Up to 1.5 million rubles: a bill on fines for promoting drugs on the Internet has been submitted to the State Duma

The government submitted to the State Duma a bill on administrative fines of up to 1.5 million rubles for the promotion of drugs and psychotropic substances on the Internet. The relevant document is available in the electronic database of the lower house of parliament.

The authors of the document indicated in the explanatory note that the Internet is increasingly becoming a method of disseminating information about drugs.

“Analysis of statistical data on drug propaganda cases, materials on such cases, appeals of citizens and organizations regarding drug advertising, monitoring of information and telecommunication networks in recent years show an increase in the number of illegal acts of this category using the Internet,” the statement says. to the document.

According to the initiators of the amendments, the possibilities of the Internet attract attackers, since in this way they get the opportunity to remain anonymous. Along with this, the authors of the document write, submitting information about drugs on the Internet is covering a large audience, a significant part of which are minors.

The bill proposes to supplement article 6.13 of the Code of Administrative Offenses with a clause responsible for the online promotion of narcotic drugs, psychotropic substances or their precursors, plants containing narcotic drugs or psychotropic substances or their precursors. The current version of Article 6.13 also prohibits drug propaganda, but the distribution channels of relevant information are not specified.

The developers of the document report that in the first half of 2019, the Russian Ministry of Internal Affairs examined more than 23 thousand applications, over which more than 12 thousand expert decisions were made to restrict access to Internet resources disseminating prohibited information about drugs.

For violations described by the revised document, it is proposed to impose fines in the amount of 5 to 30 thousand rubles for citizens, from 50 to 100 thousand rubles for officials, and from 1 to 1.5 million rubles for legal entities. An alternative punishment for legal entities may also be suspension of activities for up to 90 days.

In addition, if the offender is a foreigner or stateless person, a fine of 4 to 30 thousand rubles will be waiting for him with subsequent expulsion from Russia (or without him) or administrative arrest for up to 15 days.

Commenting on the measures developed by the government, Vyacheslav Lysakov, First Deputy Chairman of the State Duma Committee on State Building and Legislation, noted the importance of combating drug propaganda against the backdrop of the general opposition to drug addiction.

“Using the Internet allows not only the promotion of drugs, but also the use of sophisticated contactless technologies for transmitting information, goods and receiving money. This phenomenon must be considered comprehensively, ”the deputy noted in an interview with RT.

He pointed out that the available information about the opportunity to buy a soft drug is a sales channel and a propaganda channel, urging him to fight this phenomenon.

In turn, the director of the Center for Political Analysis Pavel Danilin noted that drug propaganda is currently going beyond the Internet.

“If we look at our popular culture, we will see a lot of things that promote drugs. This violates the human right to life. It is necessary to deal with this, ”the expert said in an interview with RT.

At the same time, the head of the Political Expert Group, Konstantin Kalachev, drew attention to another component of the problem of drug addiction and pointed out the need to continue to combat the spread of prohibited substances outside the Internet.

“Drug addicts do not need propaganda, they are looking for distribution channels. The initiative of the Government of Russia is welcome. But actions must be systemic. Not all evil is on the Internet. The problem needs to be solved, among other things, at the precinct level, bookmarks, announcements on poles and inscriptions on asphalt, ”the expert suggested in an interview with RT.

Toughen punishment

At the end of October 2019, Vladimir Putin ordered that the responsibility for propaganda or drug use on the Internet be tightened. From the list of instructions of the head of state published on the Kremlin’s website it followed that this was a criminal punishment.

In late December, the corresponding document of the Ministry of Internal Affairs development was published on the portal of draft regulatory legal acts. The document introduces into the Criminal Code an additional article 230.3 “Promotion of illegal consumption, trafficking of narcotic drugs, psychotropic substances or their analogues, cultivation or trafficking of plants or their parts containing narcotic drugs or psychotropic substances”.

According to the document, such a crime committed using the media or the Internet is punishable by a fine of up to 50 thousand rubles, or in the amount of the wage or other income of the convicted person for six months, or by compulsory labor for a period of 180 to 240 hours, or correctional labor up to two years years, or restriction of liberty or imprisonment for a term of up to two years.

Currently, the document is at the stage of public discussion and independent anti-corruption expertise.