What Now for Navalny's Groups After Russia's Extremist Ban?
A Moscow court has outlawed the political and activist networks of jailed Kremlin critic Alexei Navalny as extremist in a closed-door hearing Wednesday. The Moscow Prosecutors Office, the plaintiff, had argued that Navalnys organizations aim to create conditions for changing the foundations of the constitutional order, including through color revolutions.  It also claimed that the groups created conditions for destabilizing the social and sociopolitical situation in the country under the guise of liberal slogans.  The hearing took place behind closed doors because the authorities said case materials contained classified information. The court struck down all of the defenses motions to declassify some of the evidence. No. Russia's terrorist and extremist directories are two separate lists with different procedures and punishments, human rights lawyer Pavel Chikov tells The Moscow Times. Islamic State and Al-Qaeda are on Russia's list of banned terrorist organizations. Navalny's groups are on the list of banned extremist groups alongside the Jehovah's Witnesses religious organization. Navalnys political and activist network has been blacklisted three months ahead of key parliamentary elections where the pro-Putin ruling party will battle historically low approval ratings amid stagnating real incomes to maintain its supermajority. This case has been linked to the law that bans all those who are connected with [Navalnys Anti-Corruption Foundation] FBK from getting elected, defense lawyer Yevgeny Smirnov said during the hearing, according to a translation by the U.S.-funded news website RFE/RL. The retroactive law, which President Vladimir Putin signed on Navalnys 45th birthday last week, bans leaders, rank-and-file members and even financial donors of extremist groups from seeking office for periods of 3-5 years. Under existing criminal laws, Navalny supporters found guilty of organizing actions aimed at continuing or renewing the illegal activities of a banned organization face a maximum sentence of 10 years in prison. Accusations of recruitment, as well as more rarely used accusations of financing extremist activities, carry maximum sentences of 8 years in prison. Those found guilty of participating in extremist activity face up to 6 years in prison. The jail terms are often accompanied by compulsory labor and fines of up to 1 million rubles ($14,000). Simply displaying symbols associated with the groups is punishable by fines up to 2,000 rubles ($27) or up to 15 days in jail. One month after the Moscow City Court ruling, unless Navalnys defense is handed an unliklely win of its appeal in higher courts. Navalny  who was sentenced to 2  years in February on old fraud charges he calls politically motivated after surviving a nerve agent poisoning he blames on the Kremlin  has slammed the court decision to bar him from participating in the hearing and expressed defiance in the face of the extremist designation. Were not a name, not a piece of paper, not an office. Were a group of people who unite and organize those Russian citizens who are against corruption, in favor of fair courts and equality of all before the law, he said. There are millions of them. You are them. As long as you are there, were not going anywhere, Navalny wrote on Instagram, urging supporters to vote against pro-Kremlin candidates in the legislative elections this September. The U.S. State Department compared the ruling to Russias extremist designation of the Jehovahs Witnesses in 2017, which has led to the imprisonment, harassment and discrimination of hundreds of worshippers. While the scale of todays action is particularly disturbing, it is indicative of the Russian governments widening crackdown on political opposition, civil society, and independent media, it said. British Foreign Secretary Dominic Raab condemned the court decision as perverse.  It is another Kafka-esque attack on those standing up against corruption and for open societies, he said, accusing the Kremlin of effectively outlawing genuine political opposition in Russia.  The European Union also denounced the ruling, calling it unfounded, and reiterated its calls for Navalny's release. Yesterday's ruling ... marks the most serious effort to date by the Russian Government to suppress the independent political opposition and anti-corruption investigations, EU foreign policy chief Josep Borrell said in a statement on behalf of the 27 member states. Includes reporting from AFP.