The Kremlin is currently working on an anti-social law to combat Russophobia. But this law may pose a threat to human rights in Russia. However, the new rule is expected to be ineffective. Russian law currently does not have a precise definition for what qualifies as Russophobia. This situation could be dangerous as it may lead to the repression machine arresting anyone who has spoken negatively about Russia or its people.
Speaking recently during the 11th St. Petersburg International Legal Forum, the Deputy Speaker of the State Duma, Irina Yarovaya, called for introducing criminal liability for Russophobia.
– As a preventive measure.
The phrase “the highest means of social welfare,” used as a euphemism in the Soviet Union, comes to mind involuntarily. This expression was shamefully used to refer to the death penalty in the 1922 Constitution of the RSFSR. Russian lawmakers are using criminal liability as means of prevention, which can be seen as a showpiece of their current efforts.
“A Political Gesture that is Necessary”
Jarovaya’s proposal, the initiator of many repressive laws, was supported by Deputy Minister of Justice Andrei Loginov. Moreover, Valery Fadeyev, Chairman of Russia’s Human Rights Council, went further than Yarovaya by suggesting that making Russophobia a criminal offense would be a necessary political gesture. It is evident that the top human rights advocate finds it acceptable to employ the penal code for political purposes. It is what the defense of human rights looks like in the Kremlin.
A connection between Kremlin lawmakers and human rights defenders involves mutual understanding. Fadeyev, defending the reckless authors of the bill, has stated that the work will be completed soon. It’s time for him to paraphrase the Bolshevik bootlicker from the poem “Conversation with Comrade Lenin” by Vladimir Mayakovsky:
– Comrade Putin, the hellish work that we are out to do will be done and is already being done.
It’s reasonable for unbiased individuals to question the necessity of new oppressive laws since the existing ones may already result in extensive repression, similar to that of Stalin’s era. If someone can receive a 6-year sentence for displaying “offensive inscriptions” on banners promoting war with Ukraine, why complicate matters by specifying the nature of a political crime?
Lobbying for the new law, Irina Yarovaya claims that “Russophobia is a special kind of anti-human ideology,” and introducing criminal liability for Russophobia aims to ensure peace and security. It is a standard excuse that they advocate for peace as a peaceful community. However, this rhetoric has become a commonly known demagogy. Also often seen as manipulative and double-dealing by many.
Blur accountability for the repression
Formally, the law is necessary to safeguard the Russkiy mir from Western interference. However, the actual reasons behind this go beyond formal justifications. The true intention is to provide the authorities with an additional excuse for intensifying repression within the state. It will certainly begin with the defense against external threats. The new Chekists will soon pinpoint the “fifth column” and secret “collaborators’’ working with Western Russophobes. The number of inmates in the new detention centers is expected to increase rapidly.
There is also a second reason for introducing the law on Russophobia. It is to blur and shift the blame for oppressive actions. By enacting multiple new draconian laws, those responsible hope to spread out the accountability for repression. This way, some will create the rules, others will accuse, some will judge, and some will execute the sentence. Consequently, no one will be held accountable, as everyone will fulfill their duties.
There will be no shortage of Russophobes. You wrote a foreign word instead of the Russian equivalent. You are a Russophobe. You said Venice is more beautiful than St. Petersburg. You are a Russophobe. You went on holiday to the Maldives, not to Sochi – you are Russophobes.
If he were still alive today, Alexander Sergeyevich Pushkin would have been the first person to be accused under this law. He wrote to his wife two centuries ago:
–That I was prompted to be born in Russia with soul and talent is the devil’s curse!
Aleksandr Podrabinek for vot-tak.tv, pj/belsat.eu
Translated by PEV.
The opinions and thoughts expressed in the text reflect only the author's views.
