Writers and Politicians Worry That the Struggle Against Extremism Will Be Hampered by Political Censoring A federal list of books and materials banned against publication appeared recently in Russia. Books, separate publications and even a music album were among those items listed. These works were recognized by the courts as extremist materials, and someone found to be propagating these materials can face a five-year imprisonment. A few writers and politicians fear that with extremist literature under a ban, it will be easier to ban other works that are considered objectionable on other grounds. Now, everything which is printed in Russia today undergoes a unique censorship, which takes the form of a list of forbidden materials. �We have not seen such books. We were not able to take such books out of the library because they were banned. Everything that is here is permitted for general use, and can be read,� states Yulia Ivanova, the manager of the arts center �Book World.� �We order only those works which are permitted, so we do not carry any banned material� was what was heard in the store. Books, separate publications and even a music album were on the list of banned materials, including those listed below: Music album �Music of the Whites� by the group �Order�. Book �Book on Monotheism� by the author Muhammad ibn at-Tamini � Letters from Glad of the Earth: Kuban Spiritual-Ancestral Power Russia. Authors N.M. Lozinskii, V.M. Gerasev. Printed materials from the newspaper �For Russian People� No. 1 (1) June 2002; No2 (2), August 2002, No. 3, October 2002, No 4, November 2002, No. 5 December 2002, 2003, No. 6, 7. Film �The Eternal Jew� Brochure �Mother-Earth: Miraculous Miracles, Marvelous Marvels. Introduction to Geo-Biology.� Author: A. A. Dobrovolskiy. Brochure �Paganism as Magic� Author: A. A. Dobrovolskiy. Brochure �Who Fears Russian National-Socialism� Author: A. A. Dobrovolskiy. Brochure �Judeo-Christian Plague� Author: A. A. Dobrovolskiy. Brochure �Holy Slavs� Author: A. A. Dobrovolskiy Article �Once We Shall come With Rotten Tomatoes� Author: A. A. Nikolayenko Article �The SS is knocking On Your Door� Author: A. A. Nikolayenko Article �Acting On the Lord of Thoughts� Author: A. A. Nikolayenko Article �The Most Constructive Party� Author: A. A. Nikolayenko These materials of an extremist sensibility were banned from circulation, as ordered by the courts. �We already long ago insisted that these works be banned. The problem is the legislation pertaining to extremism is weakened by labeling social and national dissent as extremism. Hence, we are not far from materials being judged on political motives, concludes the head of the action �For Human Rights� Lev Ponomarev. ...�We saw a bit of an attack from the political line. I would say that this is the subjective approach of individual personalities. Someone didn�t like a certain writer, or was not happy with statements he made, and so he attempted to silence certain works,� recalling the banned publications during the USSR, and the resignation of the KGB colonel Anatoliy Pokazanev. �I felt like some sort of outcast when some lesser writer, let�s not name names, said such and such�there�s a young poet, Nina Dyakova. Everything is good, but there is too much of a lyric quality to her poems.� recollects Nina Dyakova. The poet is already familiar with political censorship, as a writer during the Soviet times. Not all amterisl were printed, and that which made it to the press was at general meeting gently �guided.� �In essence, only works which were linked with ideology were recommended, and as such, it was necessary to write about work, construction, about the remarkable exploits of the Soviet people,� says Nina Dyakova Towards the end of 2006 there was a rise in extremist moods in the city of Blagoveshchensk. Leaflets were pasted around the city calling for a fight against people from other nations. Even swastikas were found on buildings of the Federal Safety Service (FSB). The Amur department of the Union of Russian People assembled in the center and marched in the streets. �Is there anyone who wants to arrest me? Well, who will arrest me? As you see, I am the most important organizer here. But no one would even attempt to arrest me!� exclaimed Igor Terekhov, the chairman of the Amur department on the cancellation of the march. Now Terekhov finds himself incarcerated and charged with inciting interethnic dissension. Even a year ago extremist literature still flowed through the city. And the young people ceased with the arrest of leaders. �It is difficult to gather an evidence base, acknowledges one of the colleagues from the Commission on the Fight Against Organized Crime. �Then problems appear in conducting studies and examinations. The closest place of carrying out examinations is in the city of Khabarovsk. Examinations are usually conducted in Saint Petersburg and Moscow. In Blagoveshchenk, such examinations are not conducted.� Banning of extremist literature is necessary, many consider. The question is, by whom and how will this be decided? Indeed, works that are objectionable for political reasons can fall into the same stream as works that take on a fascist ideology. An interesting fact: for the proliferation of Andrei Piontkovskiy� Krasnodar the procurator received a warning from the Yabloko Party. In the announcement they considered that the phrases �unloved country� and �for the native land! For Abramovich! Fire!� contained signs of extremism. However at a later warning they withdrew their warning. The court did not take the matter so lightly. Source: Amur.Info
Writers and Politicians Worry That the Struggle Against Extremism Will Be Hampered by Political Censoring
Now, everything which is printed in Russia today undergoes a unique censorship, which takes the form of a list of forbidden materials. �We have not seen such books. We were not able to take such books out of the library because they were banned. Everything that is here is permitted for general use, and can be read,� states Yulia Ivanova, the manager of the arts center �Book World.� �We order only those works which are permitted, so we do not carry any banned material� was what was heard in the store.
Books, separate publications and even a music album were on the list of banned materials, including those listed below:
These materials of an extremist sensibility were banned from circulation, as ordered by the courts. �We already long ago insisted that these works be banned. The problem is the legislation pertaining to extremism is weakened by labeling social and national dissent as extremism. Hence, we are not far from materials being judged on political motives, concludes the head of the action �For Human Rights� Lev Ponomarev.
...�We saw a bit of an attack from the political line. I would say that this is the subjective approach of individual personalities. Someone didn�t like a certain writer, or was not happy with statements he made, and so he attempted to silence certain works,� recalling the banned publications during the USSR, and the resignation of the KGB colonel Anatoliy Pokazanev.
�I felt like some sort of outcast when some lesser writer, let�s not name names, said such and such�there�s a young poet, Nina Dyakova. Everything is good, but there is too much of a lyric quality to her poems.� recollects Nina Dyakova. The poet is already familiar with political censorship, as a writer during the Soviet times. Not all amterisl were printed, and that which made it to the press was at general meeting gently �guided.� �In essence, only works which were linked with ideology were recommended, and as such, it was necessary to write about work, construction, about the remarkable exploits of the Soviet people,� says Nina Dyakova
Towards the end of 2006 there was a rise in extremist moods in the city of Blagoveshchensk. Leaflets were pasted around the city calling for a fight against people from other nations. Even swastikas were found on buildings of the Federal Safety Service (FSB). The Amur department of the Union of Russian People assembled in the center and marched in the streets. �Is there anyone who wants to arrest me? Well, who will arrest me? As you see, I am the most important organizer here. But no one would even attempt to arrest me!� exclaimed Igor Terekhov, the chairman of the Amur department on the cancellation of the march. Now Terekhov finds himself incarcerated and charged with inciting interethnic dissension.
Even a year ago extremist literature still flowed through the city. And the young people ceased with the arrest of leaders. �It is difficult to gather an evidence base, acknowledges one of the colleagues from the Commission on the Fight Against Organized Crime. �Then problems appear in conducting studies and examinations. The closest place of carrying out examinations is in the city of Khabarovsk. Examinations are usually conducted in Saint Petersburg and Moscow. In Blagoveshchenk, such examinations are not conducted.�
Banning of extremist literature is necessary, many consider. The question is, by whom and how will this be decided? Indeed, works that are objectionable for political reasons can fall into the same stream as works that take on a fascist ideology. An interesting fact: for the proliferation of Andrei Piontkovskiy� Krasnodar the procurator received a warning from the Yabloko Party. In the announcement they considered that the phrases �unloved country� and �for the native land! For Abramovich! Fire!� contained signs of extremism. However at a later warning they withdrew their warning. The court did not take the matter so lightly.
Source: Amur.Info
