Ruble punishment

Fine is becoming the main type of punishment for offenses in the political sphere. The judicial system works on the principle: if you are guilty, pay. The most widely discussed example is the new version of the law “on meetings, rallies, processions and demonstrations” and the corresponding amendments to the Code of Administrative Offenses of the Russian Federation.

Even in criminal prosecution there are tendencies towards “monetization”: “extremists”, that is, those convicted under Article 282 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation, are increasingly being punished with “rubles”.

Murmansk . Judge Elena Melnik handed down a sentence under Part 2 of Article 282.2 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation (for participation in the activities of the NBP) to Other Russia activist Inna Marinina. The judge found her guilty and awarded Marinina a fine of 15 thousand rubles.

Vladivostok . The situation here is worse than before. Alexander Kurov and Igor Popov were found guilty of extremist activity by the Leninsky District Court (for participation in the activities of the NBP)

The court decided to impose fines of 350 thousand rubles and 150 thousand rubles.

Saint Petersburg . Since the beginning of April, there have been endless hearings on the case of the “twelve” . The charges are under Parts 1 and 2 of Article 282.2 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation. For participating in the same activities of the NBP. What awaits the participants in the process: huge monetary fines or real sentences?

Can we assume that the authorities have become convinced of the ineffectiveness of such punishments as administrative arrest and suspended sentences, are not daring to mass imprisonment (fearing unflattering comparisons with the Gulag) and have decided to test the oppositionists with financial responsibility? Is “hitting the pocket” more effective than hitting the kidneys, and has this made “torture and hang” less common?

Oppositionists who have already been fined and those accused in the St. Petersburg “case of twelve” shared their opinions.

Alexander Kurov , activist of the Other Russia fined 350 thousand rubles:

I would not indulge in optimism ahead of time. Currently, more than a dozen participants in the “March of Millions” on May 6 on Bolotnaya Square are under arrest. Olga Shilova, an activist of “The Other Russia” and formerly the NBP, who was sentenced to a suspended sentence for self-defense at the Tagansky Court in 2006, had her suspended sentence changed in early 2012. period of actual imprisonment.

Firstly, I would not put “administrative arrest” and such a criminal punishment as “probation” on the same level. Administrative arrest lasts no more than 15 days and cannot somehow stop an ideological, revolutionary activist who is ready to risk life, health, and freedom for his beliefs, if necessity really demands it. If such a measure as “administrative arrest” is applied en masse to a wide range of “dissenters” with the regime, then this will only lead to the radicalization of the protest camp, to the elimination of the “weak in spirit” and the crystallization of a layer of “professional revolutionaries”, or those who are potentially ready to replenish such a layer.

As for the “probation,” this punishment is much more severe than administrative arrest or a fine (administrative or criminal), since the authorities have the opportunity at any time, at their own discretion, on absolutely far-fetched pretexts, to replace the suspended sentence with a real one, which we we see in the example of the same Olga Shalina. This is a way to hang the oppositionist on a “hook”.

The fine, in my opinion, is aimed at cutting off from active support for the activities of the revolutionary activists representatives of those segments of the population who were previously indifferent to the political life of the country. Including many of those who live in the provinces, who have a family, a wife, 2-3 children and a job with low wages, the payment of which they manage to delay from time to time. Therefore, I think that the policy of government officials and oligarchs in terms of punishment for dissenters is different in relation to different opposition groups and also depends on the socio-economic situation in the country as a whole.

In relation to people in the opposition “newcomers” - fines, in relation to radical activists - suspended or prison sentences. With a sharp drop in the standard of living of the bulk of the population, these more stringent measures also apply to “non-professionals” from the opposition, in addition to the introduction into practice of illegal methods of dealing with dissidents, examples of which were quite a few during Putin’s rule in the 2000s (to for example, the murder of Yura Chervochkin).

The dictatorship of officials and oligarchs is not preparing for regime liberalization. It increases the contentment of the internal troops, provides them with weapons and the latest developments to suppress future riots. The mood of the highest “elite” is clear: crush the protest, crush it with blood and crunching bones, if necessary. How far the authorities will be able to do this in reality is another question, but the opposition should now begin to prepare an adequate response to the authorities’ plans.

As for us, with my comrade in the “Other Russia” party Igor Popov, as they say: “they will receive the ears of a dead donkey.” The same Marx even somehow described property, but this in no way prevented the commission of communist revolutions in the future. And fines cannot intimidate us, they cannot stop us. Back on October 8, 2010, during a search, the operatives of Center “E” told me, pack your things, you’ll go to the pre-trial detention center. I, an inexperienced person, believed them then, calmly packed my things and thought that I would spend the next n-months on Partizansky Avenue (this is our pre-trial detention center there, Vladivostok).

In Vladivostok, we, both I and Igor, plan to continue our struggle, the struggle of the “Other Russia” for the liberation of the country from the power of officials and oligarchs, for the transfer to the disposal of the people of all the wealth, resources and enterprises of the country. No matter what it costs us in the end. Today, the fate of Russia depends directly on the number of people who are ready to die for it.

Andrey Dmitriev , accused under Part 1 of Article 282.2 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation:

Now it is too early to talk about the verdict in our case, although - based on the logic of the actions of the Russian judicial machine - there is every reason to believe that it will be guilty. We must understand that the government does not have the goal of imprisoning all its opponents. She “just” wants us to remain silent and not stop the swindlers and thieves from the Kremlin from cheating and stealing from the population of the country. Therefore, they often try to put active oppositionists “on the hook” - they keep them under recognizance not to leave (like us), impose huge fines, and give suspended sentences. The resonance of this kind of repression is small; after all, people are free and not in prison, and society does not particularly notice or condemn this. At the same time, the persecuted themselves are in limbo - barely anything - and they can be easily “closed” due to some real or fabricated administrative charge (as happened with “Other Russia” activist Olga Shalina) or an unpaid fine.

This is all disgusting and extremely unpleasant, but it will not stop us from carrying out political activities, just as the real sentences of our comrades who were and are in prison now did not stop us.

Andrey Pesotsky , accused under Part 1 of Article 282.2 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation:

Of course, in some cases it is unprofitable to make martyrs out of defendants, sufferers for an idea, so it is easier to give a suspended sentence or hit them with a ruble. In this case, the defendants do not receive widespread public support, but at the same time they are largely "cut out of the game." It is difficult to engage in opposition politics when any arrest at a rally threatens to be sent to a colony, or when bailiffs regularly knock on the door to begin seizing property. It seems to me that fines are awarded in cases where the process is completely unlimited and illegal, and even giving a suspended sentence is somehow inconvenient, but cannot be justified.

In general, the ruling regime, including the judicial (also known as repressive) power, is not a monolithic structure with a clear strategy of behavior. Each specific verdict against an oppositionist in each region of Russia is influenced by many forces - this is the position of local security forces, the prosecutor's office, the opinion of the court, and the influence of local authorities. If the process is resonant and socially significant, then federal forces, including the presidential administration, intervene in the matter. We know that our St. Petersburg “Process of 12” is supervised, among other things, at this level.

Alexey Marochkin , accused under Part 1 of Article 282.2 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation:

I don’t think that the authorities are convinced of the ineffectiveness of punishments such as administrative arrest and probation, and there are many examples of this in cases not even related to Other Russia. I have a feeling that this is a trial run of a new scheme; Article 282 has long been called the main instrument of repression. I think no one doubts that our state is totalitarian and repressive, and recent events suggest that the further we go, the more we will slide into outright tyranny. Therefore, monetary fines of such magnitude are perhaps an attempt to mimic and adapt the legislation to international standards. After all, for an ordinary person, especially one who does not live in St. Petersburg or Moscow, this amount is quite impressive, it is comparable to a year and a half’s salary. And the appearance of humanity is created - they didn’t put him in prison, they didn’t spoil his biography with a suspended sentence, but they gave him a fine, like for some kind of illegal parking. And, it seems, everything is fine, everything is fine, but a person of average income is on a financial hook and needs to fuck off in order to pay the tribute imposed on him to the state. What kind of opposition activity is there when bailiffs can come to you every minute and take away everything from your refrigerator to your pets? The fact that these trends are simply another form of the fight against dissent is also indicated by the recent case with one of the defendants in the case of the village of Kushchevskaya, where the accused of covering up torture, murder and arson was given a fine of only 150 thousand rubles. And given the current information boom in connection with protest sentiments among the masses, fines will not cause such a resonance as another landing.

Ravil Bashirov , accused under Part 2 of Article 282.2 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation:

This is capitalism in action - the extension of monetary relations to all spheres of human relations. Everything is sold and everything is bought. Including guilt before the state and before society can be redeemed - in the literal sense. That is this decision contains the internal logic of the System, based on an ultra-liberal economic doctrine. In the future, it remains to develop an appropriate tariff schedule. However, it already exists - the courts practice “punishment” for their own - cops, prosecutors, United Russia members, etc., and punishment for mere mortals. Those. How much you will pay will depend on your status in the System. Now this is done secretly, in the shadows of offices; soon such a practice will be legalized.

It is hard to believe that the System is guided by considerations of humanity or understands that its enemies are going to prison, guided by Nietzsche’s philosophy “what does not kill us makes us stronger.” On the other hand, the FSIN has so many problems that cannot be solved that, perhaps, they are smart enough to stay away from the “political” ones and not create “prisoners of conscience.”

They will imprison you if there is an “order” for you. For example, such a powerful structure as the Russian Orthodox Church ordered the notorious PussyRiot - and they will sit, even though the public will burst, defending them. Competitors ordered the entrepreneur to friendly cops - and he will sit. Center E, somewhere in the provinces, will order a boring, overly active oppositionist for itself - and he, too, will be imprisoned. And if there is no “personal” interest in you, you may well get off with a prison sentence or a fine.