Figures show 3,300 arrests were made in the UK for social media posts, while 411 criminal prosecutions were opened against internet users in Russia, in 2017 (Dominic Lipinski/PA)

Russia has far more restrictions on social media use than the UK

By Will Grimond, PA
13:45 - March 01, 2023

A tweet was recently circulated claiming that 3,300 arrests had been made in the UK for social media posts, while just 411 had been made in Russia.

In January, the same claim was also made in a video on the TikTok account of John Anderson, former deputy Prime Minister of Australia.

Evaluation: Missing context

The source for the claim on arrests in Russia – which uses figures from 2017 – shows it refers to the number of criminal proceedings, rather than arrests.

In the UK example, the figure – also from 2017 – is for arrests under the broader category of online malicious communications, not specifically for social media posts.

But arrests are made for different reasons across the two countries, with Russian internet users facing far greater restrictions on their use of social media.

The facts

The image being circulated includes links to a report in Newsweek, which discusses findings from a Russian NGO, and an article in the Times newspaper.

The two figures from the two sources are not directly comparable.

The report discussed by Newsweek – authored by Agora, a Russian human rights group – found that 411 criminal cases were brought against internet users in Russia in 2017. The article does not give a figure for arrests.

In 2017 The Times made a Freedom of Information request which found 3,395 arrests had been made by 29 UK police forces for “section 127” offences, which is used for cases of online abuse. According to the article, 1,696 people were subsequently charged. Section 127 offences cover harassment that takes place via an “electronic communications network”, and is not limited to social media posts – harassment via email or other forms of online communication can also fall under this definition.

More context needed

Further context around the reasons for the arrests in the two countries, and the restrictions placed upon social media usage, is also necessary.

In its 2017 Freedom on the Net index, the Freedom House think tank – which is an American organisation “working as an independent watchdog organisation dedicated to the expansion of freedom and democracy” – gives Russia and the UK vastly different scores on internet freedom, with Russia being marked as 34 and the UK 76 out of 100.

Its research shows “criminal charges are widely used in Russia to stifle critical discussion online”, with most arrests falling under Article 282 (“actions aimed at inciting hate or enmity”) and Article 280 (“public calls for extremist activity”) of the criminal code.

It added the Russian authorities “displayed an increasing intolerance for critical expression about religion, particularly any expression that could undermine the Russian Orthodox Church” and that LGBT+ activists “have been punished under Russia’s law against promoting ‘non-traditional sexual relations’ for their expression and activism online”.

In the UK, while the researchers found the “scale of prosecutions remain a concern”, they added: “jail sentences for speech that is protected under international human rights norms remain rare”.

They found while there “remains scope for local police departments to pursue complaints that many democracies would view as civil cases”, other criminal cases involved “terrorism offences” and “threats of violence“.

“Personal slurs, on the other hand, were punished with community orders,” it added.

What’s the latest situation?

Fast forward to 2022 and the same Freedom House report paints a worse picture of the situation in Russia, with the country scoring 23 out of 100, and a similar picture to 2017 for the UK, with a score of 78 out of 100.

The Russian government has blocked access to major foreign social media platforms, and there are well-documented cases of arrests following criticism of the government online.

The same research notes that while the UK has arrested internet users for crimes such as promoting terrorism and racist abuse, prison sentences for “political, social, and cultural speech” are rare.

Links

Claim on Twitter (archived)

Video from John Anderson’s TikTok account (archived and archived video)

Internet Freedom 2017: Creeping Criminalisation – Agora report (archived)

Times article (archived)

Newsweek article (archived)

Communications Act 2003 (archived)

Freedom House: About Us (archived)

Freedom House: Freedom on the Net, United Kingdom 2017 (archived)

Freedom House: Freedom on the Net, Russia 2017 (archived)

Freedom House: Freedom on the Net, United Kingdom 2022 (archived)

Freedom House: Freedom on the Net, Russia 2022 (archived)

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