Case History: Valentina Cherevatenko

On 24 July 2017, human rights defender Valentina Cherevatenko received a letter from the General Prosecutor’s office informing her that the criminal case against her under Article 330.1 of the Criminal Code for “malicious evasion of duties imposed by the law on non-profit organisations performing the functions of a foreign agent” was closed.  Valentina Cherevatenko was the first human rights defender to be prosecuted under this article for the alleged violation of the ‘Foreign Agents Law’.

Valentina Cherevatenko is the Chair of the Coordination Council of the Women of the Don Union and Chair of the Board of the Women of the Don Foundation for Civil Society Development. The Women of the Don Union works on the rights of women in the North Caucasus including on issues of violence against women, gender discrimination and on peace building initiatives. The Union works to “promote dialogue and tolerance between different sectors of society” and also provides regional clinics on social and legal issues.

On 24 July 2017, Valentina Cherevatenko received a letter from the General Prosecutor’s office informing her that the criminal case against her initiated under Article 330.1 of the Criminal Code for “malicious evasion of duties imposed by the law on non-profit organisations performing the functions of a foreign agent” was closed. The charges were dropped on 19 June 2017 for "absence of the event of a crime". On 2 June 2017, the Investigative Committee of the city of Rostov-on-Don brought charges against the human rights defender under Article 330.1 of the Criminal Code. This was the first case of criminal prosecution of a human rights defender under this article for the alleged violation of the ‘Foreign Agents Law’.

The so-called ’Foreign Agents’ Law’, which was introduced on 21 November 2012, requires non-governmental organisations that conduct ‘political activities’ and receive funding from abroad to register with the Ministry of Justice as ‘foreign agents.’ The definition of ‘political activities’, in accordance with an amendment accepted by the Russian Parliament in May 2016, includes almost any research or advocacy that criticises or challenges the Russian government or its policies. The law is used by Russian authorities to discredit, penalise, or impede the work of non-governmental organisations, especially those working to promote or protect human rights, observe elections, and fight for transparency of the state authorities.

Front Line Defenders has previously reported on the application of the ‘Foreign Agents Law’ to hinder the legitimate and peaceful work of human rights organizations. On 21 February 2017, the SOVA Centre for Information and Analysis (SOVA Centre), a Moscow-based think tank that promotes human rights and liberal democracy through monitoring, advocacy and conducting research, was sentenced to a fine of 300,000 Russian rubles (approximately €4,900) on a charge of neglecting to register as a 'foreign agent' with the Ministry of Justice.

While Front Line Defenders welcomes the closing of the criminal case against Valentina Cherevatenko, it condemns the ongoing use of the ‘Foreign Agents Law’ to restrict and hinder the legitimate activities of human rights defenders and their organisations in Russia.

On 27 June 2016, human rights defender Ms Valentina Cherevatenko received a copy of the decision on the opening of a criminal case against her under Article 330.1 of the Criminal Code for alleged “malicious evasion of duties imposed by the law on non-profit organisations performing the functions of a foreign agent”. This is the first case of the criminal prosecution of a human rights defender under this article for the alleged violation of the Foreign Agent Law, adopted in Russia in 2012. 

Valentina Cherevatenko is the Chair of the Coordination Council of the Women of the Don Union and Chair of the Board of the Women of the Don Foundation for Civil Society Development. The Women of the Don Union, which has goals identical to those of the Foundation, works on the peace building initiatives in the North Caucasus, promoting “dialogue and tolerance between different sectors of society” and organising clinics on social and legal issues. It is also heavily involved in the protection of the women's rights in the region, concentrating in its work on the issues of violence against women and gender discrimination.

On 27 June 2016, Valentina Cherevatenko received a copy of the decision on the opening of a criminal case against her under Article 330.1 of the Criminal Code for alleged “malicious evasion of duties imposed by the law on non-profit organisations performing the functions of a foreign agent”. In particular, the human rights defender is suspected of having criminal intent to violate the Foreign Agent Law when she established the Women of the Don Foundation in August 2013. It is stated in the decision that Valentina Cherevatenko knew about the involvement of the Foundation in  “political activity” and that it was receiving foreign funding, but did not apply for the registration of the organisation as a “foreign agent”. The human rights defender is planning to appeal the decision. If convicted, she will face up to two years' imprisonment.

On 24 June 2016, the office of the Women of the Don Union and Foundation located in Novocherkassk was searched by the Federal Security Service and police officers upon presentation of a court order. The officers confiscated all the computers of the organisations, their accounting records and archives with information about projects. Valentina Cherevatenko herself was not present during the search, as she had neither been informed about the opening of a criminal case against her, nor about the forthcoming search of the office. In view of this, the staff members of the organisations had to invite her lawyer to observe the search and represent the interests of the human rights defender. A month earlier, on 10 and 6 May 2016, Valentina Cherevatenko was also interrogated at the 7th Investigation Department in Rostov-on-Don as part of a preliminary inquiry under Article 330.1 of the Criminal Code.

The Women of the Don Foundation was established in August 2013 with goals identical to those of the Women of the Don Union, which earlier that year had been prohibited by the Prosecutor's Office from undertaking projects in regions other than Rostov where it was based. Since the Union primarily conducted its activities in the conflict areas located outside of the Rostov region, for instance in the North Caucasus, such a prohibition meant a de facto termination of its work. The creation of the Foundation allowed to continue the Union's work without any territorial limitation.    

In 2014 the Women of the Don Union was listed as a “foreign agent”. A year later the Foundation was assigned the same status by the Ministry of Justice and added to the register. Both organisations however refused to accept this label and challenged their listing in the register and related fines, in civil and administrative proceedings. On 29 February 2016, the Ministry removed the Women of Don Union from the register, as the organisation was no longer carrying out the “functions of a “foreign agent”. However, the appeal of the Women of the Don Foundation is still pending. Despite the fact that the Foundation's listing as a “foreign agent” might still be found unlawful by the court, its Chair Valentina Cherevatenko is already criminally prosecuted for not voluntarily filing an application to register it as such.  

According to the widely criticised Federal Law №121-FZ “On Introducing Changes to Certain Pieces of Legislation of the Russian Federation as Regards Regulation of Activities of Non-Commercial Organisations Performing the Functions of Foreign Agents”, otherwise known as the "Foreign Agent law", any NGO that receives funding from abroad must register as a “foreign agent” if it engages in any kind of “political activity”, including advocacy and human rights work. The Criminal Code was also amended with article 330.1 which states that "malicious evasion of the duty to file the documents required for inclusion in the register of non-profit organisations performing the functions of a foreign agent" can be punishable with up to two years' imprisonment. It has been argued by many Russian lawyers that the latter provision lost its legal meaning after the Ministry of Justice had been empowered to list organisations as “foreign agents” on the basis of its own decisions.

Front Line Defenders strongly condemns the opening of a criminal case against human rights defender Valentina Cherevatenko which it believes to be directly linked to her peaceful and legitimate work on peace building initiatives and women's rights in Russia. Front Line Defenders reiterates its concern about the enactment of the Federal Law №121-FZ, “On Introducing Changes to Certain Pieces of Legislation of the Russian Federation as Regards Regulation of Activities of Non-Commercial Organisations Performing the Functions of Foreign Agents” and the significant negative influence that this law has on the work of human rights defenders in Russia.

Front Line Defenders urges the authorities in Russia to:

1. Immediately cease all further judicial harassment of Valentina Cherevatenko and close the criminal case that has been opened against her, as Front Line Defenders believes that the human rights defender is being targeted solely because of her legitimate work in defence of human rights;

2. Return all the documents and equipment confiscated during the search in the office of the human rights organisations Women of the Don Union and Foundation, as they are manifestly not linked to any criminal activity;

3. Repeal the Federal Law №121-FZ, “On Introducing Changes to Certain Pieces of Legislation of the Russian Federation as Regards Regulation of Activities of Non-Commercial Organisations Performing the Functions of Foreign Agents” and in the meanwhile, remove the Women of the Don Foundation from the “Foreign Agents” list;

4. Guarantee in all circumstances that all human rights defenders in Russia are able to carry out their legitimate human rights activities without fear of reprisals and free of all restrictions.