Search results : 247

On 9 February 2026, the Ministry of Culture of the Russian Federation published Order No. 2503 of 29 December 2025 (Ministry of Justice registration No. 85277), establishing the procedure by which the ministry issues conclusions on films lacking a distribution certificate (prokatnoe udostoverenie) but suspected of containing material discrediting traditional Russian spiritual-moral values. The order implements Federal Law No. 324-FZ of 31 July 2025, which was the subject of a previous IRIS contribution (IRIS 2026-3:1/4). It came into force on 1 March 2026 and remains effective until 1 September...

Federal Law No. 324-FZ of 31 July 2025 came into force on 1 March 2026. It prohibits the distribution of audiovisual works containing materials that "discredit traditional Russian spiritual and moral values and/or propagandise the rejection thereof" (дискредитирующие традиционные российские духовно-нравственные ценности и (или) пропагандирующие их отрицание). The law amends Federal Law No. 149-FZ of 27 July 2006 ("On Information") and Federal Law No. 126-FZ of 22 August 1996 ("On State Support for Cinematography"), adding this as grounds for refusing or revoking a...

The European Court of Human Rights (ECtHR) delivered a judgment on 3 December 2024 concerning allegations of the Russian state’s inadequate response to incidents of homophobic speech. Four applicants alleged that the Russian authorities failed to comply with their duty under the European Convention on Human Rights (ECHR) to protect them from discrimination based on their sexual orientation. The ECtHR found a violation of Article 14 (prohibition of discrimination) in combination with Article 8 ECHR (right to privacy) with regard to the unsuccessful legal actions against the homophobic...

The European Court of Human Rights (ECtHR) found a violation by the Russian state of the right to freedom of expression and information as protected by Article 10 of the European Convention on Human Rights (ECHR). The case concerns repeated disruptions of film screenings being held within the framework of an international Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Transgender (LGBT) film festival. The ECtHR found that the Russian authorities and, in particular, the police did not take any relevant action to investigate successive telephone bomb threats, nor did they try to stop the people that were disrupting...

The European Court of Human Rights (ECtHR) found once more gross and systemic violations by the Russian state of the right to freedom of expression and freedom of association as protected by Articles 10 and 11 of the European Convention on Human Rights (ECHR). 107 applicants, including human rights organisations, media outlets and journalists, had complained about measures and sanctions in the application of the Foreign Agents Act of 2012, as amended in 2017, 2019 and 2020 and the Federal Law No. 255-FZ of 14 July 2022 that repealed and replaced all previous “foreign agent”...