LONDON - An alliance of international human rights and citizen action groups has accused Vladimir V. Putin of cracking down on Russia's civil society since he returned to office as president in May.
Eight organizations, including Human Rights Watch, Amnesty, and the corruption watchdog Transparency International, urged the European Union to raise their concerns at a summit meeting with the Russians this week.
They cited current and pending legislation that they said called into question Russia's relationship with fellow European states and with the European Court of Human Rights.
“Since Putin's return to the presidency in May, Russia's Parliament has adopted a series of laws that imposed new restrictions on public assemblies and raised financial sanctions for violations to the level of criminal fines, re-criminalized li bel, and imposed new restrictions on Internet content,†according to Human Rights Watch.
The rights groups said that new laws branded nonprofit groups that received money from abroad “foreign agents,†while a new, broader definition of treason could potentially criminalize human rights and political activism.
Fines of up to $32,000 against those taking part in protests deemed illegal had had a “chilling effect on the right to peaceful assembly.†Other new measures threatened to control the Internet and curb free speech, according to the rights groups.
And a proposed law aimed at anyone “promoting†homosexuality to people under 18 was condemned as homophobic by Human Rights Watch.
Looking to the regular summit meeting of Russia and the European Union opening in Brussels on Thursday, Hugh Williamson, the Human Rights Watch director for Europe said, “The E.U. should convey a clear sense of alarm at the crackdown of the past six months on Russia's vibrant civil society.
“And the E.U. should press the Russian leadership to stop trying to choke off free speech and assembly and any sign of dissent.â€
The joint appeal comes as Washington and Moscow are embroiled in a controversy over a new U.S. law that would punish alleged Russian human rights abusers.
The law, signed by President Barack Obama last week, bars those accused of rights abuses from traveling to the United States and from owning real estate or other assets in the country.
As my colleagues David M. Herszenhorn and Andrew Roth wrote this week, “It infuriated Russian officials, including President Vladimir V. Putin, who pledged to retali ate.†Russian lawmakers on Wednesday were considering a ban on adoptions of Russian children by American citizens.
How far the European Union can or will seek to go in reversing Russia's alleged bad behavior is a moot point. Friday's summit is expected to focus on economic issues rather than human rights.
European officials have nevertheless spoken out on Russia in terms not that different from the rights groups.
Catherine Ashton, the Union's foreign affairs chief, has said that since May, “we have been seeing less and less dialogue and openness on the side of the authorities, and rather more intolerance of any expression of dissenting views.â€
In a speech to the European Parliament in September, she said, “Instead of stronger safeguards for the e xercise of fundamental rights and freedoms, we have seen a string of measures all chipping away at them.â€
International and domestic criticism has thrown at least some Russian officials on the defensive.
In a televised interview this month, Prime Minister Dmitri A. Medvedev, denied that the Kremlin had begun “tightening the screws†since Mr. Putin replaced him as president.
“I don't consider these laws reactionary,†he said of the contentious legislation. “If they are wrong, if they hurt citizens' interests, then they have to be corrected. But that's not the case yet.â€
