Translated material
The case of a student who urinated on the Eternal Flame in Kaluga has been brought to court
A 22-year-old resident of Maloyaroslavets is accused of rehabilitating Nazism.
On June 7, 2022, the investigative department of the Investigative Committee for the Kaluga Region announced that the case had been transferred to court under Part 4 of Art. 354.1 on the rehabilitation of Nazism (public desecration of the symbols of military glory of Russia, insulting the memory of the defenders of the Fatherland, committed using the Internet), which was initiated on May 20, 2022 (originally under part 3 of article 354.1 of the Criminal Code) against a 22-year-old student, a resident of Maloyaroslavets who urinated on the Eternal Flame.
According to the investigation, “on the night of May 19, 2022, the accused was on Victory Square in the city of Kaluga, which is of special cultural and historical significance, symbolizing the great feat of the Soviet people in the fight against the Nazi invaders, where he performed an act of urination into the bowl of the Eternal Flame memorial ". These actions were filmed by an acquaintance of the accused in the photo and video. Then the accused installed the photo in his profile on the social network, distributing it among an unlimited number of users."
The accused was detained on May 20 and confessed to his deed. Later, he recorded an apology video in which he said that he did not remember why he had done such an act, since he was intoxicated.
From our point of view, the act of a young man is immoral and worthy of public condemnation. However, criminal prosecution is justified only in the case of crimes that pose a significant danger to society. At the same time, the "desecration" of monuments, even if this term is understood not only as their direct damage, in cases of increased public danger is already punishable under Art. 214 of the Criminal Code (vandalism). Art. 354.1 of the Criminal Code provides for even more severe punishment for desecration of symbols of military glory, which seems to us disproportionate to the degree of public danger of the act. In addition, the list of symbols of military glory has not yet been defined by Russian legislation. As for insulting the memory of non-specified defenders of the Fatherland, the criminalization of acts defined through such abstract categories is unlikely to meet international legal standards in the field of human rights. In cases where it comes to attacks on the reputation of specific veterans, such issues can be resolved through civil proceedings.
Sources
- A resident of the Kaluga region, accused of desecrating the symbols of Russia's military glory, will appear before the court // SU SK for the Kaluga region. 2022. June 7th.
- A student from Kaluga who urinated on the Eternal Flame will be tried under an article on the rehabilitation of Nazism // Mediazone. 2022. June 7th.