MOTION FOR A RESOLUTION on continuous crackdown on civil society and human rights defenders in Russia: the case of Human Rights organisation Memorial

14.12.2021 - (2021/3018(RSP))

with request for inclusion in the agenda for a debate on cases of breaches of human rights, democracy and the rule of law
pursuant to Rule 144 of the Rules of Procedure

Petras Auštrevičius, Malik Azmani, Olivier Chastel, Vlad Gheorghe, Klemen Grošelj, Bernard Guetta, Svenja Hahn, Karin Karlsbro, Ilhan Kyuchyuk, Nathalie Loiseau, Karen Melchior, Javier Nart, Urmas Paet, Frédérique Ries, Michal Šimečka, Nicolae Ştefănuță, Ramona Victoria Strugariu, Dragoş Tudorache, Hilde Vautmans
on behalf of the Renew Group

See also joint motion for a resolution RC-B9-0604/2021

B9‑0606/2021

European Parliament resolution on continuous crackdown on civil society and human rights defenders in Russia: the case of Human Rights organisation Memorial

(2021/3018(RSP))

The European Parliament,

–  having regard to its previous resolutions and recommendations on Russia in particular those of 16 September 2021 on the direction of EU-Russia political relations and of 8 February 2018 on Russia, the case of Oyub Titiev and the Human Rights Centre Memorial;

–  having regard to the statement of 12 November 2021 by the Council of Europe Secretary General Marija Pejčinović Burić and to the letter of 30 November 2021 of the Council of Europe Commissioner for Human Rights, Dunja Mijatović, to the General Prosecutor of the Russian Federation;

–  having regard to the statement of 13 November 2021 by the High Representative Josep Borrell on legal steps against NGO Memorial and to previous EU statements concerning the Memorial Human Rights Centre in Russia,

–  having regard to the Convention for the Protection of Human Rights and Fundamental Freedoms,

–  having regard to the United Nations Declaration on Human Rights Defenders, adopted by the UN General Assembly on 9 December 1998,

–  having regard to Rule 144 of its Rules of Procedure,

 

1. whereas Memorial is the most prominent human rights group in Russia dedicated to the history of political repression and the protection of human rights, whose decades-long struggle for human rights and the protection of vulnerable groups has made it a symbol of the fight for freedoms and justice;

 

2. whereas in 2009 Oleg Orlov, Sergei Kovalev and Lyudmila Alexeyeva were awarded the Sakharov Prize for Freedom of Thought on behalf of Memorial and all other human rights defenders in Russia;

 

3. whereas in November 2021, the Prosecutor General's Office and the Moscow Prosecutor's Office filed lawsuits with the Supreme Court of Russia and the Moscow City Court to liquidate Memorial’s two key entities, the International Memorial Society and the Memorial Human Rights Centre;

 

4. whereas the reason invoked to shut down International Memorial Society is a “systematic violation” of Russia’s "foreign agent" law, in particular failure to identify itself publicly as a designated foreign agent; whereas the Memorial Human Rights Centre is additionally accused of justifying the activities of extremist and terrorist organizations due to the publication on the NGO’s website of lists of political prisoners and statements defending the human rights of Crimean Tatars and Jehovah's Witnesses;

 

5. whereas Memorial has focused on preserving the memory of mass repression under the Soviet Union and more recently has spoken out against the crackdown on opposition figures, political prisoners, activists, journalists and others; whereas Memorial advocates respect for human rights and protects victims of abuses in Russia and the former Soviet states;
6. whereas in March 2021 Memorial was among the three NGOs which helped a Syrian man sue in Moscow members of the Wagner Group on the basis of murder committed with extreme cruelty, with a view to establishing the alleged perpetrators’ responsibility for this and other crimes, including war crimes;

 

7. whereas the move to liquidate these prominent NGOs comes after years of persecution of both organizations; whereas these organisations had been labelled as “foreign agents” in 2014 and 2016, had faced extortionate fines for alleged non-compliance with the “foreign agents” law, arbitrary criminal prosecution of its staff members as well as attacks on and harassment of its staff; whereas these attacks, like the 2009 killing of Human Rights Centre Memorial researcher Natalia Estemirova, have not been effectively investigated and perpetrators continue to enjoy impunity; whereas Oyub Titiev, head of HRC Memorial’s office in Chechnya and Yury Dmitriyev, head of the Karelian branch of International Memorial, have been imprisoned on politically motivated charges; whereas most recently, on 14 October 2021, the office of International Memorial in Moscow was intruded by a violent mob and then raided by police;

 

8. whereas the crackdown against Memorial is part of a broader policy of the Putin regime of historical revisionism and glorification of Stalinism, which deliberately distorts history and whitewashes Stalin’s totalitarian regime, whose political repression, deportations, gulags and famines left millions of people dead;

 

9. whereas repressive legislation on “foreign agents”, “undesirable organizations”, “anti-extremism” and “counter-terrorism” has been used by the Russian authorities to restrict the space for civic activity and silence independent voices; whereas last year the Russian parliament expanded the “foreign agent” law in ways that could apply to any public critic or activist; whereas the number of organisations and individuals authorities have designated as “foreign agents” has drastically increased in recent months,

 

1. Condemns the repeated persecution and the recent attempts to shut down International Memorial Society and the Memorial Human Rights Centre and considers the charges against them as politically motivated; calls on the Russian authorities to drop their lawsuits on the liquidation of the two organisations and to ensure that both organizations, as well as other NGOs, can continue their work without arbitrary interference from the state;

 

2. Calls on the Russian authorities to repeal the repressive “foreign agents” and “undesirable organizations” legislation, bring the laws regulating NGOs in line with Russia’s international human rights obligations and ensure that the rights to freedom of association, assembly and expression are observed; additionally calls on the Russian authorities to review the “anti-extremism” and “counter-terrorism” legislation and the practice of its implementation and bring it in line with the international human rights standards;

 

3. Urges the Russian authorities to refrain from arbitrary prosecution and harassment of civil society activists, human rights lawyers, independent NGOs, journalists and media outlets, to respect the rights to freedom of opinion and expression and comply with Russia’s international human rights obligations;

 

4. Calls on the Russian authorities to ensure that measures of restitution and reparation are put in place to address the violations committed in the process of implementation of the “foreign agents” and “undesirable organizations” laws;

 

5. Condemns the policy of historical revisionism and glorification of Stalinism promoted by the Kremlin, underlines that remembering the victims of totalitarian and authoritarian regimes and recognising and raising awareness of the crimes committed by communist, Nazi and other dictatorships is of vital importance for the unity of Europe and for fostering resilience against modern threats to democracy, particularly among the younger generation;

 

6. Expresses its solidarity with the Russian people and condemns all repressive actions of the Russian authorities targeting civil society organisations and activists, political opposition figures, independent media outlets and journalists;

 

7. Encourages EU institutions and Member States leaders to call on the Russian authorities at the highest levels to withdraw the lawsuits against Memorial and to repeal the law on “foreign agents” through both public and private channels;

 

8. Calls on the EU and its Member States to increase the international scrutiny of Russia’s restrictive laws, policies and actions, including through coordinated action with likeminded states in multilateral fora;

 

9. Calls on the EU institutions and Member States to closely monitor the trials around the liquidation of International Memorial and Human Rights Centre Memorial, ensure that these efforts are visible, and to continue to monitor the human rights situation in Russia and court cases of civil society organisations, journalists, opposition politicians and activists;

 

10. Encourages EU and Member States ambassadors to Russia to carry out a joint, publicized solidarity visit to the office of International Memorial and Human Rights Center Memorial following the outcome of the hearings, with Memorial’s agreement;

 

11. Calls on the EU and its Member States to increase their support to human rights defenders, civil society and other independent voices in Russia, by, among others, seeking creative ways of maintaining and expanding financial and non-financial support to these organisations and individuals;

 

12. Instructs its President to forward this resolution to the Vice-President of the Commission / High Representative of the Union for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy, the Council, the Commission, the governments and parliaments of the Member States, the Council of Europe, the President, Government and the State Duma of the Russian Federation.