Sentencing of M. Laurent Vinatier by the Russian authorities (14 Oct. 2024)

Laurent Vinatier, a French citizen, has just been handed a three-year prison sentence for not being registered on the “foreign agents” register. This is an extremely harsh sentence. The “foreign agents” legislation contributes to a systematic violation of fundamental freedoms in Russia, such as freedom of association, freedom of opinion and freedom of expression. It is helping to abolish the last spaces of freedom that were available to civil society, the independent media and political (…)