Insulting the feelings of believers

Who is judged in Russia for the rituals of Voodoo and attacks on the Buddha

The video blogger Ruslan Sokolovsky, who caught Pokemon in the temple, is accused under a fairly rare article 148 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation - insulting the feelings of believers. The article was introduced by the State Duma into the Criminal Code in response to the case of the Pussy Riot group (for the video with dancing in the temple of its three participants, they tried under the article “Hooliganism”). Until 2015, this article was almost not used, but recently it appears in the news more and more often. At the request of Medusa, Vera Chelyishcheva studied the journalist of Novaya Gazeta, for which the 148th was used before the occasion with Pokemon.

"Evil Christ"

In February 2016, in Orenburg, the court sentenced the former teacher of the local medical university Sergey Lazarov. Back in 2013, he published an article on a certain “Occultist Belozersky” under the name “The Evil Christ” on his website. The text included sharp epithets-“killer”, “god-handler”, “tyrant”. The author associated the ROC with Satan.

The initiator of the initiation of a criminal case was an employee of the Center for Combating the Extremism of the Regional Administration of the Ministry of Internal Affairs Artem Bekeev. There were no victims of believers in the case. Bekeeev handed over the text of the article for examination, and she showed that "the article contains statements that could contribute to the initiation of religious, racial, national hatred or enmity."

In April 2016, the court found Lazarov guilty under Part 1 of Article 148 of the Criminal Code and sentenced to a fine of 35 thousand rubles with exemption from punishment due to the expiration of the statute of limitations for criminal prosecution. Lazarov, who never pleaded guilty, tried to appeal the verdict - but the higher instance upheld him.

Rites in Malinovka

In July 2016, the court in the Kirov region recognized two local residents of Konstantin Kazantsev and Rustem Shaidullin guilty of the fact that in the fall of 2015 they hung a homemade scarecrow with an insulting inscription on the worship cross in the village of Staraya Malinovka. What goals were pursued by men is unknown, but the investigation, and then the court saw in their actions the signs of precisely the first part of the 148th article-public actions expressing a clear disrespect for society in order to insult the religious feelings of believers. The verdict reported that the accused pursued "the goal of abuse over the religious shrine revered by believers - the Orthodox cross as a symbol of faith, on which Christ accepted the painful death."

Both men were sentenced to 230 hours of compulsory work of everyone. They completely agreed with the indictment, found themselves guilty, “repented of the deed” and asked to pronounce the verdict without a trial.

Wrestler with the Buddha

He pleaded guilty to insult the religious feelings of believers and the Dagestan athlete Said Osmanov. The case against him was opened in April 2016 after the incident in Elista, where the Ottomans who came to the freestyle wrestling competitions went along with the teammates to the Buddhist Temple, urinated there and hit his nose with a statue of Buddha. In addition, the wrestler also filmed everything that was happening on the video, which very angry the inhabitants of Elista. They came to the hotel building, in which the athletes stopped, and demanded apologies.

Osmanov brought them, however, a criminal case was first instituted against him under the 148th article, and then they also added to it the 282nd (excitement of hatred or hostility). The athlete was arrested before the sentence. The Elistinsky City Court of Kalmykia sentenced him to two years conditionally with a trial period of one year.

Magical impact on the authorities of Ukraine

In mid -April 2016, the Kirovsky District Court of Yekaterinburg (the same that he made a decision to arrest the video blogger Sokolovsky) for compulsory treatment of Anton Simakov, calling himself the "master of magic Voodoo." Before that, a criminal case was opened against the master under the 148th article. His misconduct was that in his office, Simakov made a certain rite, the purpose of which, according to him, was in the magical influence of Ukraine. The ritual used the Voodoo doll, the blood of a sacrificial animal, as well as objects of the Orthodox cult - a burial cover, a whisk, which is worn on the dead in the church, a printed copy of the permissive prayer, which is read in the church at the time of the funeral service, and a small wooden cross.

Earlier, Simakov, in the presence of journalists, made a public rite of sacrifice, decapitating the rooster. He also hung on the bridge the scarecrow of Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko, explaining his act by the fact that he needed to "destroy the Ukrainian president."

The court did not custody Simakov, prescribing forced treatment for him.

The case is "no BOH"

The blogger from Stavropol Viktor Krasnov, who used the phrase “Boch no” during the dispute in the “VKontakte” community, was also sent to a forced psychiatric examination in early 2016. His opponents in Internet dissection complained about insulting their feelings to the police.

Krasnov spent a month in a psychiatric hospital, the examination recognized him as sane, and the case was referred to the court. Krasnov said in his materials, “intentionally, realizing the social danger of his actions, anticipating the onset of socially dangerous consequences and wishing their advance, as well as leading their actions, having a negative attitude towards the persons of believers, namely Orthodox Christians, experiencing an hostile attitude towards them, expressing a clear disrespect for society, deliberately violating the generally recognized norms and rules of conduct, Wanting to contrast himself with others and demonstrate a neglect of them, <...> made statements that are offensive in nature against Orthodox Christianity, thereby humiliating the feelings of believers. "

Krasnov told Medusa that his business is now suspended. “The materials of the correspondence of VKontakte were sent for a second examination. But when the end is unknown. Everyone agrees that they will pull until October 31, when the statute of limitations comes out, and they will quietly close the matter. For the scandal turned out to be serious, ”the blogger said.

"These are just hooligans"

Alexander Verkhovsky, head of the Analytical Center “OVA”, which monitors how to apply anti -extremist legislation : “According to our analysis, in most cases 148 the article attracts by the ears. Most cases are controversial. What goals, for example, pursued people who planted a scarecrow with an insulting inscription on the worship cross - no. These are just hooligans. And “Master of Magic Wood”, strictly speaking, insulted religious symbols, and not the feelings of believers. If every stupid joke to respond to a “socially dangerous act”, then we will go far. ”

Alexander Mikhailov, lawyer, head of the practice of criminal law Bureau “Lawyer P.” : “The concept of insulting an individual is determined by the corresponding article of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation and as a whole, and insulting feelings is a new concept for the Russian legal system. Even at the ordinary level, it is difficult to understand for yourself how you can insult not a person, but a feeling. Suppose to insult the feeling of the believer is really possible, but this means that you can also insult the feeling of unbeliever, hungry and so on. The above analogy indicates the absurdity of this legislative formulation. It seems to me that Article 148 was introduced by lawmakers in the Criminal Code for some extraordinary reasons. ”

Vera Chelishcheva

Moscow