Attempts to suppress Amnesty International India

On 25 October 2018, Amnesty International India had its bank accounts frozen and its country office in Bangalore was raided by officers of the Enforcement Directorate, India’s financial crime investigative agency.

Amnesty International India has been at the forefront of protecting and preserving human rights in the region. They work on human rights issues including violations like torture, prisoners of conscience, abusive laws, as well as women’s rights, corporate accountability and others.

At approximately 1.30 p.m. local time on 25 October 2018, a group of officers from the Enforcement Directorate entered Amnesty India’s office compound in Bangalore, Karnataka state, and locked the gates. All employees were told to remain in the office and were not permitted to use their laptops or mobile phones during the search. The organisation’s accounts in India have been frozen which will impact its work and payment of salaries.

The Enforcement Directorate claims that the human rights organisation is in violation of foreign direct investment laws – the Foreign Contribution Regulation Act 2010 – which controls the use of foreign funds and donations. Over the past several years the law has been used to target and deny licenses to thousands of human rights NGOs, effectively stopping their work and activism.

In a press release, Amnesty India stated that the organisation’s structure is in full compliance with national laws and that its staff fully cooperated with the search on their office. The statement went on to say that, most of the documents sought through the raid were either publicly available or had already been submitted to the government as part of its official filings. It further asserted Amnesty India’s commitment to promote and protect universal human rights also enshrined in the Indian Constitution and criticised the Indian Government for its failure to protect rights and for the deliberate targeting of human rights defenders.

The actions against Amnesty India are the latest in a series of repressive measures aimed at silencing dissent and critical voices in India. There have been well documented incidents of threats, violence, legal persecution and smearing of human rights defenders and human rights organisations, including the arrest of senior lawyers, journalists and human rights activists in August 2018. Amnesty India itself has been previously targeted by the Indian government and Greenpeace India, an environmental rights NGO, had its accounts frozen earlier this month.

Front Line Defenders expresses its grave concern at the actions taken against Amnesty International India which it deems to be solely motivated by the human rights work of the organisation and its members.