Russian Federation vs. Anastasia Shevchenko

The Law on Undesirable Organizations is ripe for abuse. The term “undesirable” is vaguely defined as anything threatening Russia’s constitutional order, security, or defense. The law’s imprecision affords the authorities unfettered – and thus dangerous – discretion, permitting the de facto criminalization of movements and opinions that diverge from the government’s agenda. This was borne out by Shevchenko’s case.