Russia wants to reach out to emigrants even abroad
Russian authorities are drafting new rules targeting citizens who have left the country and criticize the Kremlin from abroad. A bill has been submitted to the State Duma that would allow for the seizure of such individuals’ assets even before a court ruling.
Russia wants to officially launch a mechanism for the in absentia prosecution of emigrants engaged in opposition activities abroad. The new bill has already been submitted to the State Duma for a second reading.
The document allows for the seizure of individuals’ property within the context of administrative cases. Previously, such a provision applied primarily to legal entities. Now, ordinary citizens may also be targeted. In effect, this means that law enforcement agencies will be able to seize a person’s assets as early as the stage of drafting the protocol. Previously, such decisions were made only after a court ruling and the initiation of enforcement proceedings.
The bill also sets out specific rules for people residing abroad. For example, the person’s signature is no longer required when seizing items or documents. The report will simply state that the person is outside Russia. The document separately lists the articles under which Russian authorities can prosecute citizens abroad. These include so-called “fake news” about the Russian military, “discrediting” the military, participation in the activities of “undesirable organizations,” violations of rules for “foreign agents,” as well as “disrespect for the authorities.”
Journalists, bloggers, human rights defenders, activists, and ordinary Russians who openly oppose the Kremlin’s actions could fall under the new rules.
Separately, the bill addresses penalties for calls for sanctions against Russia, the dissemination of “extremist materials,” and even for comparing the actions of the USSR to those of Nazi Germany.
At the same time, the authorities are effectively tailoring the system specifically for in absentia cases. They intend to remove administrative detention and community service from the list of possible penalties for people abroad. Instead, fines and asset seizures will remain the primary tools. Russian authorities have previously fined emigrants under some of these articles. But the new document significantly simplifies the mechanism of pressure itself.
Human rights activists are already stating that the bill could become yet another tool for persecuting the opposition and Kremlin critics outside the country. At the same time, Russia is increasingly attempting to extend its domestic repressive rules to those who left the country long ago.
Officially, Russian authorities explain the new regulations as “protecting the interests of the state.” But critics of the Kremlin believe this is yet another attempt to intimidate people who continue to speak out publicly against the war and Moscow’s policies.
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