Citizens can be detained for 30 days for violating martial law

On June 14, State Duma deputies may consider amendments to the Code of Administrative Offenses, which provide for administrative liability for citizens for violating martial law. This follows from the draft decision of the council of the lower house of parliament, which is posted in the legislative activity support system, Vedomosti found.

The changes are included in the table of amendments to the second reading of the bill on clarifying the procedure for the detention of vehicles, which in October 2021 was submitted to the lower house of parliament by the Legislative Assembly of Bashkiria and Deputy Chairman of the State Duma Committee on Transport and Development of Transport Infrastructure Rafael Mardanshin. Since December 2021, the bill has been lying idle – it was adopted in the first reading only on April 5, 2023.

For the second reading, Part 1, Art. 3.9 of the Code of Administrative Offenses (administrative arrest) will be supplemented with a text according to which citizens will be arrested for violating the requirements of the martial law regime.

Art. 25.1.1 “Violation of the martial law regime”, which provides for punishment for citizens in the form of a fine in the amount of 500 to 1000 rubles. or administrative arrest up to 30 days, for officials – a fine from 1000 to 2000 rubles. or similar arrest.

The same amount of fines and the duration of administrative arrest are provided for violations using a vehicle that can be confiscated. Persons in respect of whom proceedings are being carried out on a case of an administrative offense, if necessary, may be detained for up to 48 hours for identification.

The author of the proposed amendments, a member of the State Duma Committee on State Construction and Legislation, Dmitry Vyatkin, explained to Vedomosti that the amendments would apply in regions where martial law has been introduced.

“Martial law has not been introduced in our country for a very long time, 80 years, so it is simply necessary to reinforce these norms with responsibility. No responsibility was applied under this law and there were no special articles. Taking into account the current realities, it is necessary to introduce appropriate sanctions,” he said. The deputy also noted that all restrictions and prohibitions follow from the presidential decree – these are restrictions related to being on the street, movement, holding mass events, etc.

During the period of martial law, to the extent necessary to ensure the defense of the country and the security of the state, the rights and freedoms of citizens, the activities of organizations may be limited, they may be assigned additional duties, says the lawyer, partner of the Legal Assistance legal agency (Donetsk ) Alexey Vinokurov. He recalled that from June 9, a new version of the law “On martial law” came into force, which includes, among other things, a ban on meetings and other public events – a ban on citizens being on the streets and in other public places at certain times of the day, forced and controlled movement of citizens from the territory where martial law has been introduced to territories where martial law has not been introduced, etc.

Vinokurov noted that now liability is provided only for violation of the requirements of the state of emergency. “Martial law and state of emergency are different legal regimes, in connection with which, in terms of administrative responsibility, the Code of Administrative Offenses of the Russian Federation is supplemented by separate rules on liability for violations of the martial law regime,” the lawyer emphasized. “If amendments are adopted to the Code of Administrative Offenses of the Russian Federation related to liability for violations of the martial law regime, the new rules will apply accordingly in those regions where martial law has been introduced.”

These amendments may apply to any territories where martial law may be declared in the event of an intensification of any actions, says lawyer Yuri Kapshtyk. The expert drew attention to the fact that the amendments also empower the military, employees of the Russian Guard, and others – to verify the identity, maintain order, and deliver the violator or suspect. “This is quite natural, and taking into account the fact that the length of the Russian border is quite significant, therefore, streamlining the types of prosecution is a normal practice,” says Kapshtyk.

On October 19, 2022, Russian President Vladimir Putin signed a decree on the introduction of martial law in the Donetsk and Lugansk People’s Republics, Zaporozhye and Kherson regions after they became part of Russia. Then Putin recalled that it was introduced in these regions even before joining Russia: “Now we need to formalize this regime already within the framework of Russian legislation.”