Sergei Solovyov, member of the State Duma Committee on Culture, appreciated the initiative to present special titles to artists critical of Russia. In an interview with the radio station “Moscow is talking” stated the initiative needs to be publicly discussed and developed.
He noted that with the start of special operations in Ukraine, artists appeared in Russia among creative people who “openly sided with the enemy” and “betrayed their audience.” “I think an effective legal mechanism is needed for a systematic study to detect these negative statements and actions. “To take action against these citizens, it is necessary to use all administrative and penal clauses currently in force,” he said.
According to Solovyov, Russian laws and regulations should guide distributors to label such artists. “This initiative requires public discussion and further examination of the mechanism for its implementation,” he said.
State Duma deputy Dmitry Gusev proposed introducing special subtitles at the beginning of films starring actors condemning Russia’s actions.
Former human rights activist Vladimir Novitsky announced reasons for the anti-Russian statements of actor Artur Smolyaninov.