NIZHNY NOVGOROD, June 22. /TASS/. A court on Monday ordered the Dront environmental center in Nizhny Novgorod, in central Russia, to pay a 300,000 ruble ($5,500) fine for violating the country’s NGO law, the organization’s head has said.
"We have been found guilty of violating the federal law on NGOs. Under the court ruling, we will have to pay a fine of 300,000 rubles. We will file an appeal against this decision," Askhat Kayumov told TASS.
The center is subject to administrative liability for violating the rules of activity of a non-profit organization with the functions of a "foreign agent." The organization was included in the Justice Ministry’s register of "foreign agents" on May 22, 2015 following checks.
The organization’s chief said he sent a request to the ministry last week to withdraw it from the register saying it had no foreign funding. Last time, the center received money from international foundations in June 2014.
Under the rules, the Justice Ministry needs to launch checks and take a decision on the issue no later than within three months. "If we fail to achieve the goal of being excluded from the "foreign agent" list, we will appeal against this decision in court," Kayumov said.
The Dront organization was founded in 1989 for implementing environmental protection programs and projects.