What happens to Russia’s political prisoners now that OVD-Info, a leading human rights group, has been declared ‘extremist’?
The independent human rights project OVD-Info has been added to the registry of terrorists and extremists managed by Rosfinmonitoring, Russia’s financial intelligence agency — along with Memorial and dozens of organizations affiliated with it. The cultural venue Revolt Center and the museum Perm-36
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Meet Russia’s latest ‘extremists’
The independent human rights project OVD-Info has been added to the registry of terrorists and extremists managed by Rosfinmonitoring, Russia’s financial intelligence agency — along with Memorial and dozens of organizations affiliated with it. The cultural venue Revolt Center and the museum Perm-36 were also added to the list. Why these institutions — and OVD-Info — were included in the registry is unclear. But anyone who’s supported them now faces legal jeopardy.
How did OVD-Info end up in this registry?
Under Russian law, before an organization can be added to Rosfinmonitoring’s lists, a court must first declare it extremist, and that ruling must take effect. Only then can the registry be updated.
In April, Russia’s Supreme Court — acting on a lawsuit filed by the Justice Ministry — declared Memorial and its structural subdivisions extremist. The trial was held behind closed doors, so it is impossible to say with certainty what was designated a “structural subdivision.” Legally, no organization called “Memorial” exists; all affiliated projects are registered in different countries and under different legal entities.
The Russian authorities apparently also linked OVD-Info, Revolt Center, and Perm-36 to Memorial. At any rate, there is no record of separate court proceedings having been held against these organizations.
OVD-Info is, in fact, an independent project. It was founded in December 2011, when Daniil Beilinson and Grigory Okhotin began searching police precincts for protesters in custody, with more and more volunteers joining them as time went on. After 2013, the Memorial Human Rights Center served as the project’s general partner. Here is how OVD-Info described that arrangement on its own website:
Small projects that are unable to accept donations directly turn to larger nonprofit organizations whose charters and values do not conflict with their own work and values.
But OVD-Info was not part of Memorial’s organizational structure.
What OVD-Info’s new status means for the people it helps
OVD-Info runs a wide range of human rights projects:
From the beginning, the group’s core work has been free assistance for those facing political persecution: defense attorneys and legal professionals working with OVD-Info have represented such people in court and offered legal advice. The project has also supplied political prisoners with basic necessities, food, and medical care.
Through a service called Vestochka (“Little Message”), thousands of people sent letters to political prisoners — free of charge and anonymously. For many people serving sentences — especially those without a media presence — such letters were among the few remaining ways to stay connected to the outside world.
The Dyatel (“Woodpecker”) platform tracked rights violations against political prisoners and organized mass complaint filings to Russia’s Investigative Committee, the Prosecutor General’s Office, the Federal Prison Service, and other agencies. This helped, for instance, to secure surgery for political prisoner Igor Baryshnikov.
When mass protests were still possible in Russia, OVD-Info’s guides helped thousands of demonstrators know their rights during arrests and detentions.
The project also conducts extensive research on how Russia’s system of political persecution is evolving — research that has put names to hundreds of people convicted for their views.
A hotline and Telegram bot for people whose rights are being violated;
“Byuro Peredach” (Package Bureau): assistance with sending packages to political prisoners;
“Vestochka” (Little Message): a service for sending letters to political prisoners;
“Drozd” (Thrush): a bot for people facing political persecution, where users can look up court dates and details on specific defendants in politically motivated cases;
“Dyatel” (Woodpecker): a platform for documenting rights violations against political prisoners and filing complaints;
“The Baymak Case” (a group trial of Bashkir activists): a monthly fundraising campaign raising 1.5 million rubles for the defense of 20 defendants;
Guides for navigating the Russian legal system across a wide range of circumstances;
“Inoteka”: tracking the prosecution of “foreign agents” and “undesirable” organizations;
“Slovar” (Dictionary): a reference guide to the terms and concepts people encounter when dealing with Russia’s legal system;
Antiwar: research on the persecution of people for anti-war views;
And other data-driven research on political persecution in Russia.
It is not yet known what will happen to each part of this critically important work in Russia today. Human rights groups are used to adapting to constantly changing circumstances. But the work will undoubtedly become harder, and not all the listed projects will survive.
What becomes harder exactly? And what awaits the people who worked with or supported OVD-Info?
An extremist designation triggers criminal liability not only for those directly connected to OVD-Info — employees and listed founders — but potentially for anyone who “participated” in the activities of such an organization, under the logic applied by Russian authorities. That means donations to OVD-Info count as criminal acts, as do consultations provided to the project or through its initiatives, any form of assistance (a term the law does not define), and even a supportive comment on social media. Thousands of people are at risk.
Here are the penalties OVD-Info supporters now face under Russia’s extremism laws after the project was added to Rosfinmonitoring’s list:
Article 282.2, Part 1 of the Russian Criminal Code — organizing the activities of an extremist organization, punishable by up to 10 years in prison. This applies to people who lead the organization, make key decisions, coordinate its work, or manage its projects.
Article 282.2, Part 1.1 — involving, recruiting, or enlisting someone into an extremist organization, punishable by up to eight years in prison. This could apply to anyone who urged others to donate to or participate in OVD-Info projects, including by posting about it on social media.
Article 282.2, Part 2 — participation in the activities of an extremist organization, punishable by up to six years in prison. This is the vaguest category. It could be applied to people who, after the organization was declared extremist, continue to support its projects, share its materials, or otherwise assist.
Article 280 — public calls for extremist activity, punishable by up to five years in prison. This could affect anyone who publicly urged others to support OVD-Info.
Article 282.3 — financing extremist activity, punishable by up to six years in prison. This could be used against those who donated to the organization or provided it with financial services.
And who exactly is at risk?
At greatest risk are people who donated to the project from inside Russia or may travel there in the future, along with those who openly worked with it — lawyers, legal professionals, and volunteers. People who actively supported OVD-Info on social media could also attract the attention of law enforcement.
Under Russian law, financial contributions, “informational support,” and participation in OVD-Info’s activities conducted before the organization’s formal extremist designation do not constitute criminal offenses or administrative violations.
Hundreds of political prisoners remain incarcerated in Russia, with hundreds more still in court. Now, any involvement in defending those people — if it takes place under the OVD-Info brand, or if law enforcement can establish a connection to the project — could result in criminal prosecution.
Are these risks new?
Yes, because OVD-Info didn’t have any special status that exposed its partners to criminal charges, even though it was labeled a “foreign agent” in September 2021. That label primarily creates bureaucratic headaches and prosecution risks for the “foreign agent” itself. Cooperating with OVD-Info and donating money to it remained legal, until now.
In late November 2025, however, Russian payment platforms cut off the project from their systems, depriving it of its main source of support — recurring donations from 12,000 people. OVD-Info later clawed back roughly half of its donor base but could no longer count on its previous level of financial support. Now that it has been declared “extremist,” raising donations becomes an even greater challenge.
What Russia’s ‘extremist’ designation means in practice, and what people can do about it
If you live in Russia, travel there regularly, plan to visit in the future, or cannot be certain that you won’t, you should take into account the new risks tied to any public or private expression of support for OVD-Info.
For safety, people in this situation should:
Not send money to OVD-Info, to affiliated projects, or to anyone who could be seen as a representative of the organization — even from foreign bankcards;
Not participate in the organization’s projects, campaigns, events, or other initiatives, including online formats such as collective complaint filings about rights violations;
Not publish or share OVD-Info materials, including guides and advisories for detained people;
Not post links to OVD-Info resources where they can be publicly seen;
Not use the organization’s symbols or logos in posts, profile headers, or public spaces;
Exercise caution with likes, reposts, and comments that could be read as support for the organization;
Avoid public statements that could be seen as supporting or promoting OVD-Info’s activities.
It also makes sense to review your old social media posts for any links, symbols, or other content related to the project. In theory, anything posted before April 9 — the presumed date of the hearing where OVD-Info was labeled extremist — should be safe. But how Russian courts apply extremism laws remains highly unpredictable, so it’s safest to be as cautious as possible.
Can you still help?
If you don’t plan to travel to Russia, you can still support the project by sharing information about it or making a donation. The team has already published a statement saying it will continue its work. You can make a donation at this hyperlink.
Where do Russians facing political persecution turn now for legal help?
First, we don’t yet know what OVD-Info will do with its legal aid project for political prisoners. It’s quite possible the organization will offer some alternative to people who had been counting on its support. Meduza will track OVD-Info’s statements and will report on whatever decision the team makes.
Second, other initiatives providing this kind of assistance continue to operate in Russia.
For instance, you can reach out to the human rights project First Department.
Politician and blogger Maxim Katz also runs a legal aid project for people persecuted by the Russian government on political grounds. It is called Priemnaya (Reception Office).
