The European Court of Human Rights ruled that the Russian authorities violated the rights of 32 people in the case 'Zakharov and others v. Russia', who were recognized as 'foreign agents', and ordered to pay each 10,250 euros, the decision is published on the ECHR website.
The case is named after investigative journalist Andrey Zakharov, the list also includes Maxim Galkin, Andrey Makarevich, Evgenia Albats, Boris Zimin, Tamara Eidelman, Mikhail Shats* and Tatyana Lazareva**, Ivan Zhdanov** and Leonid Volkov, Michael Naki*, Leonid Gozman, Valery Solovey*, Yulia Latynina* and others.
The court's decision states that the term 'foreign agent' 'is stigmatizing and misleading, as it implies agency relationships without any evidence of foreign control or guidance'. The requirements of the Russian law on 'foreign agents' and the repressive measures it establishes were not justified by necessity and are excessive.
The Russian authorities refuse to comply with ECHR decisions made after March 2022, when Russia was excluded from the Council of Europe. The court insists that the Russian authorities are obliged to comply with all its decisions on complaints filed before mid-September 2022. But there is no mechanism to force Russia to pay compensations.
* Recognized in Russia as 'foreign agents'.
** Recognized in Russia as 'foreign agents', included in the list of 'terrorists and extremists'.