Putin signs law labeling NGOs as "foreign agents"

 SOURCE: TANJUG

MOSCOW -- Russian President Vladimir Putin has signed into law a controversial bill that brands NGOs who receive funding from abroad as "foreign agents".

The law, which has caused huge concern among activists who fear it will be used to stigmatize critical NGOs, was signed by Putin after it was rushed through the lower and upper houses of parliament before their summer breaks, AFP has reported.

“Putin signed the federal law on regulating the activities of non-governmental organizations (NGOs) who carry out the role of a foreign agent", the Kremlin said in a statement on Saturday.

The law, which sailed through the State Duma lower house on July 13 and then the upper house Federation Council on July 18, requires NGOs that receive foreign funding to register with the authorities as foreign agents, AFP says.