The Tools and Techniques of Repressive Law in Russia

• In Event: Law as a Tool of Authoritarian Control in Contemporary Russia

Abstract

This paper outlines the techniques and technologies of repressive law that have been developed in Russia since 2011-2012, when massive street protests broke out after falsified legislative elections and Russia began its slow crackdown on opposition. From law-making to legal implementation, the system has used a variety of techniques that together have created a smooth and efficient system of repression, all under the guise of law. Some of the many techniques the paper will discuss include: writing vague laws with broad application, using a dual system of administrative (fineable misdemeanor infractions) and criminal penalties to create uncertainty, creating two and three strikes laws where administrative offenses turn into criminal ones, aggressively using aggravating factors in criminal charging like “motivated by political hatred” or “hatred of a social group,” and creating new legal categories to label and punish perceived enemies of the regime. Overall, the paper demonstrates how law has been an indispensable tool of the Putin regime’s consolidation and maintenance of authoritarian power.

Author

• Lauren Alicia McCarthy, U of Massachusetts Amherst