a DemocracyAlert to draw attention the arrest and intimidation of Russian gay activist Nikolai Alekseev, as well as to highlight the “surprise checks” several NGOs in Russia underwent that week. We are pleased to report that Mr. Alekseev is now free and continuing his work. Concerning the surprise checks, on September 13-16, the prosecutor's office in Moscow and those in a number of other cities carried out a series of coordinated inspections of NGOs that was unprecedented in its scale and intensity. It appears that NGOs that work on human rights and social and economic issues were targeted, and in many cases authorities did not follow legal procedures.

In response to this increased harassment and intimidation, on September 20, several Russian NGOs, including World Movement participating organization, the Center for the Development of Democracy and Human Rights, issued a statement demanding that authorities end their campaign of intimidation. The signing organizations stress that this kind of campaign has not occurred in the 20 years that NGOs have been operating in Russia. They demand that the rights of NGOs be respected in accordance with Russian law, and that the standards of international law on freedom of association be upheld. The statement has been posted online in Russian and English, and Russian NGOs are encouraged to add their signatures to the statement.

In its “Defending Civil Society” report, the World Movement addresses harassment and intimidation of NGOs, and articulates six principles for protecting civil society. The second principle states that “NGOs have the right to operate free from unwarranted state intrusion or interference in their affairs. International law creates a presumption against any state regulation that would amount to a restriction of recognized rights.”