Russian authorities will make it easier to file complaints against critics of the war

The Russian Ministry of Internal Affairs has prepared draft amendments to the order on the procedure for registering complaints, which will grant electronic entries in the Incident Report Log (KUSP) the same legal force as paper documents. This will simplify the mass filing of complaints, particularly regarding the actions of citizens who disagree with government policy.

According to the human rights project “Slovo Zashchite,” the updated procedure will not require applicants to appear in person or sign paper forms containing a warning about liability for false reporting. 

Experts note that the online form will simplify the mass filing of complaints, primarily regarding the actions of citizens who disagree with government policy (in particular, under the provisions on “false information about the army” and “offending the feelings of believers”). At the same time, for the investigation of violent crimes or thefts, the in-person presence of victims and the conduct of investigative actions will remain mandatory.

Source: the human rights project “Slovo Zashchite.”

In the Russian Federation, citizens are punished for their activity on social media, including searching for, “liking,” or reposting “extremist content.” 

The Second Court of Cassation in Moscow rejected an appeal against the verdict and upheld a sentence of 5 years and 6 months in a penal colony for 70-year-old pediatrician Nadezhda Buyanova. The defendant’s defense team demanded that the court’s decision be overturned, arguing that the only direct evidence of guilt was the testimony of Anastasia Akinshina—the former wife of a deceased participant in the war against Ukraine—who filed a complaint against the doctor and repeatedly changed her testimony.