Russian President Vladimir Putin has revised the composition of the Chairman of the State Council for the Development of Civil Society and Human Rights, adding several notable figures from public service and civil society. The decree, published on the Kremlin’s official site, marks a shift in how the council will approach issues of rights, digital access, and social participation. The new lineup places Elina Sidorenko, who leads the White Internet ANO and serves as the general director of the Platform for Engaging Entrepreneurs, in a more central role within the council’s leadership. This change signals a broader emphasis on digital rights and online freedoms as part of Russia’s governance of civil society. The move has drawn attention from observers in Canada, the United States, and beyond, who monitor how state-led bodies widen their scope of oversight and collaboration in the digital age.
The updated council also includes Alexander Ionov, a well-known public figure and human rights advocate, along with Yulia Nazarova, president of the charitable foundation Food Bank Rus. Igor Novikov, head of the autonomous non-profit organization Equality Space Opportunities, which promotes social participation for people with disabilities, joins as part of a push to broaden civil society representation. Sergei Soloviev, a senior researcher at the Federal Institute of Russian History within the Russian Academy of Sciences, is listed among the members, underscoring the council’s interest in historical context and scholarly perspectives on human rights development. These selections reflect a mix of activist voices, philanthropy leaders, and academic insight, aiming to balance advocacy with institutional governance in the civil-society sector.
The decree also mentions Shota Gorgadze, the chairman of the board of directors for the public organization Peacekeeping Mission, along with Alexander Mukomolov, a general in the Lebed group, journalist Leonid Nikitinsky, Mara Polyakova who chairs the Independent Expert Legal Council, and Henry Reznik, a prominent lawyer. The list includes Yevgeny Yasin, the former Minister of Economy who passed away in September, highlighting the council’s connection to figures with long-standing influence in policy and public life. In prior arrangements, the Russian Ombudsman Tatyana Moskalkova and Elina Sidorenko, leader of the White Internet initiative, had established cooperation in the field of digital rights protection. The current updates may be interpreted as an effort to align civil-rights administration with evolving digital policy and socio-economic priorities, a trend that domestic and international observers will continue to scrutinize as the governance landscape unfolds.