New edition of Art. 136 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation
Discrimination, that is, violation of the rights, freedoms and legitimate interests of a person and citizen depending on his gender, race, nationality, language, origin, property and official status, place of residence, attitude to religion, beliefs, membership in public associations or any social groups committed by a person using his official position -
shall be punishable by a fine in the amount of one hundred thousand to three hundred thousand rubles, or in the amount of the wages or other income of the convicted person for a period of one to two years, or by deprivation of the right to hold certain positions or engage in certain activities for a term of up to five years, or by compulsory labor for a term up to four hundred eighty hours, or correctional labor for a term of up to two years, or forced labor for a term of up to five years, or imprisonment for the same term.
Discrimination - what is it?
You can increasingly hear the question, what does discrimination mean? This term means:
- deliberate infringement of individual rights and freedoms;
- unfair treatment of an individual;
- deprivation of choice or voice;
- bias;
- In some cases, discrimination may be accompanied by violence.
This attitude is due to the fact that the entire population belongs to different social groups - they may differ in moral, physical, financial or gender characteristics. Their status provides an opportunity to form a certain attitude towards them and, in some cases, to deprive them of available privileges. The issue of discrimination has existed for a long time, but some of its problems are still harshly perceived by society.
Discrimination
Another comment on Art. 136 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation
1. The objective side of the crime is characterized by an action (inaction) called “discrimination” that violates equality in one (or more) of the individual characteristics specified in the article. Specific manifestations of discrimination may vary, but all of them must entail legally significant consequences for the victim.
2. The subjective side is characterized by direct intent; the motive of the crime is due to hostility towards another person due to the presence of one of the circumstances specified in the article.
3. Special subject - a person who uses his official position when committing a crime.
Reasons for discrimination
When talking about what discrimination is, you need to understand the reasons for its occurrence. They may be as follows:
- bad previous experience;
- fear or misunderstanding of any factor;
- personal or public selfishness;
- discrepancy of interests, views;
- social inequality, lack of available opportunities due to financial or political characteristics of the region;
- difference in appearance or health status.
Discrimination against individuals can manifest itself in various areas of society. The greatest prevalence occurs in family life, politics and the workplace. For each type of discrimination there may be individual reasons:
- There may be restrictions on hiring due to working conditions, complexity or severity of production, and work schedule.
- In a family, reasons for discrimination may include raising children or running a household.
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Signs of discrimination
Generally, discrimination is defined as behavior that restricts individual rights and freedom. Some signs of discrimination can be identified:
- prejudiced attitude;
- the presence of insults, boorish behavior, humiliation and violence;
- unreasonable refusal to hire, train and develop professional skills;
- disrespect for other people's opinions, religious, political, moral views;
- exaggeration of one's own achievements in front of others, belittling of other people's merits.
What is the penalty for discrimination of rights?
The most serious consequences will be caused by discrimination on the part of a person using his official position - sanctions will be imposed under Article 136 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation. For example, an unreasonable refusal to provide state or municipal services based on gender or race will be grounds for initiating a criminal case.
Penalties for such a crime may consist of fines (in the amount of 100 to 300 thousand rubles), assignment of corrective, forced or compulsory work, or imprisonment for up to five years. At the same time, the court may establish a ban on holding certain positions or carrying out certain activities.
If discriminatory actions are not related to the use of official position, the application of administrative sanctions is carried out under Article 5.62 of the Code of Administrative Offenses of the Russian Federation:
- a procedural protocol is drawn up on identified facts of discrimination - this document records all the circumstances of the violation, as well as characteristics of the rights, the implementation of which was limited;
- when drawing up a protocol, explanations are taken from the violator regarding the identified facts, or a note is made about the refusal to provide explanations;
- administrative material is sent for consideration to judicial institutions;
- Based on the results of the consideration of the case, the violator faces a fine of 1,000 to 3,000 rubles. (for individuals) or in the amount of 50,000 to 100,000 rubles. (for enterprises).
If the violator is an official, sanctions under the Code of Administrative Offenses of the Russian Federation are not imposed on him, since liability can only arise under the Criminal Code.
Confirmation of facts of discrimination within the framework of an administrative or criminal process gives the right to enforce the implementation of rights. If the violator refuses to do this voluntarily, the citizen can go to court.
Based on a judicial act, illegal prohibitions and restrictions will be lifted, illegal orders will be cancelled. Also, by decision in a civil case, compensation for moral damage will be recovered - its amount will be determined by the court, taking into account the nature of the violation and other factors.
Types of discrimination
One of the most pressing global problems is discrimination, and its types can be as follows:
- Informal or legally justified.
- Direct or indirect.
- By type of activity and sphere of manifestation: at work, in the family, in political life.
- Based on the characteristics of the social group to which it applies:
- gender discrimination, often called gender discrimination - based on male or female sex;
- racial - by belonging to any race and skin color;
- national - depending on the nationality of the person;
- religious - in relation to a particular religion;
- age-related, which is expressed in a biased attitude towards people of a certain age - including children and the elderly;
- infringement of the rights of people with disabilities and people with special needs.
Racial discrimination
This phenomenon affects many social groups of the population and has a considerable history. Since the time of the great geographical discoveries of the country, colonies and people of other races have been limited in freedom and rights. What is racial discrimination is the complete restriction or disadvantage of people due to racial differences and differences in skin color.
Racial tensions can lead to acute conflicts. Activists in the fight against discrimination on this basis propose to achieve equal rights for people regardless of their skin color. A similar condition applies to all spheres of society:
- healthcare;
- getting an education;
- availability of jobs;
- political freedom and the ability to vote.
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National discrimination
For many countries in the world, discrimination based on nationality is a very acute problem. This is due to the fact that a large number of nationalities often live on the territory of one country. Typical examples of such countries are the Russian Federation, the USA, Great Britain, and Spain.
National discrimination is expressed in the infringement of the freedom of population groups that are represented in small numbers or have their own characteristics of language, culture and traditions. To solve this problem, it is important to equalize the rights of all nations within one state, ensure their safety and develop a system of punishment for violating the principles of the integrity of the country and insulting individual nationalities.
Gender discrimination
The most common type of infringement of rights is discrimination based on gender, and it can affect both men and women equally. Gender discrimination can manifest itself in the following areas:
- getting an education;
- employment, career development and wage differentiation;
- participation in elections and decisions on political or social issues;
- solving family problems, raising children;
- harassment, violence, use of physical force.
When limiting the actions of any gender, it is important to remember that this may not always be legal. When making such arguments, one must start from the fact that there are activities that are better for men or women. There are restrictions related to working conditions, physical strength and reproductive function.
Age discrimination
Age restrictions can often be a source of controversy. Thus, age discrimination manifests itself in refusal to cooperate with people who are not age appropriate, and can be observed in the following situations:
- when hiring or changing positions;
- in case of need for social security and benefits;
- when selecting for a sports team;
- limiting the age for marriage and having children.
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The equality of all age categories of citizens should not be limited:
- employers;
- politicians;
- social prejudices;
- stereotypes.
Religious discrimination
Often, discrimination on religious grounds can greatly offend the feelings of believers and cause damage to the psyche. It consists of disrespect, insult, and limitation of opportunities to follow church traditions. Such infringement of rights in some cases even leads to armed conflicts.
To avoid such situations, it is important for people to be more tolerant of each other, to respect the interests of each person, even if they do not share them. Sometimes government intervention, the introduction of criminal liability and changes in the country's legislation in favor of a certain religious orientation can be useful.
Discrimination against people with disabilities
Many people wonder what discrimination against people with disabilities is, and does it really exist? The answer to this question will be positive. The social discrimination in question may manifest itself as follows:
- lack of an “accessible environment” – a passage or passage in public places for people with disabilities;
- unreasonable refusal to hire;
- abusive attitude;
- exclusion from participation in social or political life;
- infringement of rights and freedoms in receiving social benefits.
It is important to bring manifestations of such behavior to public attention, because any person, regardless of his state of health and a specific diagnosis, has his own weight in society. Under no circumstances should the rights of citizens be infringed simply because they are “people with disabilities.”
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Discrimination against children
Unfortunately, the concept of discrimination also applies to children, and the reasons for such attitudes may be the same as for adults:
- language;
- floor;
- nationality and race;
- appearance;
- training and development opportunities;
- presence of diseases.
Discrimination can occur both from adults and from children themselves. The important thing is that such a phenomenon in childhood is perceived as more tragic and painful, and can cause psychological trauma. To eliminate this phenomenon and its consequences, you need to constantly maintain contact with the child, his teachers and educators, in some cases it will be useful to communicate with the parents of his friends. It is necessary to participate in the upbringing of children and instill in them traditional standards of morality and piety.
Positive discrimination
All types of discrimination discussed above are negative in nature, since they imply infringement of the rights of the social groups to which they are directed. But there is also such a thing as positive discrimination. It does not imply infringement, but expansion of the rights of the category of persons it is aimed at.
Positive discrimination is special measures aimed at providing privileges to certain social groups. These can be expanded rights and opportunities, all kinds of benefits, as well as priority in receiving certain benefits.
A good example of positive discrimination is encouraging the hiring of people with disabilities. This practice is present in many countries and provides tax breaks (or other incentives) for businesses that employ a certain percentage of people with disabilities.
In general, positive discrimination is a positive phenomenon because it contributes to the restoration of social justice. However, it also has negative aspects. For example, if affirmative action helps a needy person get a good job, it almost always means that a more qualified candidate is left without a job.