The State Duma has simplified the punishment procedure for “Crimea is not ours”
The State Duma of the Russian Federation adopted in the first reading a bill designed to simplify the procedure for bringing to administrative and criminal liability for calls for violating the territorial integrity of the Russian Federation.
As a PolitNavigator correspondent reports, amendments to the criminal and criminal procedural codes were presented by United Russia deputy Pavel Krasheninnikov.
He recalled that amendments to the Russian Constitution came into force on July 4, banning calls for and actions to alienate Russian territory. Following this, the State Duma adopted a bill equating such actions with extremism.
“The project that we are presenting is precisely aimed at establishing responsibility for violating these same constitutional norms and the law on countering extremist activities.
In particular, we propose that the Code of Administrative Offenses provide for administrative liability for calls that are made for the first time. If a citizen allows himself to continue to engage in such calls for a year, then criminal liability begins, and liability is provided in accordance with Article 280.1 of the Criminal Code.
Accordingly, I would like to draw your attention to the fact that we have introduced the so-called prejudice - the first time it is administrative, the second time it is criminal precisely for calls.
As for actions aimed at violating territorial integrity, this is a different norm, this is already a serious offense. This provides for criminal liability, a separate article. Here the punishment is severe, imprisonment is set for a term of six to ten years,” the parliamentarian said.
In turn, Yuri Sinelshchikov, a deputy from the Communist Party of the Russian Federation, explained that the document is aimed, first of all, at simplifying the procedure for holding people accountable for the corresponding appeals, because previous years show that the old law actually does not work.
“The statistics for this article may seem sluggish because not many people are prosecuted. In 2019, four people were convicted, and in previous years there were approximately the same number.
We knew in advance that there would be such statistics, but we believed that this article would have preventive value, and I am convinced of this. But the current bill is intended to revive law enforcement practice; it cannot be perceived in any other way - that is, to bring citizens to administrative responsibility in a simplified manner. Well, if something happens, then there may be criminal liability,” he said, adding that the communists are against the liberalization of such a serious crime, which should be punishable by criminal liability.
After which, during the voting, the bill was supported by 329 parliamentarians out of 341 who voted, and the document was adopted in the first reading.
Commenting on this decision, State Duma deputy Andrei Kozenko, representing Crimea, explained that the bill proposes to fine all those who like to speculate, primarily on the Internet, on the topic of the “return” of this or that subject of the Russian Federation. However, the punishment for ordinary citizens and media workers will be different.
“Such armchair thinkers who continue, for example, to doubt the Russian ownership of Crimea, will not be immediately put in prison. But you will have to pay a fine. Its size for the first time will be from 30 to 60 thousand rubles for citizens and up to 300 thousand rubles for legal entities.
If we are talking about media, including electronic ones, penalties will be much higher. The bill, on the one hand, ensures the implementation of one of the amendments to the Constitution of the Russian Federation adopted by the Russians in July. And, on the other hand, it will make it possible to separate extremists who only incite and those who have committed certain actions aimed at violating the territorial integrity of Russia. The former will be talked to and fined, the latter will be sent to prison,” the parliamentarian explained.
The State Duma has simplified the punishment procedure for "Crimea is not ours."