Fines and pressure for violating legislation on “undesirable” organisations: Human rights news, court updates & analysis | 30 related articles

30.08.2025

16:46

The Frunzensky District Court in Yaroslavl has fined former member of the Yaroslavl Regional Duma Vasily Tsependa five thousand roubles (approx. US$55) for reposting a publication by the association “Komitet‑2024.” This was reported by Mediazona.

The reason for the charge was a Facebook post in which “Komitet‑2024” announced an “indefinite international campaign in support of Ukraine.” The Prosecutor General’s Office declared the association an “undesirable organisation” in September 2023.

The repost for which Tsependa was prosecuted is dated 3 September 2024. The politician was previously a member of the “Congress of People’s Deputies”—an initiative created in analogy to the historical congress of the early 1990s. In October 2024, after a conflict with one of the organisers, Ilya Ponomarev, Tsependa’s name disappeared from the congress’s official website.

Vasily Tsependa was a regional lawmaker from 2015, previously headed the regional branch of the PARNAS party, and served as an aide to Boris Nemtsov. In 2016, he was fined 500 roubles (approx. US$5.50) for installing a plaque in memory of Nemtsov on a building in Yaroslavl, a city northeast of Moscow.

14:05

Omsk Oblast

On 28 August, the Leninsky District Court in Omsk, a large city in Siberia, fined Dmitry Veliky, founder of the opposition Telegram channels Stop War Crime and Putin’s GULAG, in a case concerning participation in the activities of an “undesirable” organisation (under Article 20.33 of the Code of Administrative Offences). The court’s decision was noted by Mediazona.

The fine amounted to five thousand roubles (about US$55). The report against Veliky was drawn up in early August; he was not present at the hearing.

The case was prompted by four posts on the Stop War Crime channel, which contained links to the outlets “Meduza” and The Moscow Times (1, 2). The fourth post mentioned the media outlets The Insider and SOTA without hyperlinks. All these media outlets have been designated as “undesirable” in Russia.

In July of this year, the Ministry of Justice recognised Dmitry Veliky as a “foreign agent.”

12:07

Moscow

On 26 August, the Izmailovsky District Court in Moscow fined the editor-in-chief of Meduza, Ivan Kolpakov, under the article concerning participation in the activities of an “undesirable” organisation (Article 20.33 of the Administrative Offences Code). This was reported by Mediazona.

Meduza was declared “undesirable” in Russia in January 2023. As evidence of Kolpakov’s involvement with the outlet, law enforcement cited his interview with the YouTube channel “Popular Politics.” The caption under the journalist’s image read “Editor-in-chief of Meduza.”

Another interview for the outlet Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty, given in 2021, was also regarded by the authorities as participation in the activity of an “undesirable” organisation. Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty was declared as such in February 2024—three years after the video with Kolpakov was released.

The amount of the fine set by the court is not stated in the ruling.

26.08.2025

16:18

Khabarovsk Krai

The director of the Khabarovsk Regional Children’s Library, Raisa Naumova, has been fined for mentioning a book published with the participation of the World Wide Fund for Nature (WWF). Mediazona reports this, drawing attention to the published court ruling.

The prosecutor’s office drew up a protocol for “participation in the activities of an ‘undesirable organisation’” (Article 20.33 of the Administrative Offences Code) because the library’s website featured an image of the book “Specially Protected Natural Areas of Khabarovsk Krai,” which was published with support from the WWF and the Department of Rosprirodnadzor for the Far Eastern Federal District.

Naumova told Mediazona that information about this book, which was published back in 2009, appeared on an old version of the library’s website, which is now inactive. “[The authorities] saw a small WWF logo there,” Naumova explained.

The director did not admit guilt and stated in her written arguments that the website did not publish the text of the book, only a brief description of its contents. There was no information about WWF’s activities on the library website. Judge Alexey Shatilov deemed Naumova’s arguments unfounded.

On 8 August, the Central District Court of Khabarovsk—one of the largest cities in Russia’s Far East—found the director guilty and fined her, as an official, 20,000 roubles (about US$220).

Speaking with Mediazona, Naumova called the incident “an absurd story.” She said she intended to “go to court,” as no methodological recommendations from the Ministry of Justice had been sent to the library.

“We cannot possibly foresee these situations,” she said. “I am deeply upset—I am a patriot, a community leader, the director of a legendary regional children’s library—and they are pinning this shameful article on us. I am devastated by this, I am very upset.”

Naumova is appealing the court’s decision in a higher court.

The WWF was labelled “an undesirable organisation” in June 2023. Russia’s Prosecutor General accused the nature conservation organisation of “hindering the implementation of the country’s political course for industrial development of the Arctic.”

11:13

Republic of Tatarstan

IT specialist Marat Galiakberov from Kazan has been fined 5,000 rubles (about US$55) under the article on “cooperation with an undesirable organisation” (Article 20.33 of the Code of Administrative Offences), reports Mediazona.

The reason was a conversation on Twitter with political activist Mikhail Pletnev, who emigrated from Russia and is considered by the authorities to be connected to the Free Russia Foundation.

“I think about a year and a half ago I sent a private message to Pletnev about the harassment of an opposition-minded young woman and attached a screenshot of her account. That’s what I was fined for,” Galiakberov said.

According to Galiakberov, in June FSB officers visited him. They said they were conducting a seizure but did not provide a copy of the warrant. His computer, phone and USB sticks were confiscated, and he unlocked them himself. A few days later, his devices were returned.

Galiakberov says he has never published opposition statements or taken part in political activities.

22.07.2025

16:54

Khabarovsk Krai

A protocol was drawn up against a children’s library in Khabarovsk, a major city in the Russian Far East, for involvement with an “undesirable” organisation (Article 20.33 of the Code of Administrative Offences) after it published the logo of the World Wide Fund for Nature (WWF) on its website. This was reported by Mediazona, citing the website of the city’s Central District Court.

According to Raisa Naumova, director of the regional children’s library named after N. D. Navolochkin, a book featuring the WWF logo was posted on an old version of the library’s website. That version is no longer active.

“And [law enforcement] saw a tiny WWF icon there. The book is from 2009, and it was posted on our site in 2018,” Naumova explained to Mediazona.

She stated that she considers the protocol “an absurd story” and intends to “take it to court,” since the library had previously received no advice from the Ministry of Justice.

“These situations are impossible for us to foresee. I am deeply hurt—I am a patriot, an opinion leader, the director of a legendary regional children’s library—and now we’re being charged under this disgraceful article. I am crushed by this, I am extremely upset,” Naumova said.

The Prosecutor General’s Office recognised the Swiss-based World Wide Fund for Nature as an “undesirable” organisation in June 2023. The agency claimed WWF’s conservation and environmental education activities were being used as “cover for carrying out projects that threaten the security of Russia’s economy.”

In March of the same year, the fund was designated as a “foreign agent.” According to the Ministry of Justice, it received support from foreign sources and, under the pretext of nature conservation, sought to influence authorities in Russia and spread negative information about them.

Following these events, the Russian branch of the fund separated from the Swiss office and announced it had terminated the agreement on using the panda logo and WWF acronym.

18.07.2025

20:58

On 7 July, the Sovetsky District Court in Tomsk fined Viktor Muchnik, editor-in-chief of the publication “Govorit NeMoskva,” 5,000 rubles (US$55) under the article on participation in the activities of an “undesirable organisation” (Article 20.33 of the Code of Administrative Offences). The court’s decision was noted by Mediazona.

According to the decision, the local prosecutor’s office found a video recording of an interview “with a historian and journalist from the city of Tomsk, who, in the form of an interview, shares with listeners their views on the history of Tomsk, Siberia, historical and contemporary figures connected to the aforementioned regions, and also discusses the prospects for separation and the future of Siberia.”

The ruling does not specify the media outlet on whose channel Muchnik appeared, but provides the length of the video, which matches the duration of the “City Code” podcast episode from 19 August 2024, published on YouTube. The podcast is a project of Radio Svoboda (Radio Liberty), which was declared an “undesirable organisation” in February 2024.

“Today our guest is Viktor Muchnik. Historian, journalist, and editor-in-chief of the legendary Tomsk TV company TV2, he talks about the historical and cultural heritage of his native Tomsk, its role in Russian history, the colonisation of Siberia by Russia, and what it means to be a Siberian today: ” as stated in the episode’s written description.

Viktor Muchnik is the former editor-in-chief of the independent Tomsk TV channel TV2. In 2014, the channel was disconnected from broadcasting, and the editorial team continued working as a news agency. In early March 2022, the TV2 website was blocked, and Muchnik announced the closure of the agency. Muchnik himself soon emigrated and, together with former colleagues, launched the “Eyewitnesses” project, dedicated to the lives of people affected by the Russian invasion of Ukraine.

11.07.2025

22:00

On 30 June, the Pervomaysky District Court in Murmansk fined Yuri Sergeyev, a staff member of the environmental group 'Bellona', for participating in the activities of an “undesirable organisation” (Article 20.33 of the Administrative Code). The court’s press service reported this, as noted by Mediazona.

Sergeyev was given a fine of 5,000 roubles (about US$55). According to the court ruling, the administrative case against the environmentalist was initiated because his photo and description appear in the staff section on the website of the international environmental movement 'B'.

The case concerns the Norwegian environmental foundation Bellona, which was recognised as an “undesirable organisation” in Russia back in 2023. Bellona campaigns, among other things, for reducing black carbon emissions from maritime transport.

Mediazona notes that from 2020 to 2022, Sergeyev headed Bellona’s office in Murmansk, a major city in the far northwest of Russia. After the full-scale invasion of Ukraine, he emigrated to Lithuania.

08.07.2025

16:16

Other,

Murmansk Oblast

Denis Zagorye, a journalist from Murmansk who works for the Barents Observer, has been fined five thousand roubles (about US$55) under the article on participation in the activities of an “undesirable” organisation (Article 20.33 of the Code of Administrative Offences). This was reported on the publication’s website. The decision was made today by the Oktyabrsky District Court in Murmansk, a city in Russia’s far north.

“I chose to work here a long time ago. Nothing will change in my work,” commented Zagorye on the court’s decision, which he called unlawful.

At the start of 2025, the Prosecutor General’s Office declared the Barents Observer “undesirable.” The agency claimed that the publication’s journalists “openly support the West’s sanctions policy and call for increased NATO military presence at our borders.”

Staff at the Barents Observer disagreed with the decision and filed a lawsuit against the Prosecutor General’s Office, stating that recognising the publication as “undesirable” “violates freedom of the press, which is guaranteed by the Russian constitution.”

30.06.2025

20:33

Vologda Oblast

A report has been filed against former Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty editor Ivan Belyaev for participating in the activities of an ‘undesirable organisation’ (Article 20.33 of the Administrative Code). The case card on the court website of Vologda, a city in the Russian northwest, was noticed by Mediazona.

The specific reason for the administrative case is unknown.

Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty was classified as an “undesirable organisation” in February 2024. Belyaev himself was added to the “foreign agent” register in December 2021.

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Fines and pressure for violating legislation on “undesirable” organisations

16.01.2025