Russian lawmakers have approved a bill that restricts how so-called foreign agents can access their income inside the country as the government continues to clamp down on political opponents amid the war in Ukraine.
The State Duma, Russia's lower chamber of parliament, approved in its second and third readings a bill targeting "foreign agents," a controversial designation that stigmatizes those who receive it with a Soviet-era connotation and restricts their ability to exercise free speech.
The bill limits a so-called foreign agent's access to various forms of income sourced domestically, including proceeds from property sales, royalties for creative work, or investment returns by requiring all proceeds be placed in special blocked bank accounts.
Such funds would become available only in the event of the individual's foreign agent status being officially lifted -- a development critics say is all but impossible.
Human rights groups and international observers have denounced the legislation as another move in Russia's authoritarian squeeze.
SEE ALSO: Inside The Obscure Russian Agency That Censors The Internet: An RFE/RL InvestigationVyacheslav Volodin, the speaker of the State Duma, justified the move, however, describing it as a way to defend national interests.
"Those who betray our country will not enrich themselves at the expense of its citizens. Funds earned in Russia must not be used against it," Volodin stated on Telegram.
The law passed unanimously in the State Duma and now goes to the Federation Council, parliament's upper house, before going to President Vladimir Putin for a signature -- both of which are seen as a formality.
The designation of foreign agent carries Soviet-era overtones of espionage and betrayal and has become the hallmark of the Kremlin's efforts to muzzle dissent.
First introduced in 2012, the term has been applied to NGOs, independent journalists, opposition politicians, activists, and cultural figures accused of receiving foreign funding or engaging in activities perceived as politically hostile.
SEE ALSO: Long Showers. Clean Drinking Water. Long Hugs. Avocados: Alsu Kurmasheva Adjusts To Freedom After Russian PrisonThe number of so-called foreign agents has increased to about 500 and includes prominent cultural and creative figures, most of whom had to flee Russia and are currently staying abroad.
The new law significantly enhances controls from which the already highly restricted designees have to suffer, including among other demands such requirements as compulsory disclaimers on everything they say or write publicly and even file activity and detailed financial reports regularly.
Later, other amendments banned advertisement collaborations with alleged foreign agents and significantly stiffened penalties, sending some to trials for noncompliance with the law.
The new legislation represents a new phase in the campaign by the Kremlin to choke off the voices of its opponents.
Royalties and earnings from intellectual property became an essential lifeline for musicians, authors, and artists whom the government placed on the list. Critics say the new measures will economically paralyze people whose work or public statements challenge government narratives.
The move could also exacerbate the cultural brain drain in Russia since the beginning of its ongoing invasion of Ukraine in February 2022.