Paul Goble
Staunton, Aug. 12 – The Russian interior ministry has submitted to the Duma for approval a new law that would impose large administrative punishments on officials in that country’s federal districts who fail to bring extremism charges against those who violate the definition of such charges Moscow offers.
The measure would impose fines of 30,000 to 50,000 rubles (300 to 500 US dollars) for each such failure and put the officials involved at risk of suspension for up to three years (regulation.gov.ru/Regulation/Npa/PublicView?npaID=149766 and nazaccent.ru/content/42656-esli-regionalnye-vlasti-ne-budut-borotsya-s-ekstremizmom-mvd-ih-mozhet-oshtrafovat/).
The Duma is to discuss this measure before the end of August, and it is not clear whether it will pass or how it might be used if in fact it becomes law. But this Orwellian action is noteworthy because it suggests that Moscow fears that regional and republic officials are ignoring Moscow dictates in a key area.
And that in turn indicates that at least from Moscow’s point of view, officials in the federal subjects despite the fact that they are in most cases directly under the control of appointees by the center are nonetheless acting independently in an area that the Kremlin is especially concerned about.
In Stalin’s time, Moscow sent orders to regional officials about how many people in this or that region or republic were to be arrested and on what charges. Now in Putin’s time, it appears that Moscow has decided to achieve the same thing not by issuing orders but rather by the imposition of a law-like action.
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