Three NGOs continued their struggle with prosecutors over accusations of being “foreign agents” in St. Petersburg this week, months after dozens of the organizations were inspected in March and April. The inspections followed President Vladimir Putin’s orders to enforce the 2012 law that demanded that NGOs receiving funding from abroad and involved in political activities to register as “foreign agents.”
Peterburgskaya Egida (St. Petersburg Aegis) had its activities suspended, while the Anti-Discrimination Center Memorial (ADC Memorial) and LGBT rights organization Vykhod (Coming Out) are being sued by prosecutors in new cases aimed at forcing them to register as “foreign agents” that will be heard later this month.
Due to the continued court cases, the organizations have had to halt some of their activities so as not to provide new grounds for charges to be brought against them. To read more