Aleksander Sidyakin: ‘Agora thinks it is the smartest or something?’

It failed to get rid of the stigma

Human Rights Association Agora was established 10 years ago, headquartered in Kazan. It provides legal advocacy for victims of suspected human rights abuses by government officials.

Recognized as a foreign agent, the Association worked for year and a half with headquarter in Kazan, not giving up attempts to get rid of the stigma and to be excluded from the registry of the Ministry of Justice of RT, told a legal analyst Ramil Ahmetgaliev to Realnoe Vremya.

'We refused foreign financing, worked without it for a year and in autumn of 2015 sent a request to the Ministry of Justice… Instead of the answer we received a claim for dissolution… The trial took place today [on 11 February – editor's note] in the Supreme Court of the Republic of Tatarstan, the statement of the Ministry of Justice was supported by the Deputy Head of the RF Ministry of Justice on the Republic of Tatarstan Maksim Skirda and a lawyer of the Department of Affairs of NPOs.

Recognized as a foreign agent, the Association worked for year and a half with headquarter in Kazan. On Photo — evening-kazan.ru — Pavel Chikov and Ramil Ahmetgaliev

What are you and your colleagues accused of?

The accusation was only formal. For example, one of the meetings of our organization was held untimely, in violation of our own charter of Agora. The second – the inspection commission of the organization failed to report on time, and financial statements were filed wrongly. But even the tax authority recognized: there was no fact of offense.

They need to prove the threat from the organization

'They need to prove that the organization threatens the security of the state, society and health of citizens,' explains Ahmetgaliev. 'At trial, I asked the plaintiffs: 'What is the threat or danger of the social organization?'

Ramil Ahmetgaliev: 'Each year our attorneys plead about 200 cases during the work of the Association, as a result, 30 million rubles were recovered in favor of victims in Russia, due to our statements made six resolutions of the Constitutional Court of the Russian Federation were passed on recognition as unconstitutional of six federal laws.' Photo: evening-kazan.ru

And I heard in response: 'We never claimed the threat'. I told that the Presidium of the Supreme Arbitration Court of Russia, considering the donations to Agora, acknowledged that the provision of free legal aid to citizens is socially beneficial activity. Each year our attorneys plead about 200 cases during the work of the Association, as a result, 30 million rubles were recovered in favor of victims in Russia, due to our statements six resolutions of the Constitutional Court of the Russian Federation were passed on recognition as unconstitutional of six federal laws.

Are you going to litigate?

Definitely. As a lawyer, it is interesting for me why the court decided this. And as today's meeting was conducted under audio record, I would like to have all the bloopers of the opponents were clearly stated.

There are more than 5.5 thousand of NPOs in Tatarstan

The non-governmental organization on monitoring and investigating human rights violations Human Rights Watch (headquarters in USA) regarded the result of today's meeting in Kazanas an attack on civil society. In its turn, a commissioner for human rights in the Russian Federation Ella Pamfilova regards Agora dissolution as 'an alarming trend'. But the chairperson of the Civic Chamber of RT Anatoly Fomin disagrees:

'I don't see a threat. In Tatarstan, there are more than 5.5 thousand of non-profit organizations and there are no problems with their functioning. Civil society is developing successfully. And if one organization has a problem and the Supreme Court took the decision on dissolution, there must be a reason.'

Aleksander Sidyakin: 'How an organization that calls itself human rights, can ignore the law, even they don't like it?...' Photo: Maksim Platonov

The Deputy of State Duma Aleksander Sidyakin believes that Agora is to blame itself. 'How an organization that calls itself human rights, can ignore the law, even they don't like it?… The law was passed as a result of the social contract that is supported by the majority of the citizens of the country. Agora thinks it is the smartest or something?' said the deputy. Besides, Sidyakin believes, there is no need to fear a reaction of the West: 'They declared us the enemy, imposed the sanctions against us, well, they will say something else. All this will not affect our policy, they shouldn't talk to us like this. We're not a boy in pink pants who they can tell off and say: 'Don't do that'.