Україна приєдналась до заяви, виголошеній делегацією Європейського Союзу під час засідання Комітету міністрів Ради Європи, щодо планів ліквідації організації "Міжнародний Меморіал" в Російській Федерації.
Текст заяви мовою оригіналу додається.
1418th Meeting of the Committee of Ministers (23 November 2021)
EU Statement on plans to liquidate International Memorial in the Russian Federation
The European Union is deeply concerned about the Russian General Prosecutor's decision to demand the liquidation of the International Historical Educational Charitable and Human Rights Society Memorial and the Moscow Prosecutor Office’s demand to liquidate the Memorial Human Rights Centre. Memorial is a nationally and internationally respected NGO, one of the oldest in Russia. Its activities remain central to the defence of human rights and it has provided significant insight into the history of political repression, thus contributing also to preserving the memory of individual victims.
The move to initiate the liquidation of Memorial is yet another case of the use by Russia of the so-called “foreign agents” law to limit the space for independent thought and to curtail historical scholarship and critical debates.
The eventual dismantling of Memorial would be an irreplaceable loss for the Russian people and the rest of Europe. The EU therefore fully supports the Secretary General of the Council of Europe urging the Russian Prosecutor General’s Office to reconsider this move.
The EU has repeatedly condemned the Russian legislation on “foreign agents” that runs counter to Russia’s international human rights law obligations, including with regard to freedom of expression and association. The Council of Europe has repeatedly indicated that this legislation stigmatises NGOs, media and individuals and has had a repressive impact on civil society in Russia over recent years. The unabated crackdown on civil society and independent media must stop. The EU once again urges the Russian authorities to review current legislation in order to bring it in line with its obligations under the European Convention on Human Rights and to avail itself of the relevant opinions of the Venice Commission.
The following countries align with this statement: Albania, Georgia, Iceland, Liechtenstein, Monaco, Montenegro, Republic of North Macedonia, Norway and Ukraine.