Russian media outlet Fontanka.ru recently reported that their journalist, Ksenia Klochkova, had her home searched on April 19 by police authorities in relation to a criminal investigation targeting exiled journalist Andrei Zakharov. Zakharov, who fled Russia in December 2021, has faced intensive surveillance following his classification as a “foreign agent”.
The search of Klochkova’s residence lasted for approximately three hours. Her electronic devices were confiscated and she is presently awaiting interrogation. Editor-in-chief of Fontanka.ru, Alexander Gorshkov, communicated to Gazeta.ru that Ksenia Klochkova has been implicated in the case owing to her association with Zakharov.
A legal case was opened against Zakharov two days prior to the search, for purported non-compliance with guidelines related to the “foreign agent” label. It is worth noting that in Russia, an individual or an organization, irrespective of their nationality or location, can be tagged as a foreign agent by the authorities if they partake in civic activism or critique Russian policies or actions of officials and are alleged of being under foreign influence.
The charges against Zakharov were filed under Article 207.3 of the Russian Criminal Code, alleges Fontanka.ru, for supposed dissemination of misinformation about the Russian armed forces.
In response to the ongoing situation, Zakharov expressed concern over the plight of Klochkova, his former colleague at Fontanka.ru. He commented that the charges laid against him, be it for non-compliance with the “foreign agent” rules or for allegedly spreading false information about the Russian armed forces, are repercussions of his journalistic pursuits. However, he refrained from divulging further details about these matters.
According to Reporters Without Borders (RSF) there has been an alarming trend observed in Russia recently. In addition to harsh sentences and alleged instances of torture against journalists, authorities are increasingly wielding fines and short detentions as mechanisms to intimidate media professionals. RSF also compiles reports on the arbitrary inclusion and bureaucratic roadblocks faced by media outlets labeled as “foreign agents”. In the light of the ongoing Ukraine conflict, several journalists have fled abroad faced with elevated risks, and even those exiled are not out of reach from pressures by Russian authorities, which range from harassment of their family members to convictions in absentia.