Russia Shuts Down Human Rights Group 'Memorial' and Its Sister Organization

(Photo by AP News)

[Asia Economy Reporter Yujin Cho] One day after Russia ordered the dissolution of the prestigious domestic human rights organization 'Memorial,' its sister organization, the 'Memorial Human Rights Center,' was also shut down.

On the 29th (local time), the AP reported that the Moscow City Court made this ruling. This decision came just one day after the Russian Supreme Court issued a closure order against the human rights organization Memorial.

The Russian prosecution stated that the Memorial Human Rights Center repeatedly violated related laws as an anti-government organization acting on behalf of foreign forces and justified terrorist activities and extremist behavior through its publications.

Memorial and its supporters condemned the ruling as politically motivated and declared that they would continue their work despite the court order.

A lawyer for Memorial said, "This ruling was fully anticipated following the Supreme Court's decision the previous day," adding, "We have no illusions about the court hearing." Memorial is reportedly planning to appeal to the European Court of Human Rights and other bodies.

Memorial is a human rights organization that gained international recognition for investigating and researching political persecution during the former Soviet era and currently operates 50 affiliated organizations both inside and outside Russia.

Oleg Orlov, a director of Memorial, condemned the decision, saying, "This is an ideological ruling, blatant and illegal."

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.