MOSCOW, January 1 (Itar-Tass) —— The Dima Yakovlev law – Russia’s response to the US Magnitsky Act – comes into force on Tuesday.
Russia’s President Vladimir Putin signed the law on December 28.
The federal law introduces measures to persons involved in violation of basic human rights and freedoms, and rights and freedoms of citizens of the Russian Federation.
The law envisages the following measures:
- the ban for the mentioned below US citizens to enter the territory of the Russian Federation;
- for US citizens involved in the violation of the fundamental human rights and freedoms;
- for US citizens, who committed the crimes against Russian citizens, who are staying abroad or are involved in committing these crimes;
- for US citizens vested with the state powers and capable by their actions (negligence) to relieve from responsibility people, who committed the crimes against Russian citizens or involved in committing these crimes;
- for US citizens involved in the kidnapping and the illegal deprivation of freedom of Russian citizens;
- for US citizens, who passed ungrounded and biased verdicts against Russian citizens;
- for US citizens, who conducted the biased legal prosecution of Russian citizens;
- for US citizens, who took ungrounded decisions, which violated the rights and legitimate interests of Russian citizens and organizations;
- the arrest on the territory of the Russian Federation of financial and other assets of US citizens, who are banned the entry in the Russian Federation, and the ban on any deals with property and investments of these citizens.
The list of US citizens, who are banned the entry in the Russian Federation, is being maintained by the federal body of the executive authorities, which perform the functions in Russian international relations.
Against the US citizens, who were put on the list, the Russian Federation imposes a ban on property possession, which is located in the Russian Federation; suspends the activities of legal entities, which are under control of these US citizens in the Russian Federation; suspends the powers (the membership) in the boards of directors, other management bodies of the organizations, which are registered in the Russian Federation.
The federal law holds that the appropriate federal body of executive authorities in the registration of non-profit organizations suspends the activities of the non-profit organizations, which are engaged in political activities in the Russian Federation receive gratis the monetary funds and other property from US citizens (organizations) or are implementing in the Russian Federation the projects, programs or carry out other activities, which pose a threat to the interests of the Russian Federation.
Meanwhile, under the federal law, a Russian citizen, who has the US citizenship, cannot be a member or the chief of a non-profit organization, its division or subdivision of an international or foreign non-profit organization (branch, subsidiary or an office), which are participating in the political activities in the Russian Federation. The violation of this ban entails that the appropriate federal body of executive authorities in the registration of non-profit organizations suspends the activities of a non-profit organization (its subdivision) or the court arrest of the property of this organization (its subdivision).
The organizations, the activities of which are suspended, at the request of the appropriate federal body of executive authorities in the registration of non-profit organizations, are put on the list of these organizations that is maintained by the federal body of executive authorities, which perform the functions in international relations of the Russian Federation.
The federal law also bans the adoption of children, who are Russian citizens, by US citizens, as well as the activities of agencies and organizations in Russia in order to choose and pass for adoption Russian citizens to US citizens, who intend to adopt the foresaid children.
Over the ban on the adoption of children, who are Russian citizens, by US citizens on behalf of the Russian Federation the effect of the Agreement between the Russian Federation and the United States on cooperation in the adoption of children is terminated. The agreement was signed in Washington on July 13, 2011.
The federal law also holds that its effect, as well as the effect of the federal law on the procedure to arrive and leave the Russian Federation in the provision, which concerns the unwillingness of stay (residence) of a foreign citizen in the Russian Federation, spreads on the citizens of the countries, which decided to ban the entry of Russian citizens in these countries and arrest the assets of Russian citizens over the motive of their involvement in the violations of the human rights in the Russian Federation.