Click to expand Image A man walks inside an office of the human rights group Memorial in Moscow, Russia, December 29, 2021. © REUTERS/Evgenia Novozhenina (Berlin) – The Russian Supreme Court on April 9, 2026, designated “International Public Movement Memorial” as an “extremist” organization in a dramatic escalation of the Kremlin’s efforts to suppress human rights work, Human Rights Watch said today. The sweeping “extremist” designation entails a ban on engaging in any of Memorial organizations’ activities under the threat of lengthy prison sentences. Memorial is one of Russia’s oldest and most respected rights groups. In 2022, it became a Nobel Peace Prize laureate for its “outstanding effort to document war crimes, human rights abuses and the abuse of power.” Numerous independent Memorial organizations in Russia and abroad also conduct historical research and document Soviet-era repression and the contemporary human rights crackdown.“Russian authorities should lift this punitive designation on Memorial and support civil society, not seek to dismantle it,” said Hugh Williamson, Europe and Central Asia director at Human Rights Watch.The Justice Ministry filed the lawsuit seeking to designate Memorial “extremist” on March 27. The sham process concluded in one hearing, behind closed doors, and the case file is classified “top secret.” The court did not allow Memorial’s attorneys to participate in the proceedings. Memorial Human Rights Defence Center and Memorial’s political prisoners project denounced the verdict as “unlawful and unfounded” and said they would continue their work.In a news release, the Supreme Court called Memorial’s activities “vocally anti-Russian, aimed at destroying the foundations of Russian statehood, undermining territorial integrity, and eroding historical, cultural, spiritual, and moral values.” The Justice Ministry claimed that Memorial “disregards” court rulings by recognizing some individuals convicted of participation in terrorist organizations as political prisoners. Memorial’s political prisoners project currently lists 1,504 people, with over 5,000 more considered imprisoned unlawfully on apparent political motives. The Justice Ministry also said it had identified 196 “active participants” in the movement. Participating in or financing an extremist organization is punishable by up to 12 years in prison. Symbols of “extremist” organizations are banned, and displaying them is punishable with up to 15 days in detention for the first offense and up to four years in prison for a repeat offense. The authorities may include individuals suspected of involvement with an extremist organization in the countrywide “list of extremists” and freeze their bank accounts.In 2021, Russian authorities liquidated two legal entities, Memorial International and Memorial Human Rights Center, on bogus and politically motivated charges of repeatedly violating Russia’s toxic “foreign agents” legislation. The European Court of Human Rights ruled in 2022 that Russia had violated the right to association in respect of the prosecution and dissolution of Memorial organizations under these laws. In 2025, the Justice Ministry also designated dozens of Memorial’s members “foreign agents” in their personal capacity, which entails onerous and burdensome labeling and reporting requirements and prosecution for supposed violations. On February 9, 2026, the Prosecutor General’s Office also designated Zukunft Memorial and International Memorial Association as “undesirable,” banning them in Russia under threat of prosecution for anyone who engages in their activities in Russia or overseas.In recent years, Russian authorities have intensified their efforts to enforce so-called traditional values, stifle dissent, and hinder human rights work, using their extensive toolbox of repressive legislation, including laws on combating extremism. Authorities banned many prominent human rights groups, such as Human Rights House Foundation, Amnesty International, Human Rights Watch, European Prison Litigation Network, Fédération internationale pour les droits humains (FIDH) and Reporters without Borders.United Nations experts called the Justice Ministry’s lawsuit “a deliberate and calculated strategy to spread fear among the Russian people and deprive them from independent information, human rights defense, advocacy and legal assistance.”“By designating Memorial ‘extremist,’ Russian authorities essentially outlaw human rights work,” Williamson said. “This is yet another low blow in the Kremlin’s staggering assault on civil society. Memorial and other Russian rights groups now need the support of the international community more than ever.”