Russian Press - Behind the Headlines, June 29

Izvestia

Public Chamber to Probe Anti-Gay Laws

Russia’s Public Chamber is planning to review the laws banning propaganda of homosexuality, which have been approved in a number of areas, including St. Petersburg, Samara, and the Ryazan, Novosibirsk, Arkhangelsk and Kostroma regions.

The Chamber believes these initiatives restrict people’s constitutional rights, primarily freedom of expression, and suggests, as a first step, that a clearer definition of what gay propaganda is should be provided.

According to Public Chamber member Yelena Lukyanova, Chapter 2 of the Constitution clearly states that people’s rights can be restricted if there is a threat to national security. “But does homosexuality have anything to do with national security?” she asks. In her opinion, a widespread public debate on these initiatives needs to be launched.

Another member, Yelena Topoleva-Soldunova, believes that separate laws banning gay propaganda should never have been passed. If experts come to the conclusion that the laws are unconstitutional, a campaign should be initiated to have them repealed.

Nikolai Svanidze, head of the Public Chamber’s Commission on Interethnic Relations and Freedom of Conscience, maintains that a ban should be imposed on everything that smacks of advocacy for aggression and violence, not on gay propaganda.

The Public Chamber is also closely following the passage of a draft law against the propaganda of homosexuality which was submitted to the State Duma. It has made no progress so far, as it has been given an unfavorable assessment by the legislature’s Legal Directorate. But if the bill does make it through to the first reading, the Public Chamber is ready to provide its expert assessment.

Legislator Vladimir Burmatov from the United Russia party has a different point of view. He claims that it is not up to the Public Chamber to decide whether or not the laws in question are constitutional. “There is an appeal in this regard to the Constitutional Court. Let us wait for its ruling. It makes no sense to organize other hearings,” he said.

Vedomosti

Supreme Court Passes Self-Defense Ruling

The Russian Supreme Court has ruled that citizens may defend both their life and their property from the police in case of unjustified use of force against them. The Ministry of the Interior fears this may encourage the Russian public, including protesters, to become more aggressive.

The Supreme Court believes that individuals may resist the police in case of unjustified use of force against them, reads the draft ruling of the court’s plenary meeting, which discussed the application of legislation on justifiable defense. “Citizens may also use active self-defense measures against the criminal actions of officials, for example, against the conscious illegal use of force by law enforcers,” the document reads. At the same time, the court said that self-defense against the legitimate actions of officials “even if these actions involve the infliction of damage,” for example when force is used to ensure public order, cannot be considered justifiable defense.

Despite this, the Ministry of the Interior is not satisfied with the new wording of the law. Deputy Interior Minister Igor Zubov, who attended the hearing, said he is worried that the draft “plants the idea in the public consciousness of the admissibility of active resistance to law enforcers.” He believes that focusing people’s attention on this possibility “will inevitably provoke conflicts even where the police use force legitimately in different situations, including against unauthorized assemblies.” Zubov expects an increase in the number of complaints to the courts, including international courts.

The Prosecutor General’s Office has supported the Supreme Court ruling. “People can be detained, but mistreating them should not go unpunished,” Deputy Prosecutor General Sabir Kekhlerov said. However, the formula put forward by the court is not unequivocal, as it is unclear who will decide if a police officer’s actions were “knowingly illegal” or how they can make this judgment.

The debates have been fueled by the Supreme Court’s explanations of what actions can be considered “injurious to the public” and hence grounds for justifiable defense. According to the court, injurious actions are ones that endanger the life of the defendant or any other person, such as actions involving the use of weapons, explosions, arson, strangulation, or if someone’s head is forced under water and kept there for a long time, or when someone is pushed from a height. But if you hear someone break into your home at night, should you wait until they try to strangle you? Kekhlerov asks. Deputy Justice Minister Yury Lyubimov agrees that the list of injurious actions should be extended and that kidnapping should also be considered a justification for self-defense.

The Supreme Court could also allow people to protect their property by means of snares, traps and even explosive devices. However, if the harm inflicted on the attacker is disproportionate to the threat they pose, such actions could be classified as exceeding the limits of self-defense.

Moskovsky Komsomolets

Church Pities Pussy Riot but Cannot Help

The Moscow Patriarchate of the Russian Orthodox Church finally voiced its official position on the Pussy Riot case: it’s unfortunate that they’ve been detained for so long, but there is nothing we can do for them now. We will comment on it again later.

Patriarch Kirill refuses to comment on the Pussy Riot case until there is a court ruling, his spokesman Alexander Volkov told the media, but agreed that the young women had been locked up for too long.

“They have been behind bars for a long time, but the Church can’t do anything about it,” he said.

He officially refuted the media reports and blog posts that insist that the Moscow Patriarchate was involved in opening the case against the female punk band. The Russian Orthodox Church has never called for any violence against the group members, Volkov stressed. While well publicized extreme statements have been made unofficially by individuals, they cannot in any way be associated with the Church’s official position.

Until recently, the only Church official to comment on the Pussy Riot scandal was Father Vsevolod Chaplin, head of the Church public relations department. His latest statement was that God told him in a divine revelation that he condemns the members of Pussy Riot.

Patriarch Kirill in March described the band’s actions as “desecration” and “mockery.” “This country and its people will have no future if we start mocking our holy shrines,” he said.

Three young women were arrested after staging a “punk-prayer” in the Cathedral of Christ the Savior on February 21. They performed a song called Mother of God, Cast Putin Out! in which they criticized the president elect as well as Patriarch Kirill.

Nadezhda Tolokonnikova, Yekaterina Samutsevich and Maria Alyokhina are being held pending trial, despite the fact that they have young children. They face up to seven years behind bars on charges of disorderly conduct.

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