RUSSIA: AMNESTY INTERNATIONAL RECOGNIZES CO-CHAIR OF ELECTION WATCHDOG AS A PRISONER OF CONSCIENCE

In 2013, Golos Association was one of the first organizations to be labelled a “foreign agent,” a status, as Amnesty International documented, that not only imposes strict reporting requirements and tarnishes a NGO’s public image, but has a truly devastating effect on civil society activities by unduly restricting the exercise of human rights to freedom of association and freedom of expression, amongst others

Amnesty International condemns the detention and trial of Grigory Melkonyants, co-chair of the Russian election watchdog Golos, which began on 27 September 2024. The organization has designated him a prisoner of conscience who is being persecuted solely for his civil activism.

A prominent figure in Russian civil society, Grigory Melkonyants was arrested on 17 August 2023, shortly before the federal and local elections held on the same day, and just before the start of the 2024 presidential campaign. He was charged with “organizing the activities of an undesirable organization” (Article 284.1(3) of the Criminal Code) and, if found guilty, could face up to six years’ imprisonment.

“For over a year, Grigory Melkonyants has been arbitrarily deprived of his liberty. He is facing a politically motivated prosecution for his role in upholding electoral transparency in Russia. His continued detention is an affront to justice and human rights,” said Denis Krivosheev, Amnesty International’s Deputy Director for Eastern Europe and Central Asia.

“The Russian authorities must release Grigory Melkonyants immediately and unconditionally and drop all charges against him.”

The Russian authorities must release Grigory Melkonyants immediately and unconditionally and drop all charges against him

Denis Krivosheev, Amnesty International’s Deputy Director for Eastern Europe and Central Asia

Grigory Melkonyant has faced numerous violations of his right to a fair trial. His pre-trial detention was extended multiple times, beyond the maximum permissible under Russian law period of one year.

Golos, the watchdog he co-chairs, has become a powerful voice in exposing electoral fraud, organizing election observation missions, educating voters and promoting democratic.

Russian authorities falsely claim that Golos is part of the European Network of Election Monitoring Organizations (ENEMO), which they declared “undesirable” in 2021. Golos rejects these allegations and insists it has no links with ENEMO.

“The Russian authorities have long tried to silence Golos, first under the ‘foreign agents’ law and then under the even more draconian ‘undesirable organization’ legislation,” said Denis Krivosheev.

“The case against Grigory Melkonyants reflects the broader trend of repression in Russia, where the authorities have increasingly targeted civil society organizations, journalists, and activists under the pretence of upholding national security and preventing foreign interference. The authorities’ zeal to strangle all critical civil society groups only exacerbated with the full-scale Russian invasion of Ukraine in 2022.”

“This relentless suppression of civil society, including through repressive laws, must end, and these laws – including those on the ‘undesirable organizations’ – must be abolished,” Denis Krivosheev said.

[The] relentless suppression of civil society, including through repressive laws, must end, and these laws – including those on the ‘undesirable organizations’ – must be abolished

Denis Krivosheev, Amnesty International’s Deputy Director for Eastern Europe and Central Asia

Prisoner of conscience is any person imprisoned or otherwise physically restricted solely because of their political, religious or other conscientiously held beliefs, their ethnic origin, sex, colour, language, national or social origin, socio-economic status, birth, sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, or other status, who has not used violence or advocated violence or hatred in the circumstances leading to their detention.

Background

In 2013, Golos Association was one of the first organizations to be labelled a “foreign agent,” a status, as Amnesty International documented, that not only imposes strict reporting requirements and tarnishes a NGO’s public image, but has a truly devastating effect on civil society activities by unduly restricting the exercise of human rights to freedom of association and freedom of expression, amongst others. As a result of this designation and increasing governmental pressure, Golos Association’s executive director Liliya Shibanova had to leave Russia and the organization was formally dissolved in 2016. However, an eponymous Golos Movement was formed in 2013 to carry on the Golos Association’s work. It did not require registration under Russian law.

In the run up to the 2021 parliamentary elections, the government escalated its attacks on Golos, which was once again labelled a “foreign agent.” In 2022, courts in two Russian regions issued administrative fines against Golos activists ruling that their observation of Georgia elections in October 2021 had been participation in an “undesirable organization,” ENEMO. In August 2023, these rulings were used as grounds to prosecute of Grigory Melkonyants despite other regional Russian courts’ rulings finding no link between ENEMO and Golos.

The “undesirable organizations” law, enacted in 2015, allows the Russian authorities to arbitrarily label foreign and international organizations as such, under unsubstantiated claims that they pose threats to state security, thereby banning their activities in the country. No entity has been able to successfully challenge the designation in court. As of October 2024, 190 organizations have been designated “undesirable”.