News

Four years of arbitrary detention – crackdown on Viasna members must end

Four years after the detention of Viasna members Ales Bialiatski, Valiantsin Stefanovic and Uladzimir Labkovich, the International Federation for Human Rights (FIDH) and the World Organisation Against Torture (OMCT), within the framework of the Observatory for the Protection of Human Rights Defenders, along with the undersigned organisations and individuals, urge the Belarusian authorities to uphold the rule of law and to immediately and unconditionally release all members of Human Rights Center “'Viasna”, as well as all other human rights defenders arbitrarily detained in Belarus.

Judicial harassment against LGBT+ in Russia under the “propaganda” law

The ban on so-called "LGBT+ propaganda" in Russia has caused much controversy both within the country and abroad. However, there's a difference between the noise surrounding repressive legislation and its actual implementation. Citizens’ Watch, in collaboration with the Sphere Foundation, has prepared a report based on research of court practice on consideration of cases on bringing to administrative responsibility for "propaganda of non-traditional sexual relations" among adults and children. We have studied  64 court decisions that came into force between December 2022 and March 2024.

300000 Ruble Fine for Applying to the Ministry of Justice

Today, the St. Petersburg City Court upheld the decision of the Kuibyshevsky District Court to impose a fine of 300000 rubles on the human rights organization "Citizens’ Watch" for not labeling requests to the Ministry of Justice with “foreign agent '' mark. Last summer, the chair of Citizens’ Watch, Elena Shakhova, requested information from the Ministry of Justice about the procedure for maintaining the register of affiliated persons and data on the existence and number of persons affiliated with the organization. We were denied this information, and Roskomnadzor drew up a protocol on an administrative offense against our human rights NGO.

Statement by Human Rights Groups on the Unjust Verdict and Sentence in Politically Motivated Case Against Russian Human Rights Defender Oleg Orlov 

We, 32 human rights organizations, condemn Moscow’s Golovinsky District Court’s sentencing yesterday of Oleg Orlov, co-chair of Human Rights Defense Center Memorial, to 2 years and 6 months in prison on politically motivated charges of “repeatedly discrediting” Russia’s armed forces.  Orlov, 70, is a veteran human rights defender who has devoted his life to exposing rights abuses and seeking justice for victims. His “crime” was to protest the Kremlin’s war on Ukraine and the escalating political repression inside Russia. Orlov’s trial was a mockery of justice and an attack on the fundamental right to free expression.

The UN Committee on the Rights of the Child has published findings on Russia

The UN Committee on the Rights of the Child has published its concluding observations on Russia. These observations concern our country's compliance with the Convention on the Rights of the Child. They were adopted following the consideration of the report of the Russian  government . In October last year, Citizens’ Watch sent its submission to the Committee on the situation with children's rights in Russia. Many of our considerations were reflected in the Committee's concluding observations.

The Court upheld the decision to impose a fine of 300,000 rubles on Citizens’ Watch

On the 30th anniversary of the Russian Constitution, the Citizens’ Watch’s team is not in the mood to celebrate. Today, December 12, the St. Petersburg City Court upheld the decision to impose a fine of 300,000 rubles on our human rights organization for inaccuracies in reports of “foreign agents”. Now we have 60 days to find money and pay the fine. The decision to impose a fine was made by the Kuibyshevsky District Court on November 9. The essence of the offense is the provision of foreign agent report for 2022 using the old form . It should be noted that this particular form was available on the Ministry of Justice website. In addition, it was more informative than the new one.

Citizens’ Watch was awarded a fine of 300,000 rubles

We received the decision of the Kuibyshevsky District Court of St. Petersburg on the case of inaccuracies in the foreign agents’ reports of Citizens’ Watch for the past year (article 19.34 of the Code of Administrative Offenses of the Russian Federation). The court imposed a fine on Citizens’ Watch in the amount of 300,000 rubles. On December 1, 2022, new reporting forms for so-called “foreign agents” were introduced. From the beginning of the organization’s activities, the Citizens’ Watch’s team took a responsible approach to reporting issues, no matter how absurd and excessive it may be. Previously, we reported using forms posted on the official website of the Ministry of Justice.

31 years of defending human rights in difficult conditions

Today, November 19, the Human rights organization “Citizens’ Watch” turns 31 years old. Over these years, the organization has accumulated significant experience in protecting human rights in Russia. Despite numerous restrictions on NGOs and the status of a “foreign agent,” as well as prosecution by the Ministry of Justice and Roskomnadzor, Citizens’ Watch continues to work in all main areas of its activities. Since the organization's founding in 1992, the right to a fair trial has been our top priority. We have observed thousands of court hearings. Today we train others in court monitoring.

Russia must implement its international obligations to protect women from discrimination

Anti-Discrimination Centre Memorial, Charitable Foundation Sphere and Citizens’ Watch in cooperation with Women.Prison.Society project have prepared alternative information on violation of the rights’ of women and vulnerable groups in Russia for the 80th session of the UN CEDAW Committee. In their report, the human rights organizations draw the Committee’s attention to intensification of repression against women who are active in public and political life. In other words, those are political opposition figures, independent journalists, feminist activists, eco activists, human rights defenders, all of whom are frequently left with no choice but to leave Russia because of the pressure, criminal and administrative persecution.

Stop police violence and massive violations of fundamental human rights

Statement by Russian human rights defenders In recent days, we have witnessed a new wave of lawlessness and repression by the authorities against Russian citizens. Russian authorities’ persecution of Alexei Navalny in recent weeks has caused justified outrage among a huge number of citizens across Russia. His arbitrary detention at passport control, the farcical court hearing at the police station on the restraining measure, and the unjust court decision on 2 February to replace his suspended sentence with imprisonment can be seen only as politically motivated persecution of Navalny for his opposition activities and as intimidation of all citizens who actively advocate for change in the country.

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Всё о защите прав граждан в Санкт-Петербурге

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