Russian Legislator Attempts to Ban Swearing

The Deputy Chairman of the parliamentary Federation Council of Russia has proposed legislation to ban profanity throughout the country, reports Regions.ru.

Mikhail Nikolayev, a representative from the far-eastern Russian Republic of Sakha, said that a special law could be adopted to impose a ban on uncensored public speech.

“Profanity should cease to be a part of our everyday life,” said the senator.

The proposed legislation is modeled off of a similar ban that has already existed for several years in Belgorod, a city south of Moscow where nightclubs close at 10 pm.

According to Nikolayev, the law against profanity “prohibits expressions in public places, at work, and when communicating with one another.”

Violating the ban would result in a large fine, and Nikolayev stressed that in Belgorod, “the effect from these measures is already palpable.”

Anyone found swearing in Belgorod currently receives a fine from between 500 and 1500 rubles (about $16 to $50), depending on who witnessed the incident. Swearing in front of children, for example, would result in the highest possible fine.

The measure is not the first time Russian legislators have attempted to regulate aspects of public speech. Fearing that “poor grammar enters the subconscious,” members of parliament set to work last April to develop a measure that would regulate the use of internet slang.