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Left Block Activist Fined Under New Censorship Laws

An activist of PI Member Left Block has become the first victim of Russia’s new war-time censorship laws.

In the evening of 6 March, the Sverdlovsky Court in Kostroma handed down Russia’s first sentence under the Code of Administrative Offices of the Russian Federation.

Left Block activist Irina Shumilova was fined 30,000 rubles under section 20.3.3 on “obstructing the deployment of Russia’s armed forces abroad”.

The court did not rely on any linguistic expertise in issuing its sentence. The police officer questioned in the case found that the words “war” and “special operation”, highlighted on Shumilova’s protest poster, were provocative.

On 5 March, Irina Shumilova organised a solo picket with a poster that read “This war is funded by your taxes, while we crowdfund for children’s healthcare.” We should note that solo pickets do not require authorisation from the state.

Available in

Russian English

Date

08.03.2022