The head of the “Wagner” military group called on Wednesday for Russian citizens to be allowed to criticize senior military leaders, after the Russian parliament passed a law toughening penalties for those who defame the forces fighting in Ukraine.
And on Tuesday, Russian lawmakers approved a law that includes harsh prison sentences for people who criticize even mercenaries, a measure that previously only applied to the regular army.
Wagner chief Yevgeny Prigozhin said Wednesday that people should have the freedom to express their opinions, and only ordinary soldiers are above any criticism.
What did Prigozhin say about the anti-defamation law?
- I believe that the anti-defamation law should not apply to staff members, that is to say, myself, the Secretary of Defense and other commanders who make or could make mistakes during a special military operation.
- Society should say what it deems necessary about them. The soldier alone is holy. So the soldiers should be left alone.
- Prigozhin stressed that he did not “defame” anyone, saying “I am only telling the truth” and that his statements were vetted by his lawyers before being published.
- Of course anyone can be imprisoned, even me. But in this case, we must not forget that 146 million Russians could also go to jail, and this leads nowhere.
Sanctioned by Washington and Brussels, Prigozhin has been working in the shadows for years, but has been in the spotlight since the start of Russia’s military operation in Ukraine.
Prigozhin, an ally of President Vladimir Putin, suffers from problems with the Russian Defense Ministry, as he announced victory on the battlefield against the Russian army and accused the ministry of not supplying him with the required ammunition.
Russia’s Parliament Comes to Defend Wagner’s Reputation
Russia’s lower house of parliament voted on Tuesday to pass an amendment that would punish those found guilty of defaming “volunteer” groups fighting in Ukraine, expanding the scope of a law censoring criticism of Russia’s armed forces.
What are the details of the modification?
- The amendment is seen as a move to “protect” fighters from the Wagner Special Group, a mercenary force leading the Russian campaign against the city of Bakhmut in eastern Ukraine.
- The bill needs to be approved by the Federation Council (parliament’s upper house) before it can be referred to President Putin for final approval.
- Under current Russian laws, someone convicted of “defaming” the military can carry up to five years in prison, while knowingly spreading false information about the military can carry up to 15 years in prison.
- Human rights group OVD-Info reported that Russian prosecutors have already opened more than 5,800 cases against people accused of defaming the armed forces, and authorities have used laws on dissemination of false information to sentence long prison terms to critics of the Kremlin.
