Some Russians fight back as Putin cracks down on freedoms

https://www.cnn.com/2019/03/09/europe/vladimir-putin-russia-authoritarian-intl/index.html

Putin and Russia are trying to take away some internet freedoms from their citizens in what has been described as a "more authoritarian turn". Russian lawmakers passed a series of laws that crack down on internet freedom, which are waiting to be signed by Putin. One law says that citizens can go to jail for criticizing government officials online. It's a pretty vague law that can send people to jail for up to 15 days for posts that "disrespect" the state, society, or state symbols. Russia already has laws passed in 2016 that make it illegal to endorse extremism online, which were passed to fight terrorism. There is another law that restricts internet use for members of the military. According to Human Rights Watch, dozens of Russians have been jailed for social media posts. The anti extremism law from 2016 allowed police to search places of worship and ban some religious texts. Two Mormon US citizens were detained in Russia this week. These moves by Russia seem to be an attempt to address internal threats that could undermine the government. In a recent speech, a Russian General accused the US of using soft power to promote regime change in countries around the world including Russia. There has been some public opposition in Russia though. 29 people were detained during a protest against these new proposed laws in Moscow. Also, two activists were detained for interrupting a ceremony on the 66th anniversary of Josef Stalin's death. Time will tell if these new measures actually strengthen or weaken the government.

-Devin Carrier