Russian authorities on Mondaydesignated Amnesty International as an undesirable organization, a move that risks significant jail time for those affiliated with the human rights group.The London headquarters of AIL [Amnesty International Limited] serves as a training center of international Russophobic projects, financed by the supporters of the Kyiv regime, the RussianProsecutor Generals Office said.Authoritiesshut down Amnesty Internationals local office in April 2022, a few weeks after President Vladimir Putin ordered the full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February 2022.The undesirable label effectively bans the human rights organization from operating inside Russia and exposes its employees and affiliates to potential criminal prosecution.
Russia has used the undesirable designation to target independent media, opposition groups and foreign organizations since introducing the law in 2015.In its statement on Monday, the Prosecutor Generals Office accused Amnesty International of advocating for increased military confrontation in Ukraine.Since the start of the special military operation, activists [from Amnesty International] justify the crimes of Ukrainian neo-Nazis, issue calls to increase their financing and insist on politically and economically isolating our country, authorities said.In a statement sent to The Moscow Times later on Monday, Amnesty International said it wouldnot give in to threats and planned to continue its work to ensurepeople in Russia are able to enjoy their human rights without discrimination.The authorities are deeply mistaken if they believe that by labelling our organization undesirable we will stop our work documenting and exposing human rights violations, the organization said.No authoritarian assault will silence our fight for justice.The maximum prison sentence for being a member of anundesirable organization is four years, while organization leaders can receive up to six years in prison.Russias Justice Ministry currentlylists more than 200 organizations as undesirable, including The Moscow Times, which was hit with the label last summer.