A member of the Russian State Duma has demanded that several people who did not stand for the national anthem in Kabarda–Balkaria be punished.
On Friday, Andrei Kartapalov, who chairs the Duma Defence Committee, published footage purportedly at a graduation ceremony in the Russian republic. It showed several attendees, including children, remaining seated during the Russian national anthem. Kartapalov later cited media as saying that some of them ‘covered their ears with their hands’ as the anthem played.
He called on law enforcement agencies to investigate the video and punish those who refused to stand up for the anthem.
‘I have sent a request to the relevant authorities to consider this fact in order to evaluate the information provided and make a procedural decision on it’, he wrote on Telegram.
On Sunday, Kartapalov posted a follow-up stating that those refusing to stand had included a department head at RusHydro, a hydroelectricity company, the wife of the head coach of Russia’s national judo team, the wife of a major local developer, and mothers of ‘many children who love to receive various benefits and social payments’.
He added that his complaints were ‘promptly responded to’.
While investigative authorities in Kabarda–Balkaria and Russia have yet to confirm if any prosecutions would follow, RusHydro issued a statement seemingly confirming that one of its employees in the republic had ‘disgraced’ the entire company.
‘An employee of the Kabarda–Balkaria branch disgraced the company and insulted the 70,000-strong team of energy workers who, with their conscientious work, ensure the operation of the most complex facilities and the energy sovereignty of the country around the clock’, read their statement.
‘The company’s energy workers expect the employee to make a public apology to society and the team and explain the reasons for his inappropriate behaviour during the solemn performance of the national anthem at an official event at school’.
Mash Gor, a Telegram channel covering the Caucasus, stated that the parents could be fined between ₽2,000–₽3,000 ($23–$34).
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