Putin changed the composition of the Human Rights Council – Kommersant

Russian President Vladimir Putin signed decree on amendments to the composition of the Presidential Human Rights Council (HRC). In particular, lawyers Shota Gorgadze and Mara Polyakova, as well as the head of the “Peacekeeping Mission named after. General Lebed” Alexander Mukomolov.

From the text of the document it follows that the HRC included:

• the head of the Russian anti-globalization movement, Alexander Ionov, according to whose statements the media in Russia have repeatedly recognized as foreign agents;
• President of the charitable foundation “Food Bank “Rus”” Yulia Nazarova;
• Director of the non-profit organization promoting the social integration of people with disabilities “Space of Equal Opportunities” Igor Novikov;
• General Director of the non-profit organization “Platform for working with appeals from entrepreneurs” Elina Sidorenko;
• senior researcher at the Institute of Russian History of the Russian Academy of Sciences Sergei Solovyov.

Novaya Gazeta columnist Leonid Nikitinsky and vice-president of the Moscow Bar Association Henry Reznik were also excluded from the HRC. Mr. Nikitinsky stated about leaving the HRC due to “inconsistency of what is happening with human rights” back in March 2022. Mr. Reznik left HRC in December 2022, he did not explain the reasons for the decision. In addition, the former Minister of Economy of the Russian Federation and honorary scientific director of the Higher School of Economics, Evgeniy Yasin, who died in September 2023, was formally excluded from the human rights council.

In the text of the decree approving the composition of the HRC, in particular, the position of Sergei Tsyplenkov was changed. Previously, he was represented at the Human Rights Council as the executive director of the branch of the international non-governmental non-profit organization Greenpeace Council (recognized as undesirable in the Russian Federation). The position is now defined as “ecologist”.

Erdni Kagaltynov