A Russian lawmaker has introduced draft legislation that would ban all unlicensed printing, effectively outlawing samizdat, the practice of self-publishing that helped spread prohibited literature during the Soviet era.
Igor Zotov, a Duma deputy from the political party A Just Russia, told Slon Magazine that the legislation is needed to combat the proliferation of advertising and extremist materials.
“All building entrances are clogged with printed materials—random advertisements everywhere and nobody knows who made them. On the street, they hand out leaflets marketing fast women. You won’t believe the stuff you see. And when you appeal to the police to find out who’s behind it all, you can’t find a soul. And without a license it’s possible to distribute all kinds of extremist materials,” Zotov complained, adding that “everyone who publishes something should answer for it.”
Zotov is also the author of controversial legislation banning advertising on cable television, which he defended as necessary to equalize the rights of paid and free TV.