Reports and Data

ОВД-Инфо и гражданское общество

Report on non-implementation of previous UPR cycles' recommendations

This submission focuses on implementation of the recommendations about basic political rights and freedoms accepted by Russia since the consideration of Russia’s third periodic report in May 2018 and Russia’s compliance with its obligations.

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ОВД-Инфо

The Report on Civil Rights and Freedoms of Children

This report focused on civil rights and freedoms of children. Children’s civil rights and freedoms in Russia are restricted no less than civil rights and freedoms of people in general, which are now undergoing a systemic crackdown. However, there are specific restrictions aimed only for the children that severely restrict their rights.

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ОВД-Инфо

Summary of Russian wartime repression. One year since the full-scale invasion

On February 24, 2022, Russia began a full-scale war in Ukraine. This has caused a catastrophic destruction, led to victims, and protests in Russia. Over the past year, we have counted almost 20,000 arrests in connection with anti-war positions in 240 locations in 78 regions.

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ОВД-Инфо

Repressions in Russia in 2022. OVD-Info overview

Along with the full-scale invasion of Ukraine, the Russian authorities commenced internal repression on an unprecedented scale. There are more than 21,000 arrests and at least 370 defendants in criminal cases for anti-war statements and speeches, more than 200,000 Internet resources have been blocked and 11 sentences in cases of state treason. OVD-Info collected the main figures on political repressions in 2022.

ОВД-Инфо и гражданское общество

Suggested checklist for the Special Rapporteur on Russia

On 7 October 2022, the UN Human Rights Council voted for a resolution appointing a Special Rapporteur on the situation of human rights in the Russian Federation. In March 2023, the appointed mandate holder will begin monitoring the human rights situation in Russia. Previously, Russian civil society had repeatedly called for the creation of this mandate.

ОВД-Инфо

A New ‘Foreign Agents’ Law Comes Into Effect

On December 1, the «concerning the control over the activities of persons under foreign influence» law came into effect, together with numerous amendments to the regulation of «foreign agents.» OVD-Info’s lawyer Daria Korolenko analyzed the amendments and other changes.

ОВД-Инфо

Anti-War Repressions Summary. Nine Months of War

It’s been nine months since February 24, apart from waging a full-scale war on Ukraine, the Kremlin is unleashing a new wave of repressions inside Russia. We have gathered all available information about the state repressions against the Russian anti-war movement from October 24 to November 24, 2022.

ОВД-Инфо и Гражданское общество

Urgent Need to Reinforce UN Treaty Bodies. Joint Statement by Civil Society Organisations

ОВД-Инфо

Chronicles of anti-war repressions. Eight months of war

Eight months ago, Russia launched a full-scale war in the Ukrainian territory. In addition to repressions in another country, the Russian authorities started a new wave of political repressions inside their country. We have gathered all information on anti-war protests in Russia from September 24 to October 24, 2022.

ОВД-Инфо и Гражданское общество

Information on the Russian Federation for the 134-136th sessions of the UN Human Rights Committee

ОВД-Инфо

No to war: How Russian authorities are suppressing anti-war protests

In the four weeks since the publication of this report, the suppression of anti-war protests in Russia has worsened. We have supplemented the text with the latest information on propaganda and censorship, opposition to anti-war initiatives, administrative and criminal prosecutions, the application of legislation against foreign agents and the adoption of new restrictive laws.

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ОВД-Инфо

Summary of anti-war repressions. Seven months of war

The Russian military aggression against Ukraine has been going on for seven months now. On September 21, president Putin announced the mobilization, on the same day thousands of people took the protest to the streets. Security forces detained 1,330 people in 42 cities. We publish a summary of all anti-war repressions since the beginning of the war.

ОВД-Инфо

Internet blocks as a tool of political censorship

Over the past ten years, blocking has become one of the largest tools for restricting access to information and freedom of expression. The lack of proper documentation of violations of international norms and human rights standards only contributes to the current situation — de facto complete Internet censorship in relation to alternative sources of information.

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ОВД-Инфо, «Выход», «Гражданский контроль», «Агора», «СОВА», «Голос», SJI, ЦЗПСМИ

Information on the human rights situation in Russia for the OSCE’s Moscow Mechanism

This report on the human rights situation in Russia is provided by a coalition of civil society organizations in the Russian Federation for the OSCE’s Moscow Mechanism invoked to look into and assess the ongoing crack down on civil society, media and human rights violations. This intervention consists of an overview of the state of human rights in various fields and a catalog of relevant data and reports.

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ОВД-Инфо

How Authorities Use Cameras and Facial Recognition against Protesters

Based on the materials of administrative cases, texts of court rulings and testimonies of detainees, we show how the authorities hide the use of facial recognition in administrative cases, how the courts perceive this fact, and what negative consequences this practice entails. In addition, we explain what needs to be changed in legal regulation and law enforcement practices to ensure freedom of assembly.

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ОВД-Инфо

Summary of anti-war repressions. Six months of war

Six months ago, Russia started a military aggression in Ukraine. In addition to killing civilians in Ukraine, the Russian state continues repressions inside the country. We present you a summary of the main data on the pressure on people for an anti-war stance in Russia.

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ОВД-Инфо, Сетевые свободы, ЦЗПС, Мемориал

Input of information in reply to the call for submissions: Challenges to freedom of opinion and expression in times of conflicts and disturbances

These submissions will deal with the recent legislative changes and judicial practice in Russia that followed the full-scale military invasion of Ukraine as of 24 February 2022.

english

ОВД-Инфо

Created and (or) distributed. Discriminatory aspects of the application of legislation on ‘foreign agents’

In this report we focus specifically on identifying and analysing discriminatory aspects of the legislation and law enforcement practice of ‘foreign agent’ law in Russia. We hope that the movement of the dialogue between the government and society into the direction of legal analysis will allow us to find a solution that will simultaneously suit both sides, and will comply with the norms of the Constitution of Russia and international law.

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ОВД-Инфо

Anti-Military Events Report. June 2022

The war in Ukraine has been going on for four months. All this time the Russian state has been violently destroying the neighboring country as well as taking repressive actions against its own citizens. Below you can find the key data on repressive actions against people who took the anti-war stance in Russia.

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ОВД-Инфо

Inoteka

On September 29, the Ministry of Justice included OVD-Info in the register of unregistered public associations acting as a «foreign agent».

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ОВД-Инфо

Summary of anti-war repressions. Five months of war

The war has been going on for 150 days. In addition to the killing of civilians in Ukraine, the Russian state also continues its repressions within the country. We present you a summary of the main data on the pressure on people for an anti-war stance in Russia.

english

ОВД-Инфо

Methodology for calculating the number of detentions for an anti-war stance

OVD-Info has been publishing estimates of the number of people detained for taking an anti-war stance since February 24. Here we describe how we assess the data.

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ОВД-Инфо

Sanitization of the protest: How Article 236 of The Criminal Code Became an Instrument of Political Pressure

The report presents the evolution of Article 236 of the Criminal Code. We have studied how it was used before and after the changes, and analyzed its weaknesses using the «sanitary case» as an example.

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ОВД-Инфо

Ageism and Age Discrimination in the Context of Freedom of Assembly in Russia

Due to the specifics of our expertise, in this memorandum we present information on the situation with ageism and age discrimination in the sphere of the right to freedom of assembly.

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ОВД-Инфо

The Bill «without a catch»: How Article 267 of the Criminal Code became a «protest-related one»

After the protest actions on January 23 and 31, 2021 in support of Alexei Navalny, at least 23 people became involved in cases initiated under Article 267 of the Criminal Code on «blocking transport communications».

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ОВД-Инфо

«Freedom of assembly guaranteed, 17,600 protesters detained»: rebuttal of the Russian response to UN inquiry on widespread assembly rights violations

In January-February 2021, protest rallies in support of opposition politician and activist Alexei Navalny were held throughout Russia. Human rights defenders, including OVD-Info, the Memorial Human Rights Center and the Moscow Helsinki Group, reported massive violations of the rights of protesters.

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ОВД-Инфо

Explanatory note to the draft law on the abolition of the legislation on «foreign agents»

With this draft of the federal law «On Ammending Certain Legislative Acts of the Russian Federation and Recognizing Invalid Certain Legislative Acts (Provisions of Legislative Acts) of the Russian Federation in order to Exclude Provisions on Persons Performing the Functions of a Foreign Agent», it is proposed to exclude from the legislation the concept of a person «performing the functions of a foreign agent» and the norms associated with this concept.

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ОВД-Инфо

Older Women and Freedom of Assembly in Russia

Due to the specifics of our expertise, in this memorandum, we present information on the situation with freedom of assembly for older women in Russia.

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Development of Russian Law

Gender aspects of violations of the right to freedom of assembly in Russia: first observations and quantitative data

Over the years we have documented explicit exploiting gender roles or even sexism regarding protesters when arrested, while at police stations and when their actions get evaluated for criminal charges.

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ОВД-Инфо, МХГ, ЛГБТ-группа «Выход»

Protection of human rights in the context of peaceful protests during crisis situations: Submission to the UN Special Rapporteur

In the submission, we will provide our expertise on freedom of assembly in the following aspects: health crises, especially the Covid-19 outbreak and the relevant measures taken by Russian authorities; crises of systemic discrimination against particular groups, e.g., LGBT, non-citizens, underage and young people; crises related to terrorism, with the focus on the negative effects of anti-terrorist operations and security rhetoric and measures.

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ОВД-Инфо, "Мемориал", "Общественный вердикт", Комитет против пыток

Unresolved Freedom of Assembly Issues in Russia in 2020

In this submission we will describe the developments of the situation in law regarding freedom of assembly in Russia that occurred between April 2020 and April 2021; describe the development of the situation in practice; describe the efforts that we have undertaken at a domestic level to implement the ECHR’s judgment in Lashmankin and the authorities' reaction to these efforts

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ОВД-Инфо

Crackdown on peaceful protests in January — February 2021 in Russia

In January–February 2021, at least 185 cities across Russia and the Crimean peninsula saw a series of protests in support of opposition politician Alexei Navalny and against corruption and political persecution. These rallies were met with unprecedented crackdown and violations.

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ОВД-Инфо

Protesters accused of violence against representatives of the power

The Ministry of Internal Affairs reported that 90 criminal cases were initiated after the January-February 2021 protests in support of Alexey Navalny, against political persecution and corruption (addressed in Navalny’s new investigation «Putin’s Palace»), which were marked by multiple detentions. The most common charge in cases known to OVD-Info is the use of violence against a representative of the power.

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ОВД-Инфо

The «Palace Case»: people under criminal prosecution after the protests of early 2021 in Russia

Dozens of criminal charges have been brought as a consequence of the protests on January 23 and 31, February 2 and April 21, 2021 in Russia. There is almost no official information about them in the public domain. However, we have managed to collect and visualize data about more than 120 persons that are being prosecuted in more than 30 Russian regions, and publish it as a dataset.

english

ОВД-Инфо

Effective remedies and access to justice in the context of freedom of assembly in Russia

Our submission is based on the current information available before 30 January 2021. Since it has been submitted, we have faced new mass violations of the rights to defense, due process and access to justice of those excercising their freedom of assembly, particularly during a wave of January–February 2021 rallies.

english

ОВД-Инфо

Suppression of Protests in Khabarovsk. Analysis by OVD-Info

In July 2020, protests started in Khabarovsk and other cities of the region in response to the arrest of the former governor of Khabarovsk Krai, Sergei Furgal, who has faced grave criminal charges. Furgal was very popular in the region and many residents considered his case to be politically motivated. As it often happens in Russia, in response to protests, the authorities started to pressure the protesters and the journalists covering the events.

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ОВД-Инфо

Legislative restrictions of freedom of assembly at the end of 2020

On December 23, 2020, several laws at once were passed by the State Duma, all aimed at a serious restriction of civil rights and freedoms. Here is just a small list of what people’s representatives have prepared for the New Year for Russians: the passed laws allow to recognize individuals as foreign agents, to impose sentences in the form of imprisonment in libel cases, expand the practice of blocking and restricting information on the Internet.

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ОВД-Инфо

Russian courts of general jurisdiction. Experience of the pandemic

Six months after the outbreak of the epidemic in Russia, conclusions can be drawn about the role of courts of general jurisdiction in establishing new rules and how these rules manifested themselves in the work of courts in the context of human rights and freedoms.

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ОВД-Инфо

Suppression of the April 21 protests. With a focus on violations in St. Petersburg

This review describes cases of pressure and persecution in connection with the April 21 rally in St. Petersburg and key violations during detentions and legal procedures in police stations. In the annex to the review, we publish a list of known key violations by police stations (there is a high probability that they’re even more numerous).

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ОВД-Инфо

Single-person pickets. The law and what should be changed about it

A single-person picket is the only form of a public event that does not require a preliminary approval from the authorities and that allows citizens to express their views on important issues in a quick and efficient way. However, OVD-Info has recorded frequent detentions of single-person picketers followed by administrative prosecution.

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ОВД-Инфо

Suppression of rallies in support of Alexei Navalny on January 17 and 18, 2021. Review of the violations

On January 17 and 18, 2021, peaceful assemblies were held in Russia in connection with the return of opposition politician Alexei Navalny from Germany and his subsequent arrest. They were accompanied by mass detentions of participants, as well as journalists covering the events.

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ОВД-Инфо

Freedom of Assembly in Russia During the Pandemic: Summary

The report examines bans and restrictions imposed by the Russian authorities due to the COVID-19 pandemic on pickets, rallies, and other public events outside, which were in effect on September 1-3, 2020. The regulations governing these issues change frequently, so this analysis might not incorporate some of the most recent changes in individual regions.

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ОВД-Инфо

Freedom of assembly in Russia during the pandemic. What happened from March 10 to April 22, 2020

In March 2020, Russia began to impose restrictive measures concerning the spread of COVID-19 infection. In this report, we document the influence of these measures on the freedom of assembly in the period from March 10 to April 22, 2020. We assess the legality and proportionality of the implemented measures, disregarding the question of their suitability and effectiveness.

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ОВД-Инфо

Violations of the Right to Peaceful Assembly for Women and Girls in Russia from 2010 to 2020

We prepared this review in June as a response to a request from the UN Special Rapporteur on Freedom of Peaceful Assembly and Association: at the 75th session of the UN General Assembly in September 2020, he is preparing to present a report on how women exercise their rights. Our text consists of two parts: the first — answers to the questions of the special rapporteur, the second — a description of the problems and examples which illustrate them.

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ОВД-Инфо

Suppression of peaceful assembly in Russia from 2015 to 2020

As a part of a coalition of civil society organizations, we have submitted a report about Russia’s Compliance with the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights from 2015 to 2020 to the United Nations Human Rights Committee. This part of the report has been prepared by OVD-Info and is about freedom of assembly.

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ОВД-Инфо

Russia’s Constitutional Court and freedom of assembly for better or worse?

On 4 June 2020, the Russian Constitutional Court invalidated subfederal bans on rallies again: while in its ruling of 1 November 2019, the Court declared subfederal bans on rallies in front of buildings occupied by subfederal and municipal authorities null and void, this time it clearly condemned the general subfederal prohibitions on rallies in public places.

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ОВД-Инфо

Restrictions on public assemblies near schools, hospitals, churches and military facilities

On June 4, 2020, the Constitutional Court ruled that any regional restrictions on public assemblies, demonstrations or marches near military facilities, religious sites, educational facilities or hospitals are unreasonable; it also criticized some restrictions for being vague.

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ОВД-Инфо, ПЦ "Мемориал"

Submission by the NGOs Human Rights Center Memorial and OVD-Info on implementation of the general measures in the case of Lashmankin et al. v. Russia

This Report describes the execution by the Russian Federation of the Judgment of the European Court in the case of Lashmankin et al. v. Russia, application No. 57 818/09 (hereinafter, «Lashmankin»).

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ОВД-Инфо

Moscow experiment. Persecution of protesters supporting candidates to Moscow City Duma

This report examines political repression, and primarily the violation of the right to freedom of assembly. The protests themselves, their causes and public reaction to them, are usually far from the focus of our attention. However, it is important to briefly set out the causes of the protests in order to understand the logic of the current wave of politically motivated repression.

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ОВД-Инфо

The Art of the Ban-2: Review. How local legislators restrict rallies and other protests in Russia

We have analyzed 159 regional laws and more than 60 by-laws on this topic. Regional regulations introduce additional requirements that impede the coordination and holding of rallies. Being overly detailed in some parts, the regional legislation contains significant semantic gaps and ignores the points practically necessary for organising a public meeting.

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ОВД-Инфо, ПЦ "Мемориал"

Written Submission for a General Comment on Right to Peaceful Assembly

Submission from the NGOs «Human rights Center Memorial» and «OVD-Info» for a half-day general discussion in preparation for a General Comment on article 21 (right to peaceful assembly) of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights.

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ОВД-Инфо

Prisoners of undeclared war

Ukrainian film director Oleg Sentsov, sentenced to twenty years in a maximum-security prison labor camp after having been convicted of organising terrorist acts, is on hunger strike since May 14th demanding the release of those he calls Ukrainian political prisoners in Russia. Here we present all that we know about 88 people, associated with Ukraine and persecuted by the Russian authorities.

english

ОВД-Инфо

Limitations on and restrictions to the right to the freedom of peaceful assembly in the digital age

The present submission is based on information documented by the human rights project OVD-Info as well as other human rights and analytical organizations and media. It contains information on practices used by the Russian authorities for restricting freedom of assembly in the digital space, as well as the legislative basis of such restrictions and the development of the legislation in this area in 2012–2018.

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ОВД-Инфо

The Art of the Ban: How Russian authorities refuse permission for rallies and other protests

From the point of view of Russian legislation, any spontaneous political assembly is illegal if more than one person participates in it. The authorities should be notified of such events in advance and are obliged to ensure safety and help convey the demands of the protesters to the addressees. What happens in reality? The law mandates notification, but in practice it is not enough to notify the authorities: you also need to get their approval.

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Reports and data

Report on non-implementation of previous UPR cycles' recommendations

The Report on Civil Rights and Freedoms of Children

Summary of Russian wartime repression. One year since the full-scale invasion

Repressions in Russia in 2022. OVD-Info overview

Suggested checklist for the Special Rapporteur on Russia

A New ‘Foreign Agents’ Law Comes Into Effect

Anti-War Repressions Summary. Nine Months of War

Urgent Need to Reinforce UN Treaty Bodies. Joint Statement by Civil Society Organisations

Chronicles of anti-war repressions. Eight months of war

Information on the Russian Federation for the 134-136th sessions of the UN Human Rights Committee

No to war: How Russian authorities are suppressing anti-war protests

Summary of anti-war repressions. Seven months of war

Internet blocks as a tool of political censorship

Information on the human rights situation in Russia for the OSCE’s Moscow Mechanism

How Authorities Use Cameras and Facial Recognition against Protesters

Summary of anti-war repressions. Six months of war

Input of information in reply to the call for submissions: Challenges to freedom of opinion and expression in times of conflicts and disturbances

Created and (or) distributed. Discriminatory aspects of the application of legislation on ‘foreign agents’

Anti-Military Events Report. June 2022

Inoteka

Summary of anti-war repressions. Five months of war

Methodology for calculating the number of detentions for an anti-war stance

Sanitization of the protest: How Article 236 of The Criminal Code Became an Instrument of Political Pressure

Ageism and Age Discrimination in the Context of Freedom of Assembly in Russia

The Bill «without a catch»: How Article 267 of the Criminal Code became a «protest-related one»

«Freedom of assembly guaranteed, 17,600 protesters detained»: rebuttal of the Russian response to UN inquiry on widespread assembly rights violations

Explanatory note to the draft law on the abolition of the legislation on «foreign agents»

Older Women and Freedom of Assembly in Russia

Gender aspects of violations of the right to freedom of assembly in Russia: first observations and quantitative data

Protection of human rights in the context of peaceful protests during crisis situations: Submission to the UN Special Rapporteur

Unresolved Freedom of Assembly Issues in Russia in 2020

Crackdown on peaceful protests in January — February 2021 in Russia

Protesters accused of violence against representatives of the power

The «Palace Case»: people under criminal prosecution after the protests of early 2021 in Russia

Effective remedies and access to justice in the context of freedom of assembly in Russia

Suppression of Protests in Khabarovsk. Analysis by OVD-Info

Legislative restrictions of freedom of assembly at the end of 2020

Russian courts of general jurisdiction. Experience of the pandemic

Suppression of the April 21 protests. With a focus on violations in St. Petersburg

Single-person pickets. The law and what should be changed about it

Suppression of rallies in support of Alexei Navalny on January 17 and 18, 2021. Review of the violations

Freedom of Assembly in Russia During the Pandemic: Summary

Freedom of assembly in Russia during the pandemic. What happened from March 10 to April 22, 2020

Violations of the Right to Peaceful Assembly for Women and Girls in Russia from 2010 to 2020

Suppression of peaceful assembly in Russia from 2015 to 2020

Russia’s Constitutional Court and freedom of assembly for better or worse?

Restrictions on public assemblies near schools, hospitals, churches and military facilities

Submission by the NGOs Human Rights Center Memorial and OVD-Info on implementation of the general measures in the case of Lashmankin et al. v. Russia

Moscow experiment. Persecution of protesters supporting candidates to Moscow City Duma

The Art of the Ban-2: Review. How local legislators restrict rallies and other protests in Russia

Written Submission for a General Comment on Right to Peaceful Assembly

Prisoners of undeclared war

Limitations on and restrictions to the right to the freedom of peaceful assembly in the digital age

The Art of the Ban: How Russian authorities refuse permission for rallies and other protests

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