“Cultural threat to the national security”. Russian online library fined over $170,000 for “LGBT propaganda” in manga comics

Moscow’s Tagansky district court has imposed fines totalling exceeding $173,000 on a popular online comic library for violating the country’s expansive laws against “LGBT propaganda”. The case against the platform, Mangalib, targeted seven manga comics, with state censors citing themes ranging from same-sex romance to gender transformation as evidence of “destructive ideology”. 

Judge Alexandra Anokhina issued a separate fine of 2 million roubles (nearly $25,000) for each of the seven publications. Mediazona reporter was in the courtroom for the verdict.

The specific justifications for the penalties were detailed in protocols filed by Roskomnadzor, Russia’s media and internet censorship agency:

• Revolutionary Girl Utena. Described in the protocol as a “cultural threat to the national security of the Russian Federation in terms of protecting traditional values, as it shows signs of ideological and psychological influence on the recipient in the form of imposing a destructive ideology.”
• Banana Fish. The acclaimed series was flagged for its “depiction of male characters in a romantic setting.”
• Reincarnation Coliseum. Cited for a plot in which a young man is reborn as a female character in a magical arena where “a harem of conquered girls is shown, namely hugs, kisses, sex, including group sex.”
• An Innocent Sin 2: Penalised because two of the main character’s close friends are in a romantic relationship.
• Share. A comic about a girl’s personal development in which Roskomnadzor found “images of relationships between male characters.”
• Jujin Kareshi to Kodokuri Seikatsu. The censors cited a storyline about a girl who tries to distance herself from part-human “therianthropes” but ultimately “enters into an unconventional relationship with him.”
• Fujoshi Haru-chan wa Osake Suki. The penalty was issued over the manga’s cover art, which, according to Roskomnadzor, depicts two male characters where “one of them lifts the chin of the other as if about to kiss.” This was the only protocol the defence actively disputed, insisting in court that the second character on the cover was female.

The company's defence lawyer, Konstantin Popov, argued that Mangalib functions as a platform that hosts works uploaded by users and that its staff work to moderate content and comply with all requests from the authorities.

The heavy penalty follows a series of personal fines issued since the start of summer against Ivan Kvast, a project manager at Mangalib, who has already been ordered to pay a total of 1 million roubles (over $12,000) for similar offences.

Mangalib is a major Russian-language platform and mobile app for reading manga comics. In response to the mounting pressure, the company announced on July 29 that it was introducing a new “complaint tool” for readers to report content for “LGBT propaganda” and other “violations of Russian law”.

“As you already know, the pressure from state bodies, especially Roskomnadzor, has intensified,” the company explained in a statement. “To keep the site accessible and continue to delight you with your favourite titles, we are forced to make several changes.” On August 5, representatives confirmed they had strengthened moderation, calling the changes “forced measures” necessary for the site’s survival.

Russia’s original 2013 law banning the “propaganda of non-traditional sexual relations” to minors was significantly expanded in late 2022 to include all age groups. The legislation has eventually led to designation of LGBT as an “extremist organization”, which obviously never existed, effectively outlawing any LGBTQ+ activities or public portrayal in media, art, and online.