In 2012, the Russian Federation passed the “Foreign Agent” law, requiring nonprofit organizations that receive funding from abroad and engage in political activity to register with the government as a “foreign agent.” This chapter traces the enactment of this law in the Baikal community. Only one organization fell victim to the law: Baikal Environmental Wave. The Wave was one of Siberia’s oldest environmental organizations and was the most committed to environmental advocacy. It was no stranger to state persecution, but this law rendered it incapable of operating and it finally shut down. The Foreign Agent law represents a new form of dominating the field of power. Unlike the Soviet government, which outlawed all independent activity, the Putin government practices “legal nihilism,” using the law only to target strategic opponents. Civil society may be independent and thrive, but it cannot threaten the state without grave consequences.
The Contrast of Political Development and the Environment
