The government supported the bill on criminal liability for Russophobia

The government gave a positive opinion on the bill introducing criminal liability for Russophobia, the Presidential Council for Human Rights (HRC) reported. The document is supported subject to its revision.

The bill involves the introduction of Article 136.1 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation “Russophobia”. It provides for liability for discriminatory actions committed by foreigners outside the Russian Federation against “a citizen of the Russian Federation, a stateless person permanently residing in Russia, or a compatriot who is not a citizen of the Russian Federation.” There will also be liability for public calls for discriminatory actions.

“We are talking about introducing a new legal norm in the Criminal Code; in the foreseeable future, the bill will be adopted by the State Duma. Today, Russophobia abroad, from a phenomenon that at first seemed private to us here, has turned into a mass phenomenon,” says a statement by HRC member Kiril Vyshinsky in Telegram channel advice. Examples include the expulsion of Russians by Latvia and the closure of accounts and confiscation of cars in Germany.

Mr. Vyshinsky noted that the bill was developed on the instructions of the president, which he gave in 2022. The development process “was quite lengthy” and there were “serious discussions among lawyers,” the HRC member added.

The bill was developed by State Duma Vice Speaker Irina Yarovaya (United Russia). The review of the government commission on legislative activities notes that “in the draft article 136.1 of the Criminal Code it is necessary to specify the penalty in the form of a fine provided for by the sanction of part one of this article of the Criminal Code, as well as the terms of punishment in the form of imprisonment.” In addition, according to the government, “the subject of the crime provided for in the second part of the draft article 136.1 of the Criminal Code requires clarification, since it is unclear whether we are talking about a general subject of the crime or a special subject specified in the first part of this article.”