Yelena Mizulina, head of the State Duma's Family, Women and Children Committee and a driving force behind Russia's controversial anti-gay propaganda law, has proposed the creation of a child porn database.
Mizulina lamented the fact that such a database has not yet been created in Russia, saying it would enable law enforcement officials to identify child pornography more quickly, a statement on the A Just Russia party's website said.
The proposal was made Monday at the committee's forum on Internet security, and was one of several pieces of draft legislation currently under review in the hopes of making the Internet a safer place for Russian children.
The first and most pressing of these projects, Mizulina said, was the creation of stricter anti-pedophile legislation that would introduce criminal penalties for the possession of child pornography. Currently, she said, Russia lacks a clear legal definition of "child pornography" that is on par with international legislative standards.
It was not clear what sort of information the database suggested by Mizulina would include, but she said the U.S. has such a database and uses it effectively in fighting child pornography.
Mizulina is a controversial figure, notorious for her role in the U.S. adoption ban. She has used her position as head of the Duma's Family, Women and Children Committee to promote increasingly conservative legislation.
In her attempts to tackle Russia's persistent demographic and familial crisis, she has targeted "nontraditional" sexual orientations, gay marriage and divorce.
Aside from the adoption ban, Mizulina's most controversial piece of legislation was the so-called homosexual propaganda law, which banned the dissemination of any material "aimed at the promotion of nontraditional sexual behavior."
In November 2013, Mizulina proposed an outright ban on surrogacy in Russia, saying that it was the "most frightening phenomenon that threatens not only Russia but all of mankind with extinction."
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.
