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According to the law – which was an initiative of the Kremlin party – the former presidents and their families cannot be prosecuted administratively or criminally, nor can they be detained, arrested, searched or interrogated.
Russian President Vladimir Putin today promulgated the law that will guarantee him immunity once he leaves the Kremlin, and that makes prosecution almost impossible when he leaves office. According to the law – which was an initiative of the Kremlin party, United russia– Former presidents and their families may not be prosecuted either administratively or criminally, nor may they be detained, arrested, searched or interrogated.
This legislation is part of the constitutional amendments that were approved this summer in a nationwide vote that allowed Putin, 68, to remain in the presidency until 2036.
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Until now, a former Russian president only enjoyed immunity in relation to acts committed during his presidential term or related to his exercise of office, but he was not protected against criminal or administrative cases linked to previous or subsequent events. That power would only benefit the current president and his predecessor, Dmitry Medvedev, who served between 2008 and 2012.
From now on, a former president can only be deprived of immunity by the Senate on the basis of an accusation of high treason brought by the Duma or for the commission of a serious crime, charges that must be corroborated by the Supreme Court.
The accusation against a former president must be supported by two-thirds of the members of the upper and lower houses of the Russian Parliament on the proposal of a minimum of a third of the deputies of the Duma. The Senate will have three months to make a decision, after which the accusation will be considered rejected.
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Putin also signed legislation Tuesday to grant former presidents a life seat on the Federation Council, a position that also provides immunity from prosecution. In addition, the Lower House of the Duma passed legislation on third reading to make information about employees of the Russian judicial system, law enforcement, military and regulatory bodies confidential.
Alexei Navalni
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Russian President Vladimir Putin declared on Thursday, December 17, that his number one opponent, Alexei Navalni, had not been poisoned by his special services because otherwise he would have died.
On Monday, Navalni claimed from Germany that he telephoned an alleged security agent and tricked him into admitting that the secret services (FSB) tried to kill him in August, poisoning him. According to Navalni, he obtained the agent’s phone number through leaked files and travel logs. The opponent published the alleged address and telephone number of the agent, something that, under the new legislation, would be illegal.
