A protocol has been drawn up against OVD-Info lawyer Violetta Fitzner under the 'foreign agent' article.

A protocol has been drawn up against OVD-Info lawyer Violetta Fitzner under the “foreign agent” article (part 2 of article 19.34 of the Administrative Code). She herself reported this to OVD-Info.

The case will be heard by the Central District Court of Kaliningrad, a city near Russia’s western border. “Most likely, the protocol is connected to my failure to submit the 'foreign agent' report. I really haven’t submitted it and will not do so, because I consider the ‘foreign agent’ legislation to be repressive and unconstitutional, and I do not intend to comply with it,” she commented.

Earlier, the court had rejected Fitzner’s suit against the Ministry of Justice challenging her status. The ministry stated she had been labelled a ‘foreign agent’ due to her speeches at the UN and her work with other ‘foreign agents,’ including while preparing Alexei Gorinov’s complaint to the Constitutional Court. “So I view this persecution as revenge for my human rights work,” said the lawyer.

“The ‘foreign agent’ status brings a lot of trouble, including bureaucratic ones. Considerate authorities have opened a special account for me, where all my income in Russia must be transferred, and there are also complications with making transactions. The risk of criminal prosecution is also rather unpleasant,” Fitzner added.