The International Federation for Human Rights (FIDH), one of the world’s oldest human rights movements comprising of 196 civil society organizations, has been declared “undesirable” by the Russian Federation. The undersigned FIDH member organizations strongly condemn this designation, which bans FIDH from undertaking any activities in Russia and criminalises any cooperation with the Federation by a Russian national or organization.
Paris 3 December 2025. The designation was made by the Prosecutor General of Russia on 13 November, and on 1 December, Russia’s Ministry of Justice included FIDH in its register of “undesirable organizations”, which currently contains 281 entities.
“This ignoble move not only further threatens and endangers our Russian members, partners, their staff, and ordinary Russian citizens supporting our human rights work. It also sends a clear message that Russia is no friend of the global human rights movement.” said Alexis Deswaef, FIDH President “This designation of FIDH as an ‘undesirable organization’ demonstrates the importance of our commitment to supporting those who defend human rights, whether in Russia or in exile. FIDH will continue to pursue this commitment more than ever.”
“We are not surprised by the designation,” remarked Ilya Nuzov, Head of FIDH’s Eastern Europe and Central Asia Desk, “FIDH has repeatedly denounced Russia, which has assembled and applied an arsenal of repressive measures that have been gradually used to destroy its vibrant civil society, among others by restricting its ability to cooperate with international partners. In the end, it is ordinary Russians who now remain without any protection from government overreach and abuse.”
Founded in 1922, FIDH has undertaken activities to further human rights in Russia with its local members since the 1990s. While the reasons for the designation are not specified, FIDH has been particularly critical of systemic impunity for grave violations of human rights and international humanitarian law Russia has committed both domestically and abroad, including in Chechnya, Georgia and Ukraine. It has tracked and consistently challenged Russia’s crackdown on freedoms of expression, assembly and association and discriminatory persecution of vulnerable groups, like women and minorities.
Under the “undesirable organisations” law, adopted in 2015 and further tightened in 2021 and 2024, the Prosecutor General’s Office has the power to declare as “undesirable” any foreign or international organisation that is deemed “a threat to the foundations of the constitutional order of the Russian Federation, the defense capability of the country or the security of the state”.
Concretely, “undesirable organisations” are banned from engaging in any activities inside Russia, including the publication or dissemination of any information, carrying out financial transactions, and providing financial or other assistance to local organisations and individuals. The “participation in the activities” of an “undesirable” organisation is subject to administrative and criminal liability, including up to four years of imprisonment. Any Russian citizen or organisation cooperating with an “undesirable organisation”, even if residing outside Russia, faces administrative penalties and, in the case of individuals, criminal liability. In practice, the vague wording of the law has led to the punishment of individuals simply for reposting information disseminated by an “undesirable organisation” on social media platforms, even if the original posts predated the organisation’s designation as “undesirable”.
