"Russia's bad example", February 2016

Since...2000, Russian authorities have been continually reducing the public and legal space for civil society institutions, particularly human rights groups, NGOs, opposition movements, media outlets, and journalists...[S]ince...2012 the number of laws and policies restricting freedom of assembly and association, freedom of expression, the right to liberty and personal and information security has dramatically increased...This example was followed not only by other post-Soviet countries traditionally influenced by Moscow, but also by the Eurosceptic governments of several Eastern European countries, and a diverse range of countries worldwide, led by Egypt in the Middle East, Venezuela in Latin America, China in Asia, and Uganda and Ethiopia in Africa. The list of countries that are analyzed in this paper includes Azerbaijan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Kazakhstan, Armenia, Bosnia, Egypt, Ethiopia, Uganda, China, Cambodia, Venezuela, Ecuador, though it is expanding every day, and could now include India, Kenya, Hungary, Poland, or even Israel.