Ukraine’s parliamentary committee backs draft law to decriminalize pornography

On Monday, the law enforcement committee of the Verkhovna Rada green-lit draft law No. 12191 that aims to decriminalize pornography.  Eleven committee members voted to advance the bill to a full vote in the parliament while two more lawmakers abstained from it.

Yaroslav Zheleznyak said the latest version of the policy is more conservative and has been in development for over a year through discussions with the committee and a working group. The lawmaker is positive the draft will be floored in the parliament in winter.

“This is about decriminalizing pornography, not ‘legalizing’ it—since it is already legal,” said the lawmaker.

The legislation seeks to stop people from facing imprisonment for possessing content or to prevent widespread “sting operations” against webcam models. Under the current Article 301 of  Ukraine’s Criminal Code, individuals can even be punished for storing nude photos on their personal phones.

The MP acknowledged that significant revisions will be made before the second reading, but stressed the importance of moving forward with the legislation.

“This has become especially relevant due to the taxation issues faced by OnlyFans models and the so-called ‘surprise letters’ from the Bureau of Economic Security (BES), which the media reported on last week,” Zheleznyak added.