From Anti-War Posts to Parenthood: Russia’s Ever-Expanding Censorship Machine

Five and a half years in prison for anti-war social media posts. A fine of 30,000 roubles for anti-war art. And now, fines of 400,000 roubles for the promotion of life without children. The Russian government’s vice-like grip over the media is no secret to those who toe the line politically. In the context of the war with Ukraine, Russia’s censorship machine has reached new lengths, crossing lines into the private lives and interactions of its citizens. With the war in Ukraine dragging into its third year this coming February, death tolls are rising, morale is falling on both sides, and international condemnation is further isolating Russia. As Russia pushes forward with this conflict, information warfare is becoming an integral part of its tactics. 

Published after the start of the war, new and increasingly invasive censorship laws continue to be adopted, permitting the Kremlin to scrutinize its citizens’ lives and integrate itself into their choices. Although these laws assist Russia in reforming the war narrative, they also shine a light on just how divisive and unsustainable the war in Ukraine has become.

The first of these censorship laws were introduced in March 2022, just after Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. These laws made “public actions aimed at discrediting” Russian Armed forces illegal. Two key articles form the base of these laws, constructing a hierarchy of punishment. The first is Article 20.3.3, an administrative law that implements fines beginning at 30,000 roubles ($430 CAD), and the second, Article 20.8, permits persecution under the criminal code, and allows for imprisonment of up to seven years. These laws are purposefully vague, giving the Russian government immeasurable jurisdiction over its citizens’ freedom of expression in an attempt to craft a semblance of a unified society. People have been prosecuted for wearing blue and yellow clothes; one father was sentenced to two and a half years in prison after his teen daughter’s anti-war drawings led to the discovery of his social media posts criticizing the invasion; one woman was held indefinitely in a psychiatric hospital after criticizing the Russian invasion. Under these laws, no post is insignificant, and no public action, no matter how small, escapes the all-seeing eye of the Russian government. These censorship laws have permitted Putin to maintain a seemingly never-ending war of attrition without having to consider the public support (or lack thereof) of Russian citizens. 

If these laws were not already stringent, a new dimension of censorship has recently been proposed by the Russian parliament. Legislation is being examined that would outlaw propaganda promoting a “childless lifestyle” with fines as high as five million roubles ($718 CAD) for violators. Although it is still unclear how far-reaching this law will be, it has been left exceedingly vague, raising fears about its implications for permissibility of postpartum depression and health awareness campaigns. Despite being thinly veiled under the premises of a rejection of Western culture and an embrace of traditional familial values, a deeper look at the law reveals its ties to and implications for Russia’s war effort. Russia’s birth rates in 2024 are the lowest they have been in a quarter of a century. Combine this with skyrocketing mortality rates – estimates for Russian casualties now reach 70,000 – and the Kremlin has a critical problem on its hands. 

The Russian military has taken a “meat-grinder” approach to its war with Ukraine, sending waves of soldiers into battle in an attempt to overwhelm its opponent. However, the proposed banning of “childless-lifestyle” propaganda reveals the deepening and unsustainable toll that this strategy is taking on Russian society. Speaking on these laws, Putin’s spokesman, Dmitry Peskov, stated that “increasing [Russia’s] birth rate is one of the top priorities for the entire government.” With the majority of battlefield deaths now made up of civilian volunteers, Russia’s birth rate declining, an aging population, and the war showing no sign of stopping, these propaganda laws are considered a necessity. However, they would also give the Kremlin an unprecedented amount of power and influence over women’s autonomy, turning personal choices into state initiatives and limiting the ability of women to speak publicly of their experiences. 

The expansion of Russia’s legal censorship apparatus reflects the state’s growing need for a strong, unified society supporting the war effort. Just a few days after its invasion in February of 2022, the United Nations General Assembly passed a resolution with 141 votes in favour that demanded the unconditional withdrawal of all military forces from Ukraine. From the outset, Russia has faced considerable opposition and criticism for its actions from the international community. War censorship laws enable the Kremlin to craft an image of an undivided society, repressing the thousands of voices that have spoken out against the war. Although polling is difficult due to the suppression and state control of organizations by the Russian government, one independent group, Levada, published a poll displaying data from January 2024 whose results highlight the motivations behind Kremlin’s information war. Of those surveyed, over half preferred negotiations rather than the continuation of military actions, forty-eight per cent of respondents believed that Russia was “moving in the wrong direction,” and well over half agreed that Russia was paying too much for the war. Responses such as these are the very targets of the Kremlin’s censorship war, threatening to loosen Putin’s grip over the country and break down the fabricated image of a united and strong population. 

In its mission to appear as an undivided leviathan of a nation, the Russian government has inadvertently revealed its lack of internal legitimacy and its paranoia vis-à-vis its citizens. How far is the Kremlin willing to push these laws until it completely dispenses with any pretense of democracy that the Russian Federation upholds? The war censorship laws and the proposed anti-propaganda laws extend the Kremlin’s control over the most personal aspects of its citizens’ lives, making every choice, every conversation, and every action grounds for investigation. From quelling anti-war sentiment to raising a future generation of soldiers, these laws are aimed at assisting the campaign in Ukraine. However, their true impact has made the Russian homefront a battlefield in its own right, threatening the rights of the very individuals the success of the war depends on. 

Featured Image: President of the Russian Federation Vladimir Putin delivering an address “On the conduct of a special military operation” the day of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine in 2022. “Address by the President of the Russian Federation” by the Presidential Executive Office of the Russian Federation is licensed under CC BY 4.0.

Edited by Selin Abali