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More than half of Russians oppose ban on baby boxes

Source: RIA Novosti

More than half of Russians do not support a ban on baby boxes, according to a survey conducted by the Public Opinion Foundation.

Around 55 percent of survey participants are against the ban, with 25 percent of them believing that baby boxes offer a "chance to save the lives of abandoned children." Around 18 percent of those surveyed believe that children will be disposed of by other means if baby boxes are banned.

The bill to ban the use of baby boxes was submitted to the Duma by officials Elena Mizulina and Oleg Mikheev. The bill provides for those who install baby boxes to by held liable, promising either a fine of 5 million rubles "approximately $79,400) or up to 90 days imprisonment. The bill was aimed at defending so-called “family values.”

Baby boxes (or baby hatches) are receptacles into which people (typically mothers) can place their newborn children in order to anonymously abandon them in a safe place. These children are then found and cared for. Mothers who have left their children in such devices often have a chance to have the child returned to them following a DNA test.

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