“I am talking about the Andrey Rylkov’s Foundation for Health and Social Justice (FAR), which has come to the attention of the State Duma Commission not for the first time for advocating the decriminalization of drug use,” the deputy explained.
The Foundation received funding from the USA and Lithuania and was already held administratively liable in connection with drug propaganda and participation in the activities of an undesirable organization.
“The so-called survival instruction prepared by the undesirable organization “Open
Russia”, where drug users are given recommendations on how to avoid prosecution
for drug trafficking, has been published on the website of the Andrey Rylkov’s
Foundation. Besides, the Commission drew the attention of law enforcement
agencies to videos distributed by the Foundation on the safety of methadone for pregnant women. After the Commission’s appeal, the prosecutor opened an administrative case under Article 20.33 of the Code of Administrative Offenses,
and the warrant on the elimination of violations of the law was issued to the President of the Foundation. Earlier, the Russian Ministry of Internal Affairs
has repeatedly made decisions on restricting access to Foundation information
on the Internet,” said Vasilii Piskarev
Vasily Ivanovich
.
The parliamentarian also said that the State Duma Commission is reviewing information about NGOs that distribute instructions to Russian drug users on how they should behave during self-isolation so as not to be exposed by the police when they go outside to get drugs and return with the purchase via the Telegram. They are advised to change travel routes, wear a mask and gloves, and pretend to be volunteers that help the elderly.
Vasilii Piskarev emphasized that all this information will be referred to law enforcement agencies for taking appropriate measures. “The Commission will keep this issue under control,” the parliamentarian said.
Blocking of FAN
Commenting on the removal of the Federal News Agency account on the YouTube video hosting owned by Google, Vasilii Piskarev called it “a demonstration of double standards and an act of political censorship.”
“The blocking without any clear explanation of hundreds of videos and films authored by the Federal News Agency looks especially outrageous in the light of the Google actions that we observed last year,” the head of the Commission explained.
He reminded that in 2019 parliamentarians recorded the distribution of special push notifications by YouTube advertising channels that broadcasted uncoordinated street actions and rallies. “It is noteworthy that these notifications were also sent to those users who are not subscribed to these sources,” said Vasilii Piskarev.
“The use of political ads by Google in violation of our legislation was reviewed by the Commission on the Investigation of Foreign Interference in Russia's Internal Affairs and was recognized as unacceptable. We consider Google’s current actions to be disrespectful to Russian users of video hosting and expect that access to the materials of the Federal News Agency, which is known in Russia and abroad and has its audience, will be restored,” concluded Vasilii Piskarev.
