The Federation Council, Russia’s upper house of parliament, has announced it is set to pass a resolution detailing a so-called “patriotic stop list.” The list will include organizations which are considered to pose a threat to Russian interests.
This announcement comes one week after Federation Council member Konstantin Kosachev called for drawing up a separate “patriotic stop list” in addition to the existing state registry of “undesirable organizations.” Kosachev said that the “stop list” could serve as a recommended registry for including organizations in the official “undesirable organizations” list.
Andrei Klishas, head of the parliamentary Constitutional Legislation Committee, said that the Federation Council will discuss the resolution with representatives from the Defense Ministry, the Federal Security Service (FSB), the Prosecutor General’s Office, and the lower house of parliament (the State Duma) on July 3. The Federation Council plans to pass the resolution on July 8.
Klishas has declined to comment on further details of the resolution.
“At the moment, it would be unprofessional to talk about what will be included in the resolution, as the relevant committees have not had a chance to meet yet,” said the senator.
According to a new law signed into effect by President Putin on May 23, foreign and international organizations can be declared “undesirable” or “presenting a threat to the basic constitutional order of the Russian Federation, its defense capability, or its state security.” The Attorney General has the power to declare an organization undesirable without court proceedings. If an organization falls under this category, it will be forced to shut down and will be forbidden from holding public events and from possessing or distributing promotional materials, including through the media. Employees of “undesirables” may face criminal proceedings if they fail to comply with orders, and heads of the organizations can face prison sentences of up to 6 years.
Konstantin Kosachev, head of the Federation Council’s Committee on International Affairs, drew up a list of potential “undesirable organizations” last week and has submitted it to the Justice Ministry and the Prosecutor General’s office for consideration. He said the proposed list includes, but is not limited to, George Soros' Open Society Foundations, the MacArthur Foundation, the National Endowment for Democracy, and the National Democratic Institute.
Kosachev stated that “we must effectively control outside players on the Russian social and political arena, just like these outside players do at home.”