Employee of Federal Supervision Agency for Information Technologies and Communications of Republic of Komi recently called Syktyvkar editorial office of «7x7» and urged journalists not to post the caricatures of not only the Prophet Muhammad, but also of any religious themes. Besides, they also can’t justify French colleagues for their anti-clerical position.
According to the employee of Federal Supervision Agency for Information Technologies and Communications, this request is directly related to the events in Paris, where workers of the satirical magazine «Charlie Hebdo», printed caricatures of the Prophet Muhammad, were shot:
"Any religious caricatures can’t be reprinted, links to justify their [«Charlie Hebdo»] materials can’t be given; that means not to justify the journalists of this magazine: that they are doing everything right and shall continue."
Employee of Federal Supervision Agency for Information Technologies and Communications of Komi emphasized that he and his colleagues have been monitoring the daily local newspapers and send information to the central office. He also quoted part of the letter with recommendations to media:
"In case of placement of such materials a media will be issued a warning about the violation of the Russian legislation with the subsequent transfer of materials to law enforcement authorities for prosecution."
“Today we received information to take control of media. Additionally we talked to many media. We are monitoring the situation on a daily basis,” employee of Roskomnadzor of Komi said.
In Kostroma, representatives of the journalistic community on condition of anonymity said that they received calls from representatives of regional authorities with "strong recommendations" not to publish any foreign caricatures about religion and «Charlie Hebdo».
Head of Information and Analytical Department of the Kostroma region Irina Zhabko in conversation with a reporter of «7x7» admitted that "for the first time hears" about the facts of such calls.
“Maybe it was someone's private initiative, but at the official level, no decision has been taken on this,” she said.
Moreover, she pointed out that the staff of Information and Analytical Department and she personally have no authority "to authorize or prohibit printing anything, including caricatures". According to Irina Zhabko, decision to publish or not to publish thorny materials can be related to the internal editorial policy publications.
On the question of whether the regional authorities interfere in the internal editorial policy the official replied in the negative.
“Messages about this are an artistic exaggeration,” she explained, adding that while such statements are made anonymously, people shouldn’t attach importance to it.
The day before a federal media reported that the management of Federal Supervision Agency for Information Technologies and Communications of Kamchatka sent out a letter about the inadmissibility of "placement of caricatures of the religious leaders in any media" to the local editorial offices. Journalist Vladimir Efimov announced this on his Facebook page.
Representative of the office Maria Smetankina notified employees of media sphere that "placement of caricatures of the religious leaders in any media is unacceptable". She felt it necessary to clarify the position of Federal Supervision Agency for Information Technologies and Communications regarding the terrorist attack on January 7, 2015 in Paris.
"Roscomnadzor will consider the placement of links to other media materials (including foreign), copyrighted materials, justifying these events, caricatures of religious figures as a violation of Federal Law "On Countering Extremist Activity" and make appropriate warning," was written in the letter.
Later federal service has published an explanation on its Facebook page: "In connection with the tragedy in France Roscomnadzor took prophylactic measures with a number of federal and regional Russian media. Provisions of Russian law prohibiting the use of mass media for extremist activity were reminded to the editors. By law, any mockery of the shrines of various faiths can be seen as inciting of religious hatred".
Lawyer Sarkis Darbinyan commented on this situation for the site the-village.ru:
"The letter from Mrs. Smetankina from Roskomnadzor of the Kamchatka Territory addressed to the local media is not even an order of the federal government, which puzzled by the problems of online censorship of content, but an example of tyranny of parochial officials who are trying to solve complex issues by simple prohibitive measures. This clearly illegal demand has no legal justification, as there is no legal definition of religious figures. From the point of view of Article 14 of the Constitution of the Russian Federation, Russian Federation is a secular state. No religion can be established as a state or compulsory. Religious associations are separated from the state and equal before the law. This means that any person professing certain religious beliefs can be considered a religious leader. Jesus of Nazareth, Mohammed, Buddha, Patanjali, Osho, Haile Selassie I (Rastafarians) and even Russian Patriarch of pastafarianism church Kama Pasta I, a believer in the Flying Spaghetti Monster, are equal to our law. And not just them. If you literally understand the requirements of the official supervisory authority, then any other images, such as illustrations to Pushkin's "The Tale of the Priest and of His Workman Balda" should be prohibited on the Web.
Warnings and requirements of government agencies on the media should be based on laws, especially the Law of the Russian Federation № 2124-1 "On the Media". For example, last year a law against the use of swearing in the media was passed. Many people didn’t like it, but nevertheless, dura lex sed lex, and the law should be carried out. Such a requirement would be justified for the content of swear words in the media. And when the official who decides what should be in the media, and what is not, it is called lawlessness, and such decisions and actions are necessary to be challenged in court.
If the regional court at the request of the local prosecutor admits the material extremist, it becomes forbidden to spread to all the citizens of Russia. After that the court or prosecutor who initiated such a review process, directs the court's decision, which came into force, in the Ministry of Justice, which adds a particular material in a special register. If the material is considered extremist on the Internet, the decision of the court is also directed to Roskomnadzor, which adds a site to its register, after which all telecommunication operators are obliged to block access to it."
Let us recall that there was a terrorist attack in the morning of January 7 editorial of the satirical magazine «Charlie Hebdo» in Paris; masked gunmen shot a chief editor and leading caricaturists. Terrorists killed 12 people. During the following days a series of new terrorist attacks in France killed four more civilians and a female police officer, the three terrorists were liquidated.
There was a "Republican march" in Paris after the terrorist attacks to protest against an attack on freedom of speech. Many Occidental periodicals published the caricatures from the «Charlie Hebdo» magazine in solidarity with the dead colleagues, which elicited mixed response of religious activists.
Photo^ news.vice.com
