Controversial “anti-profanity” law to be reversed, Medvedev orders

Prime Minister Dmitry Medvedev has ordered Minister of Culture Vladimir Medinsky to prepare a bill to reverse the law enacted last May which banned the use of profanity in the arts. This followed an appeal from noted members of Russia’s film community, including Fedor Bondarchuk and Nikita Mikhalkov, in which they urged the Prime Minister to “give the go ahead to amend the existing legislation, providing the possibility of issuing distribution certificates with the label 18+ for films which, in order to realise the artistic design if the film, may contain profanity”.

“Obscene language is itself a part of an intangible cultural heritage,” the appeal added. “The existing ban is unnecessary and greatly impoverishes opportunities for artistic realisation of the author’s intentions and perception of works of art by the citizens of the Russian Federation”.

Nevertheless, the decision to reverse the ban has broadly been slammed by members of the State Duma, who consider the revocation as damaging for children. Elena Mizulina, Minister for Family, Women and Children, told the press that “preparing for the amendment forces us parliamentarians to give up on what we took up five years ago, to give up on the law to protect children from harmful information”.

Stanislav Govorukhin, film director and head of the Duma’s Culture Committee, reiterated Mizulina’s stance, saying that overturning the law could lead to other, greater crimes in society. “First we’ll go back to foul language in cinema, in literature, in theatres, and then we’ll be permitting cartoons of a religious nature.”

The ban, signed into law by President Putin last May, enforced fines of up to 200,000 roubles ($5,600) or a three-month jail sentence for those who transgress the law. Broadly considered as another muzzle for free speech and creative expression in Russia, the law came under a hail of criticism when Oscar-nominated Leviathan by Russian director Andrey Zvyagintsev — a film full of expletives — was threatened with a ban in Russia.