The State Duma offered millions of fines for the silence of foreign media violating the day

The State Duma offered to fine foreign media for violating the day of silence for the amount of 4% of the turnover or from 2.3 to 3.5 million rubles. This was written by the newspaper Izvestia with reference to the first deputy chairman of United Russia Adalby Shkhagoshev.

The law “On the Referendum of Citizens of the Russian Federation” will add the concept of “foreign media” to the law “On the Basic Guarantees of Electoral Rights and the Rights to Participation”, which will be understood as publications that are registered in foreign states. And Article 5.11 of the Code of Administrative Offenses on the conduct of election campaign will be supplemented by the wording of "the imposition of an administrative fine on legal entities in the amount of 2.3 million rubles to 3.5 million rubles or 4% of the amount of revenue of the media turnover for the year of their activities."

Adalby Shhgoshev accused foreign media of mass violations of Russian legislation and ignoring the entire system of power in Russia in the implementation of the media. As an example, he cited ignoring the requests of the State Duma, which demanded from the publication Deutsche Welle to answer questions on some publications that violate Russian legislation, but they did not receive an answer in the lower house. In September, the official representative of the holding, Christoph Yumpelt, said that the company did not interfere in the internal affairs of Russia.

On October 17, the State Duma Commission to investigate the facts of foreign interference in the internal affairs of the Russian Federation, called the media that could fall under new norms of the law for violation of electoral legislation, including on the day of silence . According to the head of the commission, Vasily Piskarev, we are talking about the materials of Radio Liberty, the Voice of America, the Internet publications "Medusa" and "MBH Media", the TV channels "present time" and the Russian BBC News service. On these facts, the commission intends to apply to Roskomnadzor and the Prosecutor General.

The first deputy chairman of the Committee on International Affairs of the Lower House of Parliament Dmitry Novikov believes that the State Duma and the Federation Council are obliged to specify this norm, spaces in which foreign media are eager to use the opinion of voters. Political scientist Dmitry Fetisov considers a fine of 4% of the revenue amount an effective measure, since serious fines can greatly hit the economic indicators of Western media and they will begin to evaluate the risks in violation of the law.

Now violation of Art. 5.11 Administrative Code faces citizens with a fine of 1 to 1.5 thousand rubles, officials - from 2 to 3 thousand, and legal entities - from 20 to 30 thousand rubles. The State Duma notes that in France for violation of the day of the silence of a citizen can be fined € 75 thousand, and the media threatens the punishment of up to € 400 thousand.