MOSCOW, October 26 (RAPSI, Oleg Sivozhelezov) – The Moscow Tverskoy District Court had fined the Levada Center NGO 300,000 rubles (about $5,000) over its failure to comply with the “foreign agent” law, RAPSI reports from the courtroom on Wednesday.

Thus, the autonomous polling and analytical center was found guilty of committing an administrative offence by continuing its activities, but failing to register its “foreign agent” status with the Russian Justice Ministry.

Speaking to the court, a Levada Center representative insisted the fine was illegitimate, since the NGO was involved only in sociological studies and did not engage in any political activities or work aimed at influencing the decision-making of the Russian authorities.

In support of his arguments he cited the position of Russia’s Constitutional Court with regard to NGOs being given the “foreign agent” status and maintained that Levada Center did not meet the respective criteria. Besides, according to the defense, the Justice Ministry infringed upon the procedures governing the inspection of the Center’s paperwork, the results of which had served as the grounds for putting the NGO on the “foreign agent” list this September.

According to director of the Center Lev Gudkov, “current situation much complicates the work of our organization.” He stated that the “foreign agent” status, which may be interpreted as synonymous to a “spy” was to prevent sociological surveys by the Center.

The law adopted in November 2012 requires that all NGOs engaged in political activity and receiving foreign funding register as “foreign agents”.

Under the amendments to the law, which were adopted this year, political activity is linked to such fields as state-building, securing Russia’s sovereignty and territorial integrity, enforcement of law, order and security, national defense, foreign policy, political system integrity, social and economic and national development of the country, regulation of rights and freedoms of man and citizen.

NGOs which are engaged in organization and holding of public events, including meetings, manifestations, demonstrations, discussions and performances would be deemed to be involved in political activity.

Moreover, those NGOs which are involved in work aimed at achieving certain results during elections or referendum, vote monitoring practices, establishment of election commissions or support of political parties would also be put on the list of those organizations which are engaged in political activity.

Levada-Center, named after famous Russian sociologist Yury Levada, is one of the largest Russian NGOs that conducts sociological and market surveys.