By Steve Rosenberg, BBC News, Moscow, Dec. 22, 2005
Russian MPs have approved a controversial bill that would tighten state
control over non-governmental organisations (NGOs).
The lower house, the Duma, passed the bill in the second of the
three readings it needs to become law. The authorities argue the
changes are necessary to ensure the security of the Russian state. The
bill has been criticised by human rights groups and Western governments
as a threat to civil society.
‘Foreign spies’
It is one of the most controversial bills to be debated in the Russian
parliament since President Vladimir Putin came to power. There was
little doubt that it would pass its second reading. Russia’s parliament
is dominated by pro-Kremlin MPs and it is the
Kremlin which has been leading the call for tighter controls over the
activities and finances of non-governmental organisations. If adopted,
the new legislation would provide just that, making Russian and Western
NGOs more accountable to the state.
The authorities argue that NGOs are being used by Western governments
and foreign spies to fan revolution across the former Soviet Union. But
human rights groups accused the Kremlin of trying to strangle civil
society and of legislating to extend its own power. There has been
widespread criticism of the draft law in Russia and
abroad, including from the US Congress and the Council of Europe.
Earlier this month, President Putin proposed a number
of changes, but prominent Russian NGOs have complained that even in its
revised form, the bill would severely hamper their activities and
represents a danger to democracy.
In contrast to the critical tone of the above article, the lead-in in the Wall Street Journal is: Russian lawmakers agreed, at Putin’s behest, to soften much-criticized curbs on foreign funding of charities and nongovernmental rights groups.