Mari El: fine for Kolovrat

On January 17, 2013, it became known that on December 26, 2012, the World Court of Volzhsk (Republic of Mari El) found Anastasia Konovalova, a student from Volzhsk, guilty of an offense provided for by Art. 20.3 of the Code of Administrative Offenses of the Russian Federation (public demonstration of the Nazi paraphernalia or symbols confusingly similar to Nazi), and sentenced to a fine of 500 rubles.

Konovalova walked down the street of Kazan, without violating order, and carried a package with the inscription "Be in a bright side" and the image of Kolovrat. The package seemed to the police suspicious (according to the representative of the Ministry of Internal Affairs of Kazan, reminiscent of the symbols "presumably Nazi"), the girl was detained. Subsequently, the head of the press service of the Internal Affairs Directorate Kazan, Igor Silko clarified that Konovalova was detained on November 7, 2012 in the Kazan Magistrate's Court, where the administrative cases of the participants of the " Russian March " were considered.

The pagan Kolovrat is not recognized as extremist in the Russian Federation, and its use as a symbol not prohibited. In our opinion, this case is an example of a broad interpretation of the updated Art. 20.3 of the Code of Administrative Offenses.

Sources

• In Kazan, a student was fined for the Slavic symbol on the bag // IA REGNUM. 2013. January 17.
• A student from Mari El is on trial for a bag with a picture of a Slavic Kolovrat bought in Yekaterinburg // Interfax. 2013. January 29.