for breaking Russia’s infamous “foreign agents law” for non-governmental organizations, the
Interfax news agency reported Wednesday.
Russia’s Justice Ministry added
Memorial International to its list of “foreign agents” last month,
claiming that the group had taken part in “political activity” by
criticizing the Kremlin’s strict laws on non-government groups-
including the use of the “foreign
agent” label itself. The court found the organization guilty of not
registering as an “agent” and not displaying the label on its
publications.
Memorial pleaded not guilty and plans to appeal the verdict, the group’s director Elena Zhemkova told
Interfax.
Under Russian law, any non-governmental
organization which takes part in “political activity” and
receives money from abroad must declare itself as a foreign agent. More than 80 groups within Russia are
currently classified under the label.
A number of organizations have chosen
to close rather than associate themselves with the Soviet-era term.
