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English Language Page Article 13, Section 5 The establishment and activity of public associations, whose aims and actions are directed at forcible alteration of the fundamentals of constitutional governance, violation of the territorial integrity of the Russian Federation, undermining the security of the state, the formation of armed units, or the incitement of social, racial, ethnic and religious strife shall be prohibited. Article 29, Section 2 Propaganda or agitation inciting social, racial, ethnic or religious hatred and strife is impermissible. The propaganda of social, racial, religious or language superiority shall be prohibited. CRIMINAL CODE OF THE RF Article 63, Circumstances Aggravating Punishment. Section 1, Sub-section “f,” “The committing of a crime motivated by ethnic, racial, religious hatred or enmity, …” The same wording is used as an aggravating factor enhancing the severity of punishment in the following articles of the RF Criminal Code: Article 105, Murder. Section 2, Sub-section “k” Article 111, Intentional Infliction of Grievous Injury. Section 2, Sub-section “f” Article 112, Intentional Infliction of Moderate Injury. Section 2, Sub-section “f” Article 117, Torture. Section 2, Sub-section “h” (Remarks: Under this Article, the presence of an aggravating factor results in a moderate crime becoming a grave one). Article 244, Desecration of the Dead and Their Burial Places. Section 2, Sub-section “b” was worded more broadly “[The activities proscribed by Article 244] motivated by ethnic, racial or religious hatred or enmity, directed against a sculpture or an architectural structure dedicated to the struggle against fascism or the victims of fascism, or the burial places of participants in the struggle against fascism.” BASIC ARTICLES OF THE CRIMINAL CODE PERTAINING TO THE TOPIC IN QUESTION: Article 136, Violation of the Equal Rights and Freedoms of the People as Citizens and Human Beings. 1. Violation of equal rights and freedoms because of sex, race, nationality, language, origin, ownership of property and official status, place of residence, religion, beliefs, or affiliation with public associations that have caused damage to the rights and legitimate interests of citizens –shall be punishable by a fine in the amount of two hundred to five hundred times the minimum wage or the amount of wages or salary or any other income of the convicted person over a period of two to five months or by a prison term of up to two years. 2. The same deed committed by a person acting in the capacity of his/her official position –shall be punishable by a fine in the amount of five hundred to eight hundred times the minimum wage or the amount of a wage or salary or any other income of the convicted person over a period of five to eight months or by deprivation of the right to hold specified offices or to engage in a specified activities for a period of two to five years or by prison term of up to five years. Article 148, Obstruction of the Exercise of Freedom of Conscience and Religion Illegal obstruction of the activity of religious organizations or performance of religious ceremonies –shall be punishable by a fine in the amount of up to two hundred times the minimum wage or the amount of a wage or salary or any other income of the convicted person over a period of up to two months or by corrective labor for a term of up to one year or by a jail term of up to three months. Article 208, Organization of Illegal Armed Forces or Participation in such. 1. The establishment of an armed force (unit, detachment, squad, or other group) not envisaged under federal law as well as the leadership of such a force –shall be punishable by a prison term of two to seven years. 2. Participation in an armed force not envisaged under federal law –shall be punishable by parole for a term of up to three years or by a jail term of up to six months or by a prison term of up to five years. Article 209, Banditry 1. The establishment of a stable armed group (a gang) with the aim of assaulting individuals or organizations as well as the leadership of such a group (a gang) -shall be punishable by prison term of ten to fifteen years with or without confiscation of property. 2. Participation in a stable armed group (a gang) or in assaults committed by it –shall be punishable by a prison term of eight to fifteen years with or without confiscation of property. 3. The deeds envisaged under Sections 1 and 2 of this article, when committed by a person with the use of his or her official position –shall be punishable by a prison term of twelve to twenty years with or without confiscation of property. Article 210, Organization of a Criminal Community (Criminal Organization) 1. The establishment of a criminal community (criminal organization) for the purpose of committing crimes or grievous crimes as well as the leadership of such a community (organization) or structural subdivisions thereof, as well as the creation of an association of organizers, leaders or other representatives of organized groups for the purpose of preparing plans and conditions to commit crimes or grievous crimes — shall be punishable by a prison term of seven to fifteen years with or without confiscation of property. 2. Participation in a criminal community (criminal organization) or in an association of organizers, leaders or other representatives of such organized groups –shall be punishable by a prison term of three to ten years with or without confiscation of property. 3. The deeds envisaged under Sections 1 or 2 of this Article committed by a person with the use his or her official position –shall be punishable by a prison term of ten to twenty years with or without confiscation of property. Article 212, Mass Riots 1. The organization of mass riots attended by violence, pogroms, arson, destruction of property, the use of firearms, explosives or explosive devices as well as armed resistance against a representative of authority –shall be punishable by a prison term of four to ten years. 2. The participation in mass riots envisaged under Section 1 of this Article –shall be punishable by a prison term of three to eight years. 3. Calls for active insubordination in response to the lawful demands of the authorities, calls for mass riots and calls for violence against citizens –shall be punishable by parole for a term of up to two years, by a jail term of two to four months or by a prison term of up to three years. Article 239, Organization of an Association Infringing upon the Liberties and Rights of Individuals 1. The establishment of a religious or public association the activities of which involve violence against citizens, which otherwise cause physical injury to citizens or which induce citizens to refuse to perform their civil duties or commit other unlawful deeds, and likewise the leadership of such an association –shall be punishable by a fine in the amount of two hundred to five hundred times the minimum wage or the amount of a wage or salary or any other income of the convicted person over a period of two to five months or by a prison term of up to three years. 2. Participation in the activity of said association, and also promotion of deeds envisaged by the first part of this article, –shall be punishable by a fine in the amount of one hundred to three hundred times the minimum wage or the amount of a wage or salary or other income of the convicted person over a period of one to three months or by a prison term of up to two years. Article 282, Incitement of Ethnic, Racial or Religious Enmity 1. Actions aimed at stirring up ethnic, racial or religious enmity, the abasement of ethnic dignity as well as the propaganda of exclusivity, superiority or inferiority of citizens based on their religion, or ethnic or racial affiliation, provided that such actions have been committed in public or by using mass media –shall be punishable by a fine in the amount of five hundred to eight hundred times the minimum wage or the amount of a wage or salary or any other income of the convicted person over a period of five to eight months or with parole for a term of up to three years or by a prison term of two to four years. 2. The same deeds committed: a) by use of violence or with the threat of violence; b) by a person using his or her official position; c) by an organized group –shall be punishable by a prison term of three to five years. Article 354, Public Appeals to Unleash a War of Aggression 1. Public appeals to unleash an aggressive war — shall be punishable by a fine in the amount of five hundred to seven hundred times the minimum wage or the amount of a wage or salary or any other income of the convicted person over a period of five to seven months or by a prison term of up to three years. 2. The same deeds committed by use of mass media or by a person holding a state post of the Russian Federation or a state post of a RF subject –shall be punishable by a fine in the amount of seven hundred to one thousand times the minimum wage or the amount of a wage or salary or other income of the convicted person over a period of seven months to one year or by a prison term of two to five years with no right to hold specified offices or to engage in a specified activity for a term of up to three years. LAWS OF PUBLIC ASSOCIATIONS, PARTIES AND MASS MEDIA I. LAW “ON MASS MEDIA” OF DECEMBER 27, 1991 Article 4, Prohibition of the Misuse of Freedoms Afforded to the Mass Media Section 1 reads: It shall be impermissible to use the mass media to incite criminally punishable acts, … to call for a seizure of power, to call for violent alteration of the constitutional system and violation of the territorial integrity of the state, to stir up ethnic, class, social and religious intolerance and strife, to disseminate war propaganda, pornography, and materials that propagandize the cult of violence and cruelty. (according to the wording of Federal Law No. 114-FZ of July 19, 1995) The following Articles are cited selectively: Article 13, Denial of Registration Denial of registration to a mass media organization may be permitted only for the following reasons: <…> 3) when a name, proposed topics and/or specialization of a mass media organization represents a misuse of the freedom afforded to the mass media based on Section 1 of Article 4 of this Law; (see above) Article 16, Termination and Suspension of Activity The activity of a mass media organization may be terminated or suspended only by decision of its founder or by a court of law in exercising civil proceedings in connection with a suit initiated either by a body charged with registering such organizations or the RF Ministry of Press and Information. <…> Judicial termination of the activity of a mass media organization shall be effected on the grounds of repeated violations (within a twelve month span) by the editorial board of a media organization of the requirements in Article 4 of this law, with respect to which the registration body or the RF Ministry of Press and Information has issued relevant warnings in writing to the founder and/or the editorial board (editor-in-chief), as well as in the event of non-compliance with a court ruling to suspend activity of a mass media organization. The basis for judicial suspension of the activity of a mass media organization may be only the need for securing a lawsuit envisaged under Section 1 of this article. Article 51, Prohibition on Misuse of the Rights Granted to a Journalist <…> It shall be forbidden to use the right of a journalist to disseminate information in an effort to discredit a citizen or individual categories of citizens exclusively because of their sex, age, racial or ethnic affiliation, language, attitude to religion, trade, place of residence and work as well as in connection with their political convictions. Article 59, Accountability for Misuse of the Freedoms of the Mass Media The misuse of the freedom afforded to mass media organizations manifested as a violation of the requirements of Article 4 of this law — shall entail criminal, administrative, disciplinary or other accountability as envisaged by the legislation of the Russian Federation. The misuse of the rights accorded to journalists manifested as a violation of the requirements of Article 50 (unauthorized recording) and Article 51 of this law or failure to discharge the duties of a journalist — shall entail criminal or disciplinary accountability as provided for under the legislation of the Russian Federation. II. LAW “ON PUBLIC ASSOCIATIONS” OF MAY 19, 1995 Article 16, Restrictions on the Establishment and Activities of Public Associations The establishment and activity of public associations whose goals or actions are aimed at achieving a violent alteration of the fundamentals of the constitutional system, violation of the territorial integrity of the Russian Federation, the undermining of state security, establishing armed forces and stirring up social, racial, ethnic or religious strife is forbidden. The inclusion in the constituent and policy documents of public associations of provisions regarding the upholding of ideas of social justice may not be regarded as the stirring up of social discord. The establishment of individual types of public associations may be subject to restrictions imposed only by a federal law. The following Articles are cited selectively: Article 23, Denial of State Registration to a Public Association and the Procedure for Appealing Such a Denial A public association may be denied state registration on the following grounds: when the charter of a public association is in contradiction of the Constitution of the Russian Federation, the constitutions (by-laws) of RF political subjects, provisions of Articles 16, 19, 20, 21 of this Federal law and the laws on individual types of public associations; <…> when the name of a public association is offensive to the moral, ethnic and religious sentiments of citizens. Article 24, Symbols of Public Associations <…> The symbols of public associations must not infringe upon the rights of citizens to intellectual property or offend their ethnic and religious identities. Article 41, Accountability of Public Associations for Violation of RF Legislation Public associations, including those not registered with agencies of justice, shall, in the event of a violation of RF legislation, be held accountable as envisaged under this federal law and other laws. In the event of a violation of RF legislation by public associations not registered with agencies of justice, accountability for said violations shall be incurred by persons who are members of the governing bodies of those associations. In case of commission by public associations, including those not registered with agencies of justice, of criminally punishable deeds, persons that are members of the governing bodies of those associations may, in the event they have been found guilty of the organization of the said acts, be held accountable by a court, as leaders of criminal organizations. Other members of and participants in such associations shall be held responsible for the criminal acts in the preparation of or commission of which they were involved. Article 42, Suspension of the Activity of Public Associations The activities of public associations may be suspended by a court order in the event of a violation of the Constitution of the Russian Federation, the constitutions (by-laws) of RF political subjects and the legislation of the Russian Federation, in accordance with the procedure envisaged under this federal law and other federal laws. In the event of a violation by exclusively Russian or international public associations of Article 16 of this Federal Law as well as upon commission of actions inconsistent with the goals of this statute, the RF Prosecutor General shall make a formal presentation to the governing bodies of those associations regarding the violations committed and fix time-limits for their rectification. If rectification does not occur within the set time limits, then the activity of the public associations shall be suspended for a period of up to six months, by decision of the RF Supreme Court on the basis of an application from the RF Prosecutor General. The suspension of the activity of interregional, regional and local public associations shall be carried out by the courts of the respective RF subject in compliance with an application by the prosecutor of the given sub-division, according to the procedure established under the RF Law “On the Prosecutor’s Office of the Russian Federation.” A body in charge of the registration of public associations shall have the right to file an application to the court for suspension of the activity of a public association after two warnings in writing have been made to that association, unless those warnings have been appealed in court according to the procedure established under the law or have been found to be unlawful by the court. Article 43, Consequences of a Suspension of Activity of a Public Association In the event of a suspension of activity of a public association for a period fixed by a court judgment, its rights as a mass media organization shall also be suspended and it shall be prohibited to organize meetings, rallies, demonstrations and other public events as well as to take part in elections, use bank deposits, except for settlements associated with its commercial activity and labor contracts, the compensation of damages inflicted by its actions and the payment of fines. If within a period of suspension of the activity of a public association fixed by the court, it rectifies the violation that served as the grounds for the suspension then, upon the expiration of the said period, the public association shall resume its activity. Should a public association fail to rectify the violation, the body which applied to the court for a suspension, shall file an application to the court for the association’s liquidation. Article 44, Liquidation of a Public Association and Placing a Ban on its Activity in the Event that it Violates RF Legislation A public association may be liquidated by a court judgment in the following cases: Application for the liquidation of a wholly Russian or international public association on the grounds specified in this article shall be made to a court by the RF Prosecutor General. Application for the liquidation of interregional, regional and local associations on the grounds specified in the this article shall be made to the court by the prosecutor of the respective RF political sub-division according to the procedure set forth in the RF Law “On the Prosecutor’s Office of the Russian Federation.” The liquidation of a public association by a court judgment shall imply a ban on its activities regardless of its registration. III. LAW “ON POLITICAL PARTIES” OF JULY 11, 2001 Articles 6–23 are cited selectively: Article 6, Name of a Political Party 1. The name of a political party, both full and abbreviated, shall not use the names of other political parties existing in the Russian Federation, other wholly Russian public associations and political parties which have ceased their activity because of liquidation as a consequence of a violation of Section 1, Article 9 of this federal law. 5. <…> It shall be forbidden for a political party to use a name which offends racial, ethnic or religious sentiments. Article 7, Symbols of a Political Party 2. A political Party shall not use as its emblem or as a symbol the emblems and symbols <…> of organizations whose activity is banned on the territory of the Russian Federation. 3. <…> It shall be forbidden to use symbols which insult or denigrate the national flag of the Russian Federation, the national emblem of the Russian Federation, the national anthem of the Russian Federation, the flags, emblems and anthems of the political subjects of the Russian Federation, of municipalities, of foreign states, and religious symbols. Symbols which may offend racial, ethnic or religious sentiments are also forbidden. Article 8, Basic Principles of the Activity of Political Parties 2. The activity of political Parties shall not infringe upon the rights and freedoms of a people and citizens guaranteed by the Constitution of the Russian Federation. Article 9, Restrictions on the Creation and Activity of Political Parties 1. The creation and activity of political parties whose objectives or actions are directed toward achieving a forcible alteration in the fundamentals of the constitutional system, violation of the territorial integrity of the Russian Federation, undermining national security, the formation of military and paramilitary units, incitement of racial, ethnic or religious enmity is prohibited. 2. The inclusion of provisions advocating the ideas of social justice in the charters and platforms of political parties and the activities of political parties in defense of social justice shall not be regarded as incitement of societal enmity. 3. The creation of political parties on a professional, racial, ethnic or religious basis shall not be allowed. In this Federal Law "professional, racial, ethnic or religious basis" shall mean the proclamation in the charter and the platform of a political party of such objectives as the advocacy of professional, racial, ethnic or religious interests and also the reflection of these objectives in the name of a political party. Article 23, Membership in a Political Party 10. Membership in a political party shall not be restricted on professional, social, racial, ethnic or religious grounds or on grounds of sex, origin, property status or place of residence. Article 39, Suspension of the Activity of a Political Party, Its Regional Branches and Other Structural Subdivisions 1. If a political party violates the Constitution of the Russian Federation, federal constitutional laws (i.e. those passed to consolidate constitutional rights), this federal law and other federal laws, the federal registration body shall issue a written warning to the political party, indicating the violations committed, and shall set a period for rectification of these violations, which shall be not less than two months. If the political party fails to rectify these violations within the prescribed period and does not appeal the warning of the federal registration body to a court, the activity of the political party may be suspended for a period of up to six months by an order of the Supreme Court of the Russian Federation on the basis of an application from the federal registration body. 2. If a regional branch or other structural subdivision of a political party violates the Constitution of the Russian Federation, federal constitutional laws, this federal law and other federal laws, the appropriate territorial registration agency shall issue a written warning to this regional branch or the other structural subdivision of the political party, indicating the violations committed and shall set a period for rectifying these violations, which shall be not less than one month. If the regional branch or the other structural subdivision of the political party fails to rectify these violations within the prescribed period and does not appeal the warning of the territorial registration agency to a court, the activity of the regional branch or the other structural subdivision may be suspended for a period of up to six months by an order of the supreme court of the republic, a territorial or regional court, the court of a city of federal significance, the court of an autonomous region or autonomous district on the basis of an application from the appropriate territorial registration agency. 3. The registration authorities may apply to a court for suspension of the activity of a political party, its regional branch or other structural subdivisions following the issuance of two written warnings as provided in Sub-section "c," Section 1, Article 38 of this federal law, unless these warnings have been appealed to a court as per the procedure established by law or have been found to be contrary to law by a court. The federal registration body or a territorial agency shall not apply to a court for suspension of the activity of a political party, its regional branch or other structural subdivisions while the court is considering the appeals contesting such warnings. 4. If a local branch of a political party is not a legal entity, the liability established by this federal law for violations committed by the local branch shall be borne by the respective regional branch of the political party. 5. The activities of a political party, whose list of candidates for election to the State Duma of the Federal Assembly of the Russian Federation has been accepted for distribution of deputy mandates, may not be suspended on the grounds envisaged in Sub-sections “d” and “e” of Section 3, Article 41 of the this federal law, within four years from the day of voting in the said elections. 6. It shall be impermissible to suspend the activity of a political party for the period beginning on the day of official publication of the decision to hold elections for deputies to the State Duma of the Federal Assembly of the Russian Federation or the election of President of the Russian Federation and ending on the day of official publication of the election results, subject to the exceptions provided for by Sections 1, 4 and 5, Article 9 of this Federal Law. 7. It shall be impermissible to suspend the activity of a regional branch of a political party for the period beginning on the day of official publication of the decision to hold elections for deputies to the representative legislative body of the respective subject of the Russian Federation or the top executive of the respective subject (head of the highest executive organ of state power of the given subject) and ending on the date of official publication of the election results, subject to the exceptions provided for by Sections 1, 4 and 5, Article 9 of this federal law. Article 40, Consequences of Suspension of the Activity of a Political Party, its Regional Branch and Other Structural Subdivisions 1. If the activity of a political party, its regional branch or other structural subdivision has been suspended for a period established by a court order, the rights of the political party, its regional branch or other structural subdivision as a mass media organization shall also be suspended, it shall be forbidden to make use of state-run and municipal mass media; organize and hold meetings, rallies, demonstrations, marches, pickets and other public events; participate in elections and referenda; use bank deposits, except for making payments required to carry on the economic activity of the political party, its regional branch or other structural subdivision, pay compensation for damage caused by its actions, pay taxes and fines and make settlements under labor contracts. 2. If, within the judicially determined period of suspension of activity of a political party, its regional branch or other structural subdivision, the violations for which such suspension was imposed have been rectified, the political party, its regional branch or other structural subdivision shall resume its activity upon expiration of said period. 3. If a political party, its regional branch or other structural subdivision fails to rectify the violations for which their activity was suspended, the federal registration body or the territorial registration agency which applied to the court for suspension of the activity of the political party, its regional branch or other structural subdivision shall apply to the appropriate court for liquidation of this political party, its regional branch or other structural subdivision. Article 41, Liquidation of a Political Party 1. A political party may be liquidated by a resolution of its supreme governing body or congress or by a decision of the Supreme Court of the Russian Federation. 2. A resolution of the congress of a political party on the liquidation of the political party shall be adopted according to the procedure established by Section 1, Article 25 of this Federal Law and the by-laws of the political party. 3. A political party may be liquidated by a decision of the Supreme Court of the Russian Federation if the political party: a) fails to meet the requirements of Sections 1, 4 and 5, Article 9 of this federal law; b) fails to rectify the violations for which its activity was suspended within the period established by a court decision; c) does not participate in elections as provided in Article 37 of this federal law; d) does not have regional branches with more than one hundred party members in more than half of the subjects of the Russian Federation; e) does not have the necessary number of members required under Section 2, Article 3 of this federal law. 4. An application for liquidation of a political party shall be filed with the Supreme Court of the Russian Federation by the federal registration body. 5. A political party, whose list of candidates for election to the State Duma of the Federal Assembly of the Russian Federation has been accepted for distribution of deputy mandates shall not be liquidated on the grounds provided for in Sub-sections "d" and "e," Section 3 of this article within four years from the day of voting in said elections. 6. It shall be impermissible to liquidate a political party by an order of the Supreme Court of the Russian Federation within the period from the day of official publication of a decision to hold elections for deputies to the State Duma of the Federal Assembly of the Russian Federation or the election of the President of the Russian Federation to the day of official publication of the election results, subject to the exceptions provided for in Section 1, Article 9 of this federal law. Article 42, Liquidation of a Regional Branch and Other Structural Subdivisions of a Political Party 1. A regional branch and other structural subdivision of a political party may be liquidated by a decision of the body of the political party duly authorized to do so by its by-laws, by a court order and also in the event of liquidation of the political party. 2. Liquidation of a regional branch or other structural subdivision of a political party by a decision of the body of the political party duly authorized by its by-laws shall be carried out based on the grounds and consistent with the procedure established by the by-laws of the political party. The said authorized body shall immediately notify the federal registration body in writing about its decision and the federal registration body shall make an appropriate entry in the combined state registry of legal entities. 3. A regional branch or other structural subdivisions of a political party shall be liquidated by a court decision if: a) it fails to meet the requirements of Sections 1, 4 and 5, Article 9 of this federal law; b) within the period established by a court decision, it fails to rectify the violations for which its activities were suspended; c) the regional branch of a political party does not have the number of party members required under Section 2, Article 3 of this federal law. 4. An application for liquidation of a regional branch or other structural subdivision of a political party shall be filed with the respective supreme court of a republic, a territorial or regional court, a court of a city of federal significance, a court of an autonomous region or district by the federal registration body or by an appropriate territorial registration agency. 5. It shall be impermissible to liquidate a regional branch of a political party by a court order within the period from the day of official publication of a decision to hold elections of deputies to the representative legislative body of the respective subject of the Russian Federation or election of the top executive of the subject (the head of the highest executive body of the state) to the day of official publication of the election results, subject to the exceptions provided for in Section 1, Article 9 of this Federal Law. IV. LAW ON THE ELECTION OF DEPUTIES TO THE STATE DUMA OF THE FEDERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE RUSSIAN FEDERATION As of June 24, 1999 This law is obviously not the only law regulating elections in Russia, however, the provisions of interest to us are the same in all such laws Article 34, The Name and Emblem of an Electoral Association, Electoral Bloc The symbols of an electoral association or electoral bloc shall not infringe upon the intellectual property rights of citizens, offend or denigrate state symbols (flags, coats-of-arms, national anthems) of the Russian Federation, Subjects of the Russian Federation, other states, religious symbols and ethnic sentiments and shall not violate the generally recognized moral norms. Article 60, Inadmissibility of Misuse of the Right to Election Campaigning 1. Misuse of the freedoms afforded mass media in the conduct of election campaigning shall not be allowed. Election programs of registered candidates, electoral associations, electoral blocs, election propaganda materials and speeches at meetings and rallies, and articles in the mass media shall not contain calls for a forcible seizure of power, violent alteration of the constitutional system, violation of the territorial integrity of the Russian Federation, and war propaganda. Propaganda exciting social, racial, ethnic, religious hatred or enmity, and misuse of the freedom afforded the mass media in other ways banned by legislation of the Russian Federation shall be prohibited. <…> 5. If a registered candidate, an electoral association, or electoral bloc which has registered a federal list of candidates breaches Section 1 of this Article, the election commission and other bodies, organizations and citizens specified in Section 1 of Article 90 of this federal law may apply to a court for withdrawal of the registration of the candidate or list of candidates. If a registered candidate, an electoral association or electoral bloc which registered a federal list of candidates breaches other election campaigning rules laid down by this federal law, an election commission may issue a warning to the candidate, the electoral association or electoral bloc, or request appropriate law-enforcement and other bodies to put an end to unlawful propaganda activities. In this case the election commission shall be entitled to annul the decision to register a candidate or federal list of candidates. <…> 7. If a TV and radio broadcasting organization or an editorial office of a periodical violates the election campaigning rules laid down by this federal law the appropriate election commission may apply to law enforcement bodies, courts, or executive bodies of state power which implement the state mass media policy and request their intervention to stop illegal propaganda activities and bring the TV and radio broadcasting organization, editorial office, and their officials to account as provided by the laws of the Russian Federation. V. OTHER LAWS Law “On Perpetuating the Victory of the Soviet People in the 1941–1945 Great Patriotic War of May 19, 1995” Article 6, Combating Manifestations of Fascism A resolute struggle against any manifestation of fascism represents a major aspect of the RF state policy regarding perpetuating the Victory of the Soviet People in the Great Patriotic War. The Russian Federation has assumed an obligation to make every effort to prevent the establishment and operation of fascist organizations and movements on its territory. In the Russian Federation it shall be forbidden to use Nazi symbols in any form, as being insulting to the multiethnic nature of Russian people and the memory of the victims of the Great Patriotic War. CODE ON ADMINISTRATIVE OFFENCES (EFFECTIVE AS OF JULY 1, 2002) Article 20.3, Display of Fascist Paraphenalia or Symbols The display of fascist paraphenalia or symbols to propagandize such paraphenalia or symbols shall entail the imposition of an administrative fine in the amount of five to ten times the minimum wage and the confiscation of the fascist paraphenalia or symbols or an administrative jail term of up to fifteen days with the confiscation of fascist paraphenalia or symbols. Article 5.26, Violation of the Law on Freedom of Conscience, Freedom of Religion and Religious Associations 1. Obstruction of the exercise of freedom of conscience and freedom of religion, including the adoption or rejection of religious or other convictions, joining the membership of and withdrawal from a religious association – shall entail the imposition of an administrative fine upon citizens in the amount of one to three times the minimum wage and upon officials — in the amount of three to eight times the minimum wage. 2. Insulting the religious sentiments of citizens or the desecration of objects, signs and emblems seen as symbols of their beliefs and venerated by them – shall entail the imposition of an administrative fine upon citizens in the amount of five to ten times the minimum wage. The Russian State is to ensure full observance all international agreements ratified, including the norms on non-discrimination and protection of ethnic and religious minorities. It should be also noted that, according to Article 15, Section 4 of the RF Constitution: The commonly recognized principles and norms of international law and the international treaties of the Russian Federation shall be a component part of the legal system of the Russian Federation. If an international treaty of the Russian Federation stipulates other rules than those stipulated by the law, the rules of the international treaty shall apply. Back |
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