MOSCOW, July 10 (RAPSI) – Prosecutors have accused three nonprofit organizations of extremist activity in the course of a large-scale inspection, Prosecutor General Yury Chaika said on Wednesday.
“The prosecutors have identified signs of extremism,” he said at a Federation Council meeting in St. Petersburg. “They have made three applications to the court to close the organization down and suspend their activities in connection with terrorist and extremist activity.”
Two of the lawsuits have been upheld, one against a Moscow organization and another against a group in Kirov.
The authorities have also found extremist materials that were being stored and distributed by NGOs. “Some were found in the library of the Islamic Culture Research Foundation. The foundation’s head has been notified of the violation, and a report has been filed with the investigative authorities to decide whether the case calls for prosecution.”
Under a 2012 law on NGOs, organizations that receive funding from abroad and engage in political activities are required to register as foreign agents, or face fines.
On June 27, the first NGO was finally registered as a foreign agent – the Supporting Competition in the CIS non-profit partnership. No other applications had been filed as of the end of June.