Carp: New Bill to Ban St George’s Ribbon to Be Registered in Parliament

A new bill banning the wearing of the two-colour ribbon will be registered in parliament. PAS deputy Lilian Carp believes that the Constitutional Court’s (CC) decision to declare the wearing of the St. George’s Ribbon constitutional, if it does not promote military aggression, is strange and illogical. Lilian Carp says that the CC decision complicated much the work of the Ministry of Interior, whose representatives will have to explain in court whether the fined persons promoted military aggression or not, ipn.md reports. Dozens of citizens wore the two-colour ribbon during Victory Day demonstrations yesterday, after the Constitutional Court qualified the wearing of the symbol as constitutional as long as it did not promote military aggression. The author of the draft ban on the wearing of the St George’s Ribbon says the CC decision is ambiguous and the police officers who documented individuals wearing the two-colour ribbon were acting according to the law. “The decision of the Constitutional Court has further complicated the work of the Interior Ministry, as the police documented several people wearing St. George’s ribbon, but then, in court, they will have to prove that these symbols promote the aggression of the Russian army. The actions of the police officers who issued the reports are legitimate, at least for the purpose of establishing the fact. Because the Constitutional Court has not abolished the law, but rather specified when this symbol is used as military aggression and when it is not,” said Lilian Carp on the air of the Rezoomat (Review) program on RliveTV. The PAS MP says that a similar project to ban symbols promoting military aggression will be registered in parliament. “The bill is underway. It will be registered. It was one of the few drafts on which the Venice Commission had no serious comments. There were objections only in the violations chapter. The decision of the Constitutional Court is therefore strange. Therefore, the new draft law will be re-registered with an informative note given by the Venice Commission on Infringements. The Constitutional Court’s explanation that the ribbon can be worn as long as it does not symbolise Russian expansion in Ukraine is absurd, because whoever wears it is clearly a person who supports the Russian Federation and its aggression. Under this logic, someone who wears a swastika just ‘for beauty’ also does not fall under the provisions aimed at prohibiting fascism and extremism, which is unacceptable. Therefore, the decision of the Constitutional Court is not logical,” Lilian Carp added. PSRM leader Igor Dodon announced yesterday that his party would launch a hotline to provide legal assistance to people detained by the police for wearing a St. George’s ribbon.