Part of the government’s efforts to stifle dissent, earlier this week (12.30) Russian authorities designated a member of the Pussy Riot punk group, a satirist and an art collector as “foreign agents.”
The Justice Ministry applied the label to Pussy Riot member, Nadezhda Tolokonnikova, who became widely known for taking part in a 2012 protest inside Moscow’s Christ the Savior Cathedral, subsequent to which she spent nearly two years in prison.
The label “foreign agent” implies additional government scrutiny and carries strong pejorative connotations that can discredit recipients. Russian authorities have applied the designation to scores of media outlets, civil society groups and individuals, thus increasing pressure on those who are critical of the Kremlin.
Those designated as “foreign agents” are mandated to add a lengthy statement to news reports, social media posts and other materials specifying that the content was created by a “foreign agent.” But in response to the Eastern European moniker, Tolokonnikova tweeted that she wouldn’t abide by the requirement to mark her posts with the “foreign agent” designation. She said she would challenge the authorities’ decision in court, concluding: “Russia will be free.”
Citing its failure to identify itself as a “foreign agent,” earlier this week, Russia’s court on shut down the country’s oldest and most prominent human rights group, Memorial.
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Author: Saul Goode
Photo: Игорь Мухин