Moskalkova supports ban on mentioning nationality of criminals proposed by Chechen parliament

Russian Ombudsperson Tatiana Moskalkova supported the adoption of a draft law proposed by the Chechen parliament to ban the mention in the media and the Internet of information about the nationality and religion of people involved in crimes.

The “Caucasian Knot” has reported that on November 22, 2021, the Chechen parliament submitted to the Russian State Duma a draft amendment to the Law “On the Mass Media”, which provides for a ban on the publication of information about the nationality and religion of people involved in crimes. Magomed Daudov, the speaker of the Chechen parliament, explained the initiative by “the need to preserve interethnic and interfaith harmony and peace.” On April 22, the Russian government refused to support the draft law initiated by the Chechen parliament.

Russian Ombudsperson Tatiana Moskalkova pointed out the importance of adopting the draft law to ban the media from mentioning the nationality of criminals.

A report posted today on the Russian Ombudsperson’s website notes that there has been an increase in cases when journalists focus on the nationality of a criminal in articles about crimes, thus provoking “disunity and conflicts on ethnic grounds.” “In this regard, we support the draft law submitted to the State Duma, which proposes to introduce the ban on the dissemination in the media, as well as on the Internet, of information about the nationality, religion, and belonging to the peoples of the Russian Federation of any persons involved in the commission of crimes,” the Russian Ombudsperson’s report states.

This article was originally published on the Russian page of 24/7 Internet agency ‘Caucasian Knot’ on June 6, 2022 at 02:04 pm MSK. To access the full text of the article, click here.