Completely Normal Things That Are Strictly Banned In Russia – These Don’t Make Sense
Even though Russia seems to have their hands in conflicts around the globe, they also like to carefully control what their citizens can do. While nearly every country around the world has basic laws, some of Russia's are pretty outrageous.
Russia doesn't just stop at internet censorship and human rights violations — they even hold grudges against seemingly normal things like rap music and French cheese. Quite a few of these banned items are only banned because Putin doesn't like them! Keep reading through in order to find out what could land you a night in jail in Russia.
House Of Cards
Don't even think about watching one of Netflix's most beloved political television series' if you're in Russia. If you've watched the show you might have noticed that the character playing the Russian president looks eerily similar to a certain oligarch currently in control.
Russia hates the show because of the portrayal and has banned it. Two episodes were even supposed to be filmed in the UN chambers but Russian representatives opposed it.
Pokémon Go
When the viral phone app was released in 2016, kids (and adults) worldwide went crazy for it, and Russia was no exception. The only problem was that Russia felt Pokémon Go was too much of a distraction and decided to crack down on the app.
The ban was all thanks to an internet user who posted a video of him playing the game in church. Russia claimed that the game mocked organized religion and "denied the divinity of Jesus."
Cursing
It's messed up, but it's true. In 2014, Russia decided to ban the use of four particularly bad words in the arts. That means no films or books can feature these words because President Putin hopes to create a "national and spiritual identity" for the country.
The rule is so strict that even old books and plays might be re-censored or have a warning on the cover. The cursing ban is even supposed to extend to comments about art forms on the internet, but we're not sure how they plan to enforce that.
Yoga
If you're hoping to go on a retreat to Russia, find your zen, and become a little more flexible while you do it, then think again. Parts of Russia have banned yoga because local officials believe that yoga "promoted the spread of new religious cults and movements."
If you want to casually stretch in a public park without using any of the traditional names for certain yoga positions, you might get away with it.
Scientology
Russia, like many other European countries, have chosen to deny the Church of Scientology religious rights and instead classify it as a cult. Russia joined countries like France and Germany by banning the "religion" from the nation.
Still, Russia took it a step further and even went as far as to ban the books and teachings from being readily available. That means you won't find anything by founding L. Ron Hubbard on the library shelves in Moscow.
Borscht
Russia probably knew that it would be futile to try and ban the famous Eastern-European soup in their country. The sour dish is one of the most popular amongst Russians, but the name is actually a Ukrainian term.
Since we all know that Russia has a serious grudge against Ukraine, then it makes sense why restaurants have become encouraged to call it "beet root soup." Although it's not an outright ban, if President Putin "encourages" it then you should probably follow the rules.
Smoking Tobacco
There has long been restrictions in Russia about where and when you can smoke. At first, the ban applied to restaurants, but now it applies to nearly every public place. In 2015, President Putin had gone as far as to ban anyone born after 2014 from EVER buying tobacco.
Considering the fact that in 2016, 60% of the Russian population were smokers, this ban might actually help the overall health of the country. Don't be fooled though, reportedly, smoking is only banned because it is one of Putin's personal pet peeves.
Anonymous Blogs
Russia likes to know exactly who is posting about what on the internet. If you want to hide behind an anonymous monicker than think again. In 2014, Russia passed a regulation that made it illegal for blogs with more than 3,000 daily visitors to remain anonymous.
If your blog receives more than the 3,000 daily quota then you technically have to register as a media outlet which means disclosing personal data about yourself.
European Bacon
Apparently, bacon from outside their own country isn't good enough for Russia. In 2014, Putin placed an embargo of the import of all pork products, but particularly bacon, from Europe. He claimed that the ban was due to outbreaks of swine flu in Lithuania and Poland, but the EU claimed otherwise.
The EU's trade commission said the ban was "clearly disproportionally, discriminatory, and not based on science." Maybe Russia just thinks it doesn't taste as good.
The Death Of Stalin
This 2017 satirical film was banned by Russia before it was even released. The plot follows the power struggle in the Communist party in the 1950s after Stalin's death. The Russian minister of culture said the film was "aimed at inciting hatred" and was a "Western plot to destabilize Russia."
Believe it or not, Stalin is still a very popular figure in Russia, so it makes sense why they wouldn't want a movie trashing him, even if it's meant to be a comedy.
The Telegram App
In a world where data sharing and spying is an increasing worry among the average person, applications like Telegram have come to the rescue. If you're not familiar with it, it's basically WhatsApp without being connected to any server like Facebook, which means your messages are encrypted and safe.
The only problem is that telegram has been a favorite app for terrorist organizations. Russia banned Telegram because the founder refused to share the encryption with the Russian spy network.
Western Soap
This ban on soap and beauty products from Western countries like England, France, and the United States is thanks to Russia's consumer protection agency. They have outlawed soaps from huge companies like Procter & Gamble, Colgate-Palmolive, and Henkel.
Russian officials say that products are "toxic" and don't meet Russian safety standards, but the companies claim them to be perfectly safe. We're sure this has nothing to do with Western sanctions against Russia.
Holocaust Denial
While many countries have outlawed Holocaust deniers, Russia has taken it to the next level. In 2014, President Putin signed a law that made denying the Holocaust AND the accepted narrative of the Soviet Union in WW2 a crime.
Specifically, it says that if you don't follow the history books and agree that the Soviet Union was nothing but good during the war, then you could land in jail. This law goes so far that in Russia, they say that WW2 started in 1941, not 1939, because they want to forget about the time they were on the Nazi's side.
"Foreign Agents"
While no country likes to welcome a spy with open arms into their borders, Russia has classified anyone who is against their point of view as "foreign agents." The ban came alongside the sweeping regulations against the LGBTQ+ community.
Basically, any independent group that receives any sort of "foreign funding" is deemed to be dangerous. That ranking goes up if the "foreign agents" are involved in any sort of "political activity." The language is broad for a reason. This law essentially allows Russia to classify anyone as a foreign agent.
There will be no networking if you're on Russia soil. In 2016, a Moscow court decided to ban access to the social networking platform LinkedIn because it stores the user data on servers outside of Russia.
The state claims that this ban was imposed to protect user data, but critics say it's banned because Russia cannot access the data. Given everything we know about Russia and cybersecurity, we'll let you be the judge.
