On September 5, the 26th Garrison Military Court issued a ruling to fine Baikonur resident Natalia Stupnikova RUB 10,000 under Art. 20.3.1 of Russia’s Administrative Code (inciting hatred or enmity).
The ruling was handed down after law enforcement officers discovered a video on her social media profile entitled “Russians, take off your crucifixes… you don’t need them anymore,” the Christians Against War Telegram channel reported.
According to the court order, the video incited “hatred or enmity on religious grounds”, although it was not specified whom exactly it targeted. The video was originally published by Ukrainian actor and blogger Andrii Fedorov. In the beginning of the video, Patriarch Kirill says: “Russia has never attacked anyone.”
On August 26, the same court fined Stupnikova RUB 30,000 under Art. 20.3.3 Part 1 of the Administrative Code (discrediting the armed forces of Russia) over another video that she shared on social media, entitled “71% of the Russian population has been sentenced to death.”
This case is an example of how Russian authorities are increasingly actively persecuting citizens for social media activity that contradicts official government policy, especially regarding the war in Ukraine.
Previously, Russian courts have repeatedly issued rulings to prosecute citizens for publicly criticizing the actions of the Russian authorities or Russian Orthodox Church. There are known cases where people were persecuted for statements that condemn Russia’s aggression against Ukraine, or those that question the role of religious figures such as Patriarch Kirill. In particular, Russian legislation is constantly applied to suppress any criticism, citing articles on “discrediting the armed forces” and “inciting hatred”, even when it comes to freedom of thought and speech.
As reported earlier, the Russian Orthodox Church equates priests with soldiers in the matter of the “victory” prayer and punishes anyone who refuses to recite it.
