A post was raised for Hitler – Picture of the Day – Kommersant

The Tverskoy Court of Moscow appointed politician Leonid Gozman (included in the register of foreign media agents) 15 days of arrest for publicly identifying the USSR and Nazi Germany (part 1 of article 13.48 of the Code of Administrative Offenses of the Russian Federation). This is the maximum punishment under the article that was introduced into the Code this spring. The reason was the post of Leonid Gozman, written two years ago, but it was “discovered” by employees only last Wednesday. Previously, a criminal case had already been initiated against the politician in connection with the failure to notify of a second citizenship (Article 330.2 of the Criminal Code).

The prohibition of “identifying the USSR and Nazi Germany” was included in the federal law “On Perpetuating the Victory of the Soviet People in the Great Patriotic War” at the initiative of President Vladimir Putin in the summer of 2021. Responsibility for its violation was not initially provided. True, even then the authors spokethat are working on amendments to the Code of Administrative Offenses. And in April 2022, a new article 13.48 appeared in the Code of Administrative Offenses, which provides for punishment for citizens in the form of a fine from 1 thousand to 2 thousand rubles. (in case of repeated violation – from 2.5 thousand to 5 thousand rubles) or arrest for up to 15 days.

Today the police detained politician Leonid Gozman. He spent the night in the Tverskoy OVD. As the lawyer of the politician Mikhail Biryukov told Kommersant, the reason was the post of Leonid Gozman on Facebook (owned by Meta, recognized as extremist and banned in the Russian Federation), published on October 28, 2020.

In the publication, the politician called Adolf Hitler an absolute evil, but expressed the opinion that Joseph Stalin was “even worse”, and “the NKVD is even more terrible, because the Chekists killed their own.”

According to Mr. Biryukov, the post was discovered by employees on August 24, 2022. On Tuesday, the Tverskoy Court arrested Leonid Gozman under Part 1 of Art. 13.48 Administrative Code of the Russian Federation for 15 days.

“Just like me, Leonid Gozman does not believe that this post falls under Article 13.48, because it speaks of the inadmissibility of identifying Germany and the USSR during World War II,” the lawyer says. “But it follows from the post that it covers a large historical period that goes beyond its scope. Leonid believes that he has been illegally brought to administrative responsibility.”

An appeal against the arrest will take place on Wednesday at the Moscow City Court. Mikhail Biryukov calls the arrest of Leonid Gozman political pressure on the elderly politician. “The authorities are pushing him to leave the country, unless, of course, during the period when he is in a special detention center a criminal case is not fabricated, as was the case with Ilya Yashin and Vladimir Kara-Murza,” the lawyer says. he will not be met by an investigator from the Investigative Committee of the Russian Federation.”

Alexander Verkhovsky, head of the Sova Information and Analytical Center (included in the register of foreign agents), points out that the wording of the article initially implies its arbitrary application: “It is not clear what “identification” means. If we logically interpret the content of the post, then Gozman just pointed out the difference, and did not identify. A rare person will say that Hitler is identical to Stalin, it is clear that these are two different people. Either this article does not apply, or it will be arbitrary.” Mr. Verkhovsky also points out that it does not matter that the post was published two years ago before the entry into force of the article. “There is a countdown from the moment of discovery and drawing up a protocol,” he says. “It is understood that everyone should remember what he once wrote, and delete it.”

Vadim Klyuvgant, a partner at the Pen & Paper Bar Association, notes that due to the fact that the article is valid for only four months, it is difficult to assess the practice of its application. “At the same time, this norm is clearly politicized, which means that its application, including in terms of choosing penalties, is highly susceptible to political conjuncture,” says Vadim Klyuvgant. “If we talk about how punishment should be imposed From the point of view of law, the principles of justice and individualization of punishment require that a more severe punishment be applied only when a less severe one is ineffective due to the high social danger of the act and the personality of the offender. Moreover, such a conclusion must be carefully motivated by the court.”

Mr. Klyuvgant also notes: “the well-known canon of criminology” says that it is not the cruelty of punishment that contributes to the decrease in the level of offenses, but its inevitability. “When demonstrative, demonstrative cruelty is manifested, this rather suggests reprisals and arbitrariness than about proper law enforcement and justice,” he says. “And here another important question arises: was there an offense in a particular case, or was it created artificially, with the aim of selectively applying repression to someone objectionable? It is possible to answer such a question reliably if there are two conditions: if the circumstances of the case are precisely known and if the applied norm of the law meets the requirement of legal certainty. In other words, it is formulated clearly, does not contain gaps and contradictions.

According to the lawyer, this norm of the Code of Administrative Offenses, like many other “legislative novelties of a repressive nature, is highly flawed in this part.”

“Neither criminal nor administrative responsibility can be applied to acts committed before it was established by law,” he believes. Another limiter of bringing to responsibility in time is the statute of limitations established by law for each type of offense. All these are general fundamental principles of law and order, which must be applied in every case, regardless of anything.

Recall that in April, a criminal case was opened against Leonid Gozman for failure to notify of a second citizenship (Article 330.2 of the Criminal Code), it provides for a fine of up to 200 thousand rubles. or compulsory works up to 400 hours. In July, he was interrogated in the department of the Investigative Committee of the Russian Federation for Moscow. During interrogation, the defense of the politician presented a document confirming that the notification of citizenship had been filed, albeit with a violation of the deadlines.

Anna Vasilyeva