In 2022, 779 criminal cases were initiated in Russia for posts on social networks

In 2022, 779 cases of criminal prosecution of citizens for posts, reposts and statements on the Internet were revealed in Russia. This is the highest annual indicator observed in 15 years. Such data is published by the human rights project “Network Freedoms” in its annual report on Internet freedom in Russia.

According to human rights defenders, in 2022, at least 42 criminal cases about the discrediting of the army were initiated due to publications on the Internet. Accusative verdicts have already been handed down for six of them. Another 187 criminal cases were initiated under the article about fakes about the army. Human rights activists also note that some charges under articles on extremism are connected with the topic of the war in Ukraine. In total, in 2022, Network Freedom recorded 637,000 cases of interference with Internet freedom. It also became the highest indicator in the entire history of observations.

• After the beginning of the Russian military invasion of Ukraine, Russian President Vladimir Putin signed a new law on fakes and discrediting the Russian army. Anyone who speaks publicly about the war in Ukraine can be accused of them, if his statements differ from the official reports. According to human rights activists, this article actually introduced military censorship in the country.
• On December 9 of last year, the Municipal Court of Moscow found the opposition politician Ilya Yashin guilty of spreading fakes about the Russian army – in connection with his stream about the mass murders of residents of the Ukrainian city of Buch. The politician received 8.5 years of general regime prison.