Editorial
The Kremlin has proposed to the Duma an amendment to the penal code which includes as crimes aversion to government policies in the war against Ukraine, discrediting the armed forces and supporting foreign sanctions against the state. The amendment received the support of the majority of the lower house of the Russian Federal Assembly and will soon become law.
The goal of the bill is to allow the government to be able to confiscate money and property used or intended to finance activities that are illegal or deemed to threaten the security of Russia, where established by a ruling of the competent court.
It would also allow law enforcement to seize payments received from journalists or researchers convicted of disseminating “false information” about the invasion of Ukraine, or to confiscate other more valuable assets, such as cars or apartments.
Since Vladimir Putin's large-scale invasion of Ukraine in February 2022, the government has passed a series of laws aimed at punishing critics of the war or those who spread information about alleged Russian war crimes in Ukraine.
“It is necessary to punish malicious individuals, including cultural figures, who support the Nazis, throw mud at our country, soldiers and officers involved in the war", he has declared Vyacheslav Volodin, chairman of the State Duma. “Whoever tries to destroy Russia, betrays it, must be punished as he deserves and compensate for the damage caused to the country at the expense of his own property”, he added.
Russians would have their property confiscated if they were found guilty of spreading false information or discrediting the Russian military, or of supporting sanctions against Russia, of making calls for extremism or Nazism, or of carrying out acts considered threatening to the security of the State.
Furthermore, those who "support the execution of decisions of international organizations that do not include Russia”, such as the arrest warrant issued by the International Criminal Court against Putin.
The Guardian heard from some Russian lawyers who confirmed the effectiveness of the new law: With a court decision it will be possible to confiscate all property of a person found guilty under the new charges. The law will allow Russian courts to also revoke public rewards from those guilty of the crimes in question.
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