Russian President Vladimir Putin signed a set of laws banning LGBT propaganda, as well as sex reassignment and pedophilia.
Many people are wondering: Will this law work? How will it work? How do we use it to stop LGBT propaganda? People worry about whether everything will be declared LGBT propaganda, and whether they will be charged with propaganda if, for example, they listen to Queen and watch foreign TV shows where a couple of “sex minorities” are inserted in every episode.
Let’s get this straight.
First of all, it must be said that the approach in the new laws is quite balanced and verified. There is quite a clear definition of propaganda–which is forbidden at all times and everywhere. The criteria for the promotion of non-traditional relationships are their “advertising” natura in presentation or obtrusiveness. The criteria for propaganda of pedophilia are any “advertising” or justification of it, and obsessive interest in it. The term “demonstration” is also given–these are “non-propagandistic” descriptions and depictions of immoral attitudes, whether for educational, scientific, or artistic purposes. They are allowed for adults and prohibited for minors.
We see a calibrated and correct decision.
The law clearly distinguishes simple neutral references (without descriptions or images) from propaganda. The former are not forbidden if they are not demonstrative, if they occur in an appropriate context and are age appropriate. But schools, teachers, doctors, and book publishers will be wary of getting too close to a forbidden demonstration, so there is a “safety zone,” and rightly so. The very pattern of response to banned propaganda becomes active on the part of the state. The state itself will have to identify banned propaganda, block it on the internet and activate the mechanism of accountability for propagandists. Society can (and will) participate in protecting itself from bad propaganda–but it will no longer rely solely on its own civic forces in this task.
Prohibited propaganda is beginning to be actively scrubbed out of court. The responsibility for propaganda becomes much more serious and will become more inescapable. Some (mostly technical) aspects of the application of the new laws are not yet completely clear. We will see in practice, and if anything needs to be adjusted, we will make the necessary adjustments.
Will it work?
Many say that the previous law–banning propaganda to children–did not work. And they fear that the new one won’t work either. For starters, it’s wrong to say that the previous law didn’t work. It worked–albeit creakily and not always. And active community activists have achieved a lot with its help–closing groups and websites, seeking to bring propagandists to justice. But it did have weaknesses, and the new law partially eliminates them.
Why do we expect the new law to work more effectively?
1. The first reason that the previous law did not work in all instances is because it was impossible to prove that the propaganda was aimed specifically at children. With the new law, which prohibits any promotion of “non-traditional sexual relationships,” this will definitely become easier.
2. The second reason is this–the previous law worked only on our appeals, to which the administrative machine responded reluctantly and not always. The new law requires owners of websites and social networks–including the previously consistently tolerant “non-traditional relationships” social network VKontakte–to constantly and actively identify such information and block it. In addition, it introduces active monitoring of the internet, requiring the identification of any prohibited information (including LGBT propaganda) and “enables” the procedure for restricting access to it. The procedure for such monitoring must be approved by Roskomnadzor, and the organization that will conduct it is chosen by the Russian government. If banned information is detected, the message is sent to the competent authorities, which “turn on” the procedure for blocking it; in other words, this will no longer be done by responsible citizens alone, but it will have to be actively implemented by the state through authorized structures.
3. And the third and main reason. Previously, LGBT propaganda was not on the legislative list of blocked information, but now it is; that is, before, people only had to scramble to get fines against propagandists, but now the propaganda itself will be required to be actively removed, and in a pre-trial order. Taken together, this promises to significantly increase the effectiveness of the crackdown on LGBT propaganda under the new law.
How exactly will it work?
Owners of internet resources and social networks are required to actively detect violations. Once identified, they are required to block access to illegal information immediately, without waiting for the reaction of the competent authorities.
The state should monitor, and citizens are encouraged to participate. The procedure is simple: if banned propaganda is detected, you should inform Roskomnadzor. Roskomnadzor specialists further evaluate the information. If the message is confirmed, the page is included in the unified register of websites containing information the distribution of which is prohibited in the Russian Federation. This is reported to the website hosting provider, who must inform the site owner. Upon receiving this information, the site owner must remove the page; and if this is not done, the hosting provider will block access to it within 24 hours. All this takes place in a pre-trial order, the red tape under the law is reduced to a minimum–to the necessary checks. How fast everything will be in reality, it remains to be seen in practice.
If a webpage is entered in the registry of banned information by mistake, the owner of the website or social network or hosting provider may appeal in court.
The responsibility of propagandists is introduced into the Code of Administrative Offences of the Russian Federation–in a new version. For propaganda of non-traditional relationships or preferences, as well as gender reassignment–a fine of up to 100,000 for natural persons and from 800,000 to 1 million rubles for an organization is envisaged. If the propaganda is aimed at children–the fine amounts to 200,000 for a natural person and between 1 and 2 million for legal persons.
If the propaganda was conducted through the internet, the fines are immediately higher: up to 200,000 for natural persons, and between 1 and 4 million for organizations. Propaganda in the media, including on the internet, will be fined even more harshly: a fine of up to 400,000 for a natural person and between 2 and 5 million for an organization, or the suspension of its activities for up to 90 days. Foreign violators are expelled from Russia in addition to being fined. This applies to any promotion of non-traditional sexual relationships or attitudes, including sex change.
Additionally, there are new provisions. The propaganda of pedophilia–immediately entailing high fines–for natural persons will be fined with 200,000–400,000 rubles, and for legal persons with 1–4 million rubles or the suspension of activities for up to 90 days. If pedophilia is promoted on the internet, the fines are doubled and more: 400,000–800,000 for natural persons, 4–10 million rubles for legal persons, or the suspension of activities for up to 90 days. Foreign offenders are also additionally expelled from the country.
Demonstration (not propaganda!) to minors of non-traditional sexual attitudes or preferences, dissemination among them of information that may cause them to desire a “sex change” is also punishable by law. The fines for this are roughly the same as for propaganda among adults, plus expulsion from Russia for foreign offenders.
The law also introduces prohibitions:
- on the publication of banned propaganda in the media in the relevant law;
- on the sale of any goods (books, games, videos, etc.) that contain any prohibited information, including propaganda of LGBT or pedophilia, including imported goods;
- on granting film licenses for films containing banned propaganda;
- on the use in advertising of not only propaganda, but also any demonstration of non-traditional sexual relationships or preferences, pedophilia, sex change.
What are the responsibilities?
Roskomnadzor and the police will be obliged to initiate cases under the Code of Administrative Offences. Note that when Roskomnadzor adds a new page with prohibited information to the registry, it also informs the police. The prosecutor also has the right to initiate proceedings in any administrative case of this kind. These cases will be heard by the courts. Of course, this may delay the imposition of the fine for a while. But there is a proper balance here, because the court must take into account the presumption of innocence and can approach the situation more objectively than the body that included the information in the register. On the other hand, there is no reason to believe that the courts will “whitewash” real propaganda that has already been competently evaluated and entered into the register.
All of the above applies only to non-criminal cases. The purposeful corrupting of particular children through the use of forbidden information, for example, would still be a criminal offense (depraved acts without violence).
Will adult demonstration be separated from propaganda in practice?
The law makes a distinction between propaganda of non-traditional sexual relationships (and other things) and the demonstration of such relationships.
The law quite clearly defines propaganda of “non-traditional sexual relations” to include:
- dissemination of information and (or) the commission of public actions, if this information or these actions are aimed at the formation of non-traditional sexual attitudes, the attractiveness of non-traditional sexual relationships and (or) preferences or sex change, or a distorted view of the social equivalence of traditional and non-traditional sexual relationships and (or) preferences;
- or imposing information about non-traditional sexual relationships and (or) preferences or sex change, causing interest in such relationships and (or) preferences or sex change.
That is, we are talking about the active dissemination of information or public actions that purposefully present perversions in a positive, attractive way. Including by equating these attitudes or behaviors with normal ones. The necessary clarifications can be found in the decisions of the courts. Thus, the Constitutional Court clarified that the concept of propaganda “does not exclude the presentation of relevant information in a neutral (educational, artistic, historical) context,” if such information “is not aimed at forming preferences related to the choice of non-traditional forms of sexual identity.”
If the audience is adults, the demonstration is not prohibited. Medical textbooks, historical works, and works of fiction–if they do not have a clear propaganda character–will not be fined.
Pedophilia propaganda is defined as:
- distribution of information aimed at condoning and/or justifying pedophilia or “making pedophilia attractive”;
- or the imposition of information about pedophilia, causing interest in pedophilia.
On a separate note, we emphasize that discussion among adult audiences of the negative aspects of destructive gay culture, and the fight against LGBT propaganda is not prohibited, as it does not contain a positive message, and interest is shown not to the relationships themselves, but to the negative consequences of the corresponding attitudes, propaganda and subcultures, and the need to protect the public morality from them.
The law prohibits the description of non-traditional sexual relationships and/or preferences, as well as any portrayal thereof and information that may cause children to desire a sex change, with respect to minors. Such open lists in jurisprudence do not imply complete “rubber stamping,” they apply by analogy. That is, a court or a competent authority may classify as prohibited information something that is similar in content or focus to the one listed. It is clear from the content of the law that a simple neutral-informative or negative reference is not a prohibited display unless it is intentional or demonstrative.
That is, it is not forbidden to tell the children in religion class that the people of Sodom committed unnatural sins and that their city was destroyed by heavenly fire because of that. Taking into account the already mentioned decisions of the highest courts, we note that a simple reference would not be a forbidden display only if it takes into account “the specifics of the mental and physiological development of children in a particular age group” and “the nature of the particular issue being highlighted.” Thus deliberate “neutral references” to homosexuality and gender identity to young children would be considered a demonstration, while an appropriate reference in an educational context to a teenager–without demonstration or propaganda–would be acceptable.
At the same time, banning propaganda and display creates a useful “risk zone” for educators, schools, book publishers, etc. Given the large fines, they will be afraid to do something that is not related to the demonstration, but looks like it.
What can citizens do?
To block an LGBT-resource, you can reach out to the electronic reception desks with an appeal.
- Roskomnadzor’s electronic reception desk: https://rkn.gov.ru/treatments/ask-question/
- Electronic reception desk of the Ministry of Internal Affairs (Police): https://мвд.рф/request_main
- Rospotrebnadzor electronic reception desk: https://petition.rospotrebnadzor.ru/petition/
Sample appeals: https://t.me/parfentiev_club/3427