Navalny’s Anti-Corruption Foundation fined over lack of ‘foreign agent’ disclaimers

A Moscow court has fined Alexey Navalny’s Anti-Corruption Foundation (the FBK) for failing to include “foreign agent” disclaimers on its website “ECHR Search.”

Citing a ruling published on the official website for Moscow’s courts, MBK media reported on Tuesday, August 3 that the Simonovsky District Court had fined the FBK 500,000 rubles ($6,835). The decision was handed down on July 26 without any representatives from the FBK present at the hearing. 

The fine was imposed over an alleged lack of disclaimers about the organization’s “foreign agent” status on the website ECHR Search — a platform set up by the FBK where users can look up information about cases filed with the European Court of Human Rights. 

According to the court’s ruling, the ECHR Search website published materials without specifying that they were being distributed by a “nonprofit organization performing the function of a foreign agent.” 

The court found the FBK guilty of an administrative offense under article 19.34, part 2 (violation of the procedure for the activity of a “foreign agent”).

Russia’s Justice Ministry designated the FBK as a “foreign agent” in October 2019. The agency justified its decision by claiming that the foundation received foreign funding from Spain and the United States. The FBK insisted that it only obtains funding from inside Russia.

In June, the Moscow City Court sided with local prosecutors and designated Navalny’s Anti-Corruption Foundation, Citizens’ Rights Protection Foundation, and national network of campaign offices as “extremist organizations.” This terminated his team’s activities effective immediately. Despite the fact that the ruling has yet to enter into force, election officials have already used it as a pretense for barring Navalny’s associates from running in the fall elections.