Russia’s lawmakers have passed a bill authorizing prosecutors to issue emergency orders without a court ruling that block websites promoting rioting, racial hatred or extremism. Critics fear the law may infringe constitutional rights.
Under the bill, which has passed its third and final reading in
the State Duma, a special agency can be set up within the
Prosecutor General’s Office to surf the web in search of
provocative messages. Only the Prosecutor General and his
deputies will be able to order the blocking of websites.
The site owner will find out about the blocking after it happens.
The website would be unblocked immediately after the content
deemed to be illegal is removed.
Currently in Russia, it takes several days to obtain a court
ruling to block an internet site containing extremist materials.
Among the content that can be banned are incitements to
participate in “public events held in violation of the
established order,”“extremist” or terrorist
activities, according to the bill. Also, content that provokes
conflicts between nations or religions may be banned.
The law is set to be applied for websites hosted by servers in
foreign jurisdiction as well. In that case, a cease and desist
order would be sent in English, a co-sponsor of the bill, Liberal
Democratic party lawmaker Andrey Lugovoy told Interfax. If the
hosting company refuses to remove the content after the
notification, it will be blocked in Russia, he said.
The legislation extends the existing list of illegal content that
may be blocked without a court order. Currently, only child
pornography and information promoting drug abuse and suicide may
be blocked.
The law has been criticized by the Presidential Committee on
Human Rights, however, which called the new powers it gives the
Prosecutor General’s Office "fraught with serious
infringements to Constitutional rights and freedoms of the person
and citizen," according to a statement on the body’s
website.
The legislation will also “create the illusion of battling
extremism, instead of actually working to eliminate it,” the
committee said.
The law also came under fire from MPs. One lawmaker, Fair
Russia’s Dmitry Gudkov, pointed out that allowing the Prosecutor
General to determine what material is "extremist" and what is not
would contradict the Constitution.
The Russian Association of Electronic Communications, an industry
lobby group for Russian tech firms, added that there is no
specific mechanism in the law for handling media websites where
provocative statements may appear among users’ comments. This may
lead to legitimate websites being shut down due to deliberate
provocations, the group says.
Sponsors of the bill argue that the authority is only given to
most senior prosecutors and that Russians can rely on their
discretion to avoid abuses.
The bill now requires the approval of Russia’s upper house of
parliament, the Federation Council, and of President Vladimir
Putin before it becomes law. It is set to come into force on
February 1, 2014.
On August 1, 2013, the Russian internet community voiced anger against the government’s plans to block websites. Then, more than 1,700 websites joined an online strike against the anti-piracy legislation, which allowed the blocking of web pages with a court order.
Shortly after that move, an online petition against the law gathered 100,000 signatures to send the document for discussion.