Russia’s Ministry of Justice Aug. 29 declared the Freedom of Information Foundation a “foreign agent.”
FIF joins 12 other Russian NGOs with that designation, accused of carrying out “political activities” and receiving foreign funding.
The groups are subject to audits, supervision and potential criminal or administrative penalty policies under the Foreign Agent Law.
The “foreign agent” label was applied to the FIF because “the organization is utilizing internet resources for political reasons” and because the head of the FIF’s board, Ivan Pavlov, had notified President Obama about the political situation in Russia during his meeting with human rights activists after the G20 summit in St. Petersburg.
In August, Pavlov’s wife, American Jennifer Gaspar, was forced to leave Russia after the Federal Migration Service cancelled her residency permit, labeling her “a threat to national security.” She had worked for 10 years in Russia as a consultant for a variety of nongovernmental organizations.
The group has appealed a prosecutor’s notice which forced the FIF to register as a ‘foreign agent’, arguing that its activities are not “political” as they are not aimed at changing state policy.
The Justice Ministry added the group to the list of foreign agents despite the fact that an appeal court hearing is scheduled for Sept. 5 on FIF’s objections to a request that it register as a foreign agent.
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