Moscow, Sep 28 (IANS/RIA Novosti): Several prominent Russian activists Thursday criticised the Kremlin's clampdown on dissent through a series of controversial laws that stifle civil society.

These laws include raising fines for unsanctioned protests to forcing NGOs receiving foreign funding to register as "foreign agents".

"These laws are a departure from the Constitution, from Russia's international obligations, and even more so, a departure from all the fundamental human rights...appeared in the civilised world throughout the last century," said Moscow Helsinki Group head Lyudmila Alexeyeva.

Since Vladimir Putin's re-election as president, the State Duma has given the green light to several laws that Russian civil society activists claim are intended to dampen dissent and provoke fear among citizens.

These laws range from a substantial hike in protest-related fines, which could reach up to $9,000 for an average protester, to a law that critics claim is intended to restrict the internet.

The law requiring homegrown NGOs to register as "foreign agents" if they receive foreign funding and engage in political activity was viewed as a particularly controversial addition to the statute book.

Last week the authorities ordered the US Agency for International Development (USAID) to shut down its operations in Russia.

Lillia Shabanova, head of the independent vote monitor Golos, which receives American aid from other sources, argues these changes are clearly intended to keep civil society in check ahead of regional elections in mid-October.

"This package of laws, in my opinion, is designed to make an already managed democracy absolutely managed," said Shabanova.

But most unsettling, these activists felt, was the latest amendment broadening the definition of high treason making it applicable to to any Russian citizen involved with a foreign organisation.