Russian State Duma Backs Bills Affecting Citizens in Display Projects

Altus Intel
Altus Intel
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State Duma of Russia Passes Bill Prohibiting Participation in Unregistered Foreign Non-Profit Organizations
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The State Duma of the Russian Federation has passed three bills in their third and final reading, which aim to prohibit Russian citizens from participating in unregistered foreign non-profit organizations. These bills, numbered as No. 346588-8, No. 346769-8, and No. 346750-8, also introduce criminal liability for engaging in such activities. The law will come into effect after its approval in the Federation Council and subsequent signing by the president.

However, this legislation has unintended consequences, as it potentially jeopardizes the participation of Russian citizens in various international projects. Many large open projects, particularly those not affiliated with commercial companies, register themselves as non-profit organizations to legally accept and manage donations, as well as to compensate their hired workers. The lack of clear criteria in the law means that almost any activity, ranging from code commits to reporting errors, could be subject to persecution. This poses a threat not only to regular users of these projects but also to employees of Russian companies involved in the development and implementation of projects under the import substitution program. Collaborating with upstream projects is vital for these Russian developers, as they actively contribute and report any issues found.

Some examples of popular and significant open source projects, overseen by non-profit organizations, include various Linux distributions such as Alt Linux, Astra Linux, and Rosa Linux. These distributions rely on non-profit organizations to supervise critical components:

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