UN expert warns of severe decline in human rights and civic freedoms in Russia

Katzarova pointed to recent smear campaigns in pro-government media against prominent human rights lawyers, including Olga Sadovskaya, head of Crew Against Torture, and Elena Shakhova, head of Citizens Watch.

A United Nations human rights expert has warned that Russia is experiencing a dramatic deterioration in human rights, marked by intensified attacks on human rights defenders, lawyers, journalists and anti-war voices, reflecting what she described as a deeply insecure state fearful of accountability.

Mariana Katzarova, the UN Special Rapporteur on the situation of human rights in the Russian Federation, said Russian authorities have significantly escalated their assault on civic freedoms in recent weeks, dismantling what little remains of independent civil society in the country.

“Russian authorities have accelerated their assault on civic freedoms with the dismantling of what remains of independent civil society in the country over recent weeks, resulting in a seismic decline of the human rights situation,” Katzarova said.

She highlighted the expanding use of Russia’s “undesirable organisations” law as one of the most alarming developments. Under this framework, authorities last week designated several long-standing civil society organisations as “undesirable,” adding them to a growing list of banned entities that already includes international organisations such as Human Rights Watch and the International Federation for Human Rights (FIDH).

Russian legislation criminalises any form of engagement with organisations labelled “undesirable,” exposing individuals to penalties of up to six years in prison. To date, more than 280 organisations have received this designation, while over 1,100 organisations and individuals have been branded as “foreign agents.”

“These colossal numbers reflect a deliberate and calculated strategy to isolate the Russian population from independent information, legal assistance and peaceful activism,” the Special Rapporteur said.

The latest designations come amid a rapidly shrinking civic space in which nearly all independent voices have been targeted. Katzarova pointed to recent smear campaigns in pro-government media against prominent human rights lawyers, including Olga Sadovskaya, head of Crew Against Torture, and Elena Shakhova, head of Citizens Watch. These attacks, she said, are part of a broader effort to discredit and intimidate leading human rights defenders.

On 28 October, Shakhova was formally charged with “discrediting the Russian army” in connection with Citizens Watch’s monitoring of trials involving anti-war activists. Katzarova said the case exemplifies how authorities are weaponising vague and overly broad laws to suppress legitimate human rights work.

She also expressed grave concern over recent court decisions. On 27 November, Russia’s Military Court of Appeal upheld the conviction of Memorial leader Sergey Davidis, who was sentenced under “justification of terrorism” provisions for reposting a Memorial publication that recognised members of Ukraine’s Azov battalion as political prisoners. On the same day, the Russian Supreme Court designated the Anti-Corruption Foundation founded by late opposition leader Alexey Navalny as a “terrorist organisation.”

“Such blatant abuse of counter-terrorism legislation to criminalise peaceful expression and anti-war positions is profoundly alarming,” Katzarova said. “Labelling human rights defenders as ‘extremists’ or ‘terrorists’ has a devastating and chilling effect on civic space.”

The Special Rapporteur urged the Russian Government to immediately implement the recommendations outlined in her reports submitted to the UN in September and October 2025, which call for an end to politically motivated prosecutions, the repeal of repressive legislation and the protection of fundamental freedoms.

“Repression cannot erase the work of human rights defenders – they cannot be silenced,” Katzarova said. “Instead, repression exposes the profound insecurity of a Government that fears scrutiny, transparency and accountability.”