in December 2013 on the website "Russian newspaper" was published announcement of the amnesty for a wide range of people.In the same month, the entire country celebrated the Day of the Constitution of the Russian Federation, 2013. The amnesty, dedicated to this significant event, was to be implemented immediately after the publication of the document.The bill was passed by President of the Russian Federation to discuss the State Duma.
those affected amnesty
essence of the amnesty is to pardon a number of persons who for some reason have the right to get out of custody.However, people would were waiting for publication of the draft amnesty were unpleasantly surprised to find that in the text contained many ambiguities and limitations, because of which not all expectations will be met.
In fact, the category of the population that have been hit by the amnesty were quite numerous.The first group are pardoned those convicted of less than five years but not previously served a sentence in prison.This position document are mothers of minor children, pregnant women, men who have attained the age of sixty years, and women who have reached the age of fifty-five years, the citizens, who were victims of the disaster at the nuclear power plant in Chernobyl, people with disabilities first and second groups, as well as military personnel, and anyother persons involved in the fighting.
According to the draft amnesty charges will be removed and those who have not been sentenced to imprisonment, probation and parole officials.Luck smiled, and the criminals, that the punishment delayed or mitigated.Amnestied had to be citizens who commit offenses as minors.Among other things, promised to declare an amnesty for people convicted for such items as hooliganism, violation of traffic rules and riots.
"Wide" Amnesty touched and those criminal cases which were still under investigation or proceedings.All such cases as well as the charges for the items for which the penalty is not more than five years, have been canceled.This rule also applies to minors and the defendants in the first part of article 264 of the Criminal Code (violation of traffic rules).In this circle of people came in and above the military and pregnant women.
Articles, do not fall under the amnesty
sentenced to more than a hundred articles of the amnesty is not expected.They remain in prison sentenced for murder, infliction of serious or moderate damage to health.For a series of articles about sexual abuse, fraud, large-scale looting and robberies Amnesty also not been provided.
amnesty to the day of the Russian Constitution did not touch the so-called "economic" criminals convicted for acts prescribed by Article 169 200.The first person in the country to explain this decision by the fact that amnesty for economic crimes have taken place earlier.Then, in 2013, it was released more than 1,400 people.However, from prison did not have to leave the citizens, whose crimes were a threat to public safety, such as terrorists.
effective date
development of the project involved the Human Rights Council, which consists of the Presidency.December 9 last year, Vladimir Vladimirovich Putin issued an initial version of the document for further consideration.Chairman of the State Duma Committee, responsible for criminal legislation, Pavel Krasheninnikov, said that most likely the bill will be discussed and approved until December 17.The text states that the term of the amnesty extended to the next six months after the official decision will be published.
adoption of the amnesty and the initial public reaction
When the official website of the President of the Russian Federation placed the news on holding the upcoming amnesty attached to this post a note, explaining some of the provisions of the project.From the note indicated that the amnesty to the day of the Russian Constitution applies to a limited circle of persons who are called the least socially protected.In other words, promised to pardon the special categories of the population: some convicts accused, suspects and persons under investigation, as well as citizens, noted the special services to the country.
Vice-Speaker of the State Duma, representative of the faction United Russia, Vladimir Vasilyev explained Inform Agency, concluded that the amnesty will affect about twenty-five thousand people.According to the deputies, they found the text of the decision Tuesday morning in "Rossiyskaya Gazeta".Nevertheless, the necessary information is not appeared on the website of the State Duma or the network resources of the Kremlin.It is certain that the president was going to "pardon" a much wider range of people than stated in the explanatory memorandum.Either way, the public from the beginning greeted the news of the amnesty stormy and controversial discussion.
unfortunate
third paragraph in the draft resolution the most interesting was the third paragraph, it says amnesty for categories not only "beneficiaries", but also for the convicted.The articles referred to in the third paragraph of the decision, have been mentioned above.This conduct, violation of traffic rules, not caused death, as well as participation and organization of mass disorder.
In this regard, recall the meeting with President Mikhail Fedotov, chairman of the HRC.Then Vladimir Vladimirovich commented on various features of the anniversary of amnesty, saying it may be distributed only to persons who are not actually committed serious crimes, did not commit any acts of violence against the authorities.According to the Government, there is no solid reason to let the freedom of socially dangerous individuals.
Human Rights Council was working on the text of a document about three months.During this time, members of the board insisted on expanding the range of amnesty.Initially, the discussion narrows to exempt only "criminals".However, at the last moment VVPutin has somewhat changed its position and contributed to the draft resolution of the one third point, which meant an amnesty for political prisoners.
should immediately eliminate erroneous or incorrect reading, because the document was endorsed by the state legal department of the president.I assure him and the first deputy head of the administration, it is likely that the chief executive.Therefore, the publication of the note to make it the main text explains some of the confusion and lack of preparation for such a course of events in the Office of the President and the coordinating structures to it.Confirmation of this hypothesis may be an unusual style, which features the third paragraph.The legal component is significantly different from that observed in other parts of the document.In the following paragraphs there was no mention of the fact that amnesty for the day of the Constitution must affect those persons whose cases are considered only, which in practice is an exceptional case.
There is still the probability that the third paragraph will eventually be removed from the resolution.But such a question would have certainly caused a stir and provoked a public scandal blew up all sectors of the population.That is why the final "finishing" version was not only pardoned criminals.
amnesty for "star"
no secret that the amnesty of prisoners is not just "went to the masses".It has become a symbol of the struggle for the freedom of political prisoners, the struggle waged by liberal activists and independent media for a long time.
phenomena, known by the people, "Putin's tyranny" and consists in mass charges of persons leading an opposition anti-government activities may not exist at all, it was fictitious and frivolous.After the amnesty in 2013-2014 clearly shows that the government is capable of dialogue with the population.Although opinions about the reasons for the sudden mercy divided, the fact that the amnesty was carried out surprisingly on time, as they say, "One Day", is incontrovertible.Because custody out those whose release under an amnesty seemed an impossible dream: feminists of "Pussy Riot", activists of "Greenpeace", Mikhail Khodorkovsky of the defendants "marsh of the case."The charges were dropped and Anatoly Serdyukov.
Even during the amendment of the lawyers noted a sea of opportunities for the removal of their wards all penalties.So, Michael Kreindlin, protect the rights of the crew "Arctic Sunrise", explained that the amendments adopted in second reading, predetermined exit to freedom of certain group of people, for example, were convicted under article of hooliganism.They just treated inquisitive "Greenpeace".The amendment has been adopted by yet included in the document at the third reading.That's why 30 activists of the "Greenpeace", along with the crew members were amnestied long before the trial.
far as we all know, Nadezhda Tolokonnikova and Maria Alekhine were under investigation and have been sentenced for the same article.The bill has found its enforcement against girls, and they were able to return home for a few months before the end of the prescribed period.
should be noted that not all "Bolotnikov" provided amnesty.Only ten defendants passing through the article for the riots, should have been released from prisons, only ten have been officially cleared of all charges.Committee of the State Duma of Procedure, criminal, civil and arbitration law decisively rejected the amendment of the amnesty persons accused of violence against government representatives and organization of mass disorder.In the absence of this paragraph 17, activists of the "swamp things" were not pardoned.
list of citizens, for which amnesty has not been announced, is quite wide.Many cases have received wide publicity.Vladimir Akimenkov Maria Baronova, Artyom Savelyev, Dmitry Rukavishnikov Nikolai Caucasian, Fedor Bach, Leonid Kovin, Anastasia Rybachenko Oleg Arkhipenkov Stepan Zimin Maxim Luzyanin, Alexander Dukhanina Yaroslav Belousov Denis Lutskevich Alexander Margolip Alexei Polihovich Andrei BarabanovSergei curve Ilya Gushchin, Richard Sobolev, Alexey Gaskarov Mikhail Kosenko, Konstantin Lebedev and Sergei Udaltsov should not be and will not be amnestied.
call civil society, or amnesty for "Cases 12"
draft amnesty many called a real challenge for civil society.To be the object of amnesty, prisoners should be left without protection.Issued decree has caused a flurry of indignation among lawyers and others involved in legal activities.Half of trouble was that freedom was granted is not the masses, which was promised, but much smaller part of the population.A much more serious problem was the hardware-legal technique that was performed so brilliantly that the law left the mass of paradoxes, pitfalls and duality.
First of all, a chance to release could be obtained only by those who refused to defend their rights.Indeed, in the conditions of the Russian office of the accused and the legal protection of the accused takes plenty of time, and the amnesty is limited to six months.All potential and sentenced to imprisonment criminals had to make a choice: either to forget about professional protection at all, or hope for a "blessing of heaven," and wait for the verdict of the court as soon as possible.The trick is that the sentence will be carried out in any case, but to keep within the specified period of amnesty would be very difficult.That can not help think about the sincerity of such charity from the government.
But especially cruel and insurmountable obstacle was the decree of amnesty for the defendants in the well-known "Cases of twelve."Do not forget that all of them had one thing in common grief, a common "legal trap."But the status of all of the accused were different.Of course, the participants of mass riots was beneficial to try to speed up the process and to meet the investigators to wait for a possible release.Accused of abuse by law enforcement agencies, in turn, were forced to desperately, with a vengeance to defend himself.Perhaps they would have to appeal to a higher court, but such a course of conduct contrary to just and interfere with their "friends in misfortune," to avoid criminal punishment.
Opinions professionals.The main shortcomings of amnesty
Russian human rights activists and lawyers are known for a long time yet commented on the government's decision and ruthlessly criticized certain provisions of the statutes and the use of the amnesty as such.
For some, a lawyer for Mary Baronova, the situation has become even more confusing and uncertain than it was before.She stressed the unconventional amnesty in 2013, referring to the fact that all previous "pardon" were not tied to a particular stage of the investigation or trial.Anniversary same amnesty gently "chose" the lucky ones, she touches.Strange wording that the amnesty will only be convicted, has caused confusion both among experts and the general population.
not like the order of application of amnesty and Dmitry Agranovsky, who saw in it an attempt to interfere in the proceedings as the accused under articles 212 and 230, it becomes necessary to be convicted and to listen to the conviction.And the terms were not acceptable and reasonable, they barely had enough for a conviction.According to counsel, this question has a certain pressure on the participants in the process, he hardly remember when the public watched as the strange conditions of the amnesty.Dmitry hopes that this paragraph of the draft resolution will be amended accordingly, otherwise it would look undignified for our state.
Sergei Davidis as an organizer of the march, held on May 6 noted positive changes in the policy of the Russian authorities, but has joined the opinion of colleagues "the shop", noting that the amnesty was a somewhat poor and the lowly, than this waiting public.The easiest appeared release of women and children, although it is obvious to all that the prisoners - it's mostly adult men, many of whom sit for crimes unproven, incriminated by poorly understood already to reason.
What do they say in this regard, the competent officials?
in December across the country held events civil educational and patriotic character, we celebrated the Day of the Constitution of the Russian Federation 2013.Amnesty liked very few people, but criticism is not only independent and opposition experts, but also the persons holding high positions in various large organizations.
Chairman of the Helsinki Group in Moscow Lyudmila Alexeyeva expressed concern that, as often happens with the Russian legislation at the last minute will be made unpredictable changes in an undesirable direction, and from the places of imprisonment will not so many prisoners as it was planned andpreviously advertised.
in the Human Rights Council were trying to refute this information.Andrei Babushkin made an official statement, claiming the published project has little to do with what was and designed Council.He also confirmed "psevdoiskrennost" amnesty, because in addition to the will of the draft resolution could come less than a thousand people, the same amount would be released from detention.These figures are called the Federal Penitentiary Service of the Russian Federation, enumerating how many women, children and minor offenders should be pardoned.In fact, the promised amnesty could not solve any of the tasks: to reduce the number of inmates in prisons, to reunite broken families, to correct excessive punitive prison statistics and various errors.
