Russia Legalizes Massive DNA Collection Without Oversight
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DNA sample is pipetted into a Petri dish, January 20, 2020.
© 2020 Klaus Ohlenschläger/picture-alliance/dpa/AP Images
Russian President Vladimir Putin signed a law extending compulsory DNA data collection to millions of people yesterday. Anyone suspected of any crime will have their DNA collected, and those convicted or sentenced to administrative detention for a misdemeanor will have their DNA profile stored in a state database for life.
This new legislation boosts Russia’s massive surveillance system and delivers another blow to the right to privacy. The government anticipates collecting DNA from at least 1.8 million people annually. In 2019, Russian courts imposed nearly one million sentences of administrative detention and 620,000 criminal sentences, …read more
Source:: Human Rights Watch
