The Path to Foreign Agenthood

On Friday, Russia's Justice Ministry added "The Path Home" (Путь Домой), a grassroots organization of family and community members who defend the rights of those who have been mobilized to fight in Russia's War on Ukraine, to its Orwellian "Foreign Agents" list.

The Path Home was a subject of a feature article in the Spring 2024 issue of Russian Life, which was translated and reprinted from Cherta (also a "foreign agent").

The Justice Ministry said that Путь Домой had worked to create a "negative image" of Russia and the Russian army and that it had called for illegal protests. Meanwhile, the Ministry also labeled one of the movement's leaders, Maria Andreyeva, as a "foreign agent."

"I do not agree with this," Andreyeva told AFP of the label, adding: "I will protest this."

The Moscow Times wrote that Russian authorities had previously appeared unwilling to target the movement in an apparent bid not to anger relatives and wives of soldiers fighting in Ukraine.

The organization had earlier this year staged rare protests in central Moscow.

On its popular Telegram channel, Путь Домой wrote:

After so many months of awkward threats and shit-slinging in the media, the authorities have finally made up their minds about us. Now we, too, are agents of the reptilians and enemies of the regime. I wonder if there will be any evidence? Of course not. And Put Domoi has never been financed by anyone. The insanity and fear are growing stronger.

What's next? Will mobilized and contract soldiers who complain about the lack of payments and uniforms become foreign agents? Foreign agents with weapons in their hands? Or maybe everyone except United Russia members are foreign agents?

The absurdity is gaining momentum. But we do not intend to stop. Our relatives are still in mortal danger, under the rule of "patriots" of Russia and friends of the state.

Well, now we have entered the list of cultural representatives: actors, musicians, writers. Are we being congratulated or something?