The State Duma on Friday voted to suspend the right of an opposition lawmaker to speak in parliament for a month and named the head of a newly formed committee to oversee mass media.
The Duma voted 297-132 to bar opposition Deputy Ilya Ponomaryov from giving speeches in the Duma from Oct. 16 to Nov. 16, Interfax reported.
The Duma's ethics commission had recommended the measure earlier this week on the grounds that Ponomaryov had referred to some fellow lawmakers as "crooks and thieves" during a Duma session in July and had worn jeans instead of more formal clothes to parliament.
The "crooks and thieves" phrase was popularized by opposition leader Alexei Navalny to describe ruling party United Russia.
Ponomoryov's party, A Just Russia, says the measure, passed with support from United Russia and the nationalist Liberal Democratic Party, is punishment for his active participation in the opposition protest movement.
Just Russia and Communist Party deputies opposed Friday's vote.
The Duma also voted Friday to make Deputy Alexei Mitrofanov the head of a new committee to oversee mass media.
The committee, which was officially formed Friday, will be called the committee for information policy, information technology and communications, Mitrofanov said by phone Friday. Similar committees existed in past Dumas.
Mitrofanov said he would reveal his plans for the committee next week.
The veteran lawmaker takes the position of committee head without being the member of any party following his expulsion from A Just Russia in May. He was kicked out of the party along with three other deputies for supporting Dmitry Medvedev's nomination as prime minister, thereby going against the party line.
Just Russia leader Sergei Mironov called Mitrofanov's election to the committee chairmanship a "shame" and reiterated the party's earlier accusations that Mitrofanov was being rewarded for having backed measures favored by United Russia.
Mitrofanov gained the post amid bribery accusations against him by a Moscow businessman.
On Wednesday, entrepreneur Vyacheslav Zharov asked Duma Speaker Sergei Naryshkin in a letter not to make Mitrofanov head of the media committee because Mitrofanov allegedly solicited a $200,000 bribe from him in exchange for settling an arbitration court battle.
Mitrofanov has denied wrongdoing and said Zharov was making his accusations on behalf of A Just Russia.
Related articles:
A Message from The Moscow Times:
Dear readers,
We are facing unprecedented challenges. Russia's Prosecutor General's Office has designated The Moscow Times as an "undesirable" organization, criminalizing our work and putting our staff at risk of prosecution. This follows our earlier unjust labeling as a "foreign agent."
These actions are direct attempts to silence independent journalism in Russia. The authorities claim our work "discredits the decisions of the Russian leadership." We see things differently: we strive to provide accurate, unbiased reporting on Russia.
We, the journalists of The Moscow Times, refuse to be silenced. But to continue our work, we need your help.
Your support, no matter how small, makes a world of difference. If you can, please support us monthly starting from just $2. It's quick to set up, and every contribution makes a significant impact.
By supporting The Moscow Times, you're defending open, independent journalism in the face of repression. Thank you for standing with us.
Remind me later.
