In case of registration of MMDC as "foreign agent", court watches "Journalists under Attack" documentary
On April 13, the court station No. 1 chaired by a magistrate of the Central District of the city of Voronezh held a court hearing on the complaint filed by Mass Media Defence Centre (MMDC).
The "Caucasian Knot" has reported that on February 26, the Russian Ministry of Justice (MoJ) registered as a "foreign agent" the MMDC, which actively cooperated with the Caucasian media and journalists. On April 2, in Voronezh, the court began the process, in which the MMDC challenges the protocol on administrative violation compiled by the MoJ's Voronezh Department under Article 19.34 of the Administrative Code of the Russian Federation (violation of the order of activity of a non-commercial organization acting as a foreign agent). The MMDC faces a fine of up to 500,000 roubles. On April 7, witnesses questioned by the court denied the information about the presence of political context in the activity of the MMDC.
The law "On Foreign Agents", adopted by the State Duma of the Russian Federation on July 13, 2012, demands from the NGOs, funded from abroad and engaged in political activities, to acquire the status of a "foreign agent". The initiative was criticized by activists of human rights organizations, who tried to challenge the law, but the Constitutional Court declared it to be compliant with the Russian Constitution.
Galina Arapova, the head of the MMDC, has told the "Caucasian Knot" correspondent that during the court session held on April 13, Nadezhda Azhgikhina, the Secretary of the Russian Journalists' Union (RJU), was questioned as a witness. The reason was the film "Journalists under Attack" produced by the MMDC together with the RJU. The film "Journalists under Attack" was watched in full by the court.
"You can find the film on YouTube and on the website. It includes, among others, a story about Akhmednabi Akhmednabiev (a 'Caucasian Knot' correspondent, killed in the outskirts of Makhachkala on July 9, 2013, note of the 'Caucasian Knot'). The film is imputed to us because of my comment on the case against Mikhail Afanasiev, an Abakan journalist, accused of discrediting the authorities. We helped to defend him, and he was finally acquitted," Galina Arapova has said.
Full text of the article is available on the Russian page of 24/7 Internet agency ‘Caucasian Knot’.