MOSCOW (Pakistan Point News / Sputnik - 19th November, 2021) Former Soviet leader Mikhail Gorbachev and prominent Russian journalist Dmitry Muratov said on Thursday they were worried about Russia's plans to close the charitable education and rights group Memorial.
Russian prosecutors asked the top court last week to shut the international branch of Memorial, labeled a foreign agent in Russia, over legal and constitutional violations. The hearing is set for November 25.
"The demand to shut Memorial has sparked concern in the country, which we share. We urge the Prosecutor General's Office to drop the lawsuit and settle the dispute out of court," a letter published by the Gorbachev foundation read.
Gorbachev and Muratov, both Nobel Peace prize holders, defended the Moscow-based charity and the Memorial human rights center, saying they helped preserve the memory of hundreds of thousands persecuted during the years of Soviet political repressions.
