Geneva (dpa) – According to a UN report, human rights are increasingly being disregarded in Russia. “There is now a structural, state-sponsored system of human rights violations,” reports Mariana Katzarova. The Bulgarian was appointed by the UN Human Rights Council in 2023 as special rapporteur on the situation in Russia. The system is designed to suppress civil society and political opposition, her report says.
Torture in custody
Critics of the Russian war against Ukraine and dissidents are being persecuted more and more harshly. Katzarova put the number of convicted political prisoners at at least 1,372. These human rights defenders, journalists and war critics were accused on flimsy grounds and sentenced to long prison terms.
They experienced torture in custody. Political prisoners were held in solitary confinement cells, others were forcibly placed in psychiatric clinics. These are only those known to Katzarova. The true number may be higher, said one employee.
Russia and the “foreign agents”
More and more people are being classified as “foreign agents” – which means that, from the Russian perspective, they are supported or influenced from abroad. This significantly limits their work opportunities and forces many to give up. The law on this dates back to 2012.
As of August 16, 846 individuals and organizations had been labeled as foreign agents, most of them since the beginning of Russia’s war of aggression against Ukraine. These include nearly 200 media organizations and more than 100 journalists. From 2012 to March 2022, only 336 had been classified as “foreign agents.”
German ambassador speaks of barbarism
“President Vladimir Putin’s regime has turned Russia into a prison for its own citizens,” said the German ambassador in Geneva, Katharina Stasch. “The report of the special rapporteur makes it clear: opposition members, journalists and dissidents are arbitrarily detained and mistreated in order to stifle any form of free expression. This barbarism must finally come to an end.”
Russia refuses to cooperate with her, Katzarova said.
© dpa-infocom, dpa:240916-930-234320/1
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