Russia Forces Closed Human Rights Organisation

Moscow's Helsinki Group (MHG) was founded in 1976 and reports each year on the human rights situation in Russia.

However, authorities have now said that this organisation does not have the necessary registration.

This decision comes after the Ministry of Justice in Russia has filed a lawsuit demanding the group's closure in December last year.

Russian institutions have declared that this organisation is open and registered to report human rights to the Russian capital alone and not to other parts of the country.

MHG has always worked with a broader scope of human rights reporting. The group called the move “procedure” at the time and said it would continue to function “irrespective of the authorities' wishes”.

In a statement Wednesday, MHG reported that its chairman told Justice Ministry judges and representatives that they were committing a huge sin” by closing it.

You're destroying human rights reporting. The group's liquidation is a serious blow to human rights not only in Russia, but also in the world”, said Valery Borsov, chairman of the MHG.

It is not the first time MHG has been forced to discontinue its activity. This had happened even in 1970, before the then government sent its members to prison or into exile.

The group was resurrected in the early 1990s after the collapse of the Soviet Union, the BBC writes.