The editor-in-chief of the pro-government media drew up a protocol on the “discrediting” of the army

The editor-in-chief of the pro-state Rostov publication 1Rnd, Elena Dorovsky, was charged with an administrative article on the discrediting of the army. A few days ago, she was awarded the medal “For military and patriotic work”.

Employees of the Center for Countering Extremism and a local policeman came to the editorial office of 1Rnd on the morning of August 22, according to the publication’s website.

The reason for drawing up the protocol was a note published in October last year about the appearance of leaflets in the city, allegedly promising to help in evading mobilization and calling on Russian soldiers to surrender. The note included a photo of a leaflet about avoiding mobilization pasted on a post on the street, but instead of a leaflet about being taken prisoner in the illustration, there is a corresponding image on the screen of a monitor hanging on the wall. In the text of the publication, the leaflets are called “extremist”, and in the commentary to the publication, an employee of the law enforcement agencies, whose name is not specified, called their authors “provocateurs”.

A month and a half later, 1Rnd reported on conducting an investigation into the fact of this publication, Elena Dorovsky was summoned to the Center for Countering Extremism. The reason for the inspection, as reported, was a denunciation. Dorovskikh then believed that it could be an anonymous person or an employee of the CPE directly.

The 1Rnd edition takes a pro-power and pro-militarist position. On August 18, Dorovskikh herself was awarded the non-state medal “For military and patriotic work”, which was awarded to her by the local organization “Warriors-Internationalists”. According to 1Rnd, the medal certificate was signed by the former head of the regional head of the Ministry of Internal Affairs. The publication also published photos of Dorovsky’s awards, previously received by the Ministry of Emergency Situations and the Ministry of Defense, and claims that it has “dozens of certificates of honor” from security forces.

In a comment to the publication, Dorovsky’s lawyer noted that she “is a true patriot of Russia, supports the policies of the government and the president,” and called the drafting of the protocol “pressure on the journalist.”

• In July, Rostov-on-Don sentenced pro-government blogger Sergei Rulev to prison for one hour and three months for insulting a representative of the government, contempt of court, and extortion. Rulev is known for his denunciation of Anastasia Shevchenko, the former coordinator of “Open Russia” in Rostov, his attack on an activist of Navalny’s local headquarters, and his support for the war in Ukraine, a citizen of which he was previously a citizen.
• In April, the Industrial District Court of Vladikavkaz imposed a fine of 50,000 rubles on pro-government activist, blogger and ex-FSB employee Alan Khasiev under the administrative article on discrediting the armed forces. In relation to Khasiyev, criminal cases have also been initiated for defamation of the deputy prosecutor in one of the districts of Vladikavkaz and theft of jewelry from his ex-wife, he is in a pre-trial detention center.