Ex-convict and Russian parliamentarian Maria Butina suggests incarcerating Russians whose children use VPN

Maria Butina, a State Duma deputy for United Russia who served a six-month sentence in a US prison, has suggested imprisoning the parents of children who will use VPN services to watch YouTube if it is blocked. She said as much in a live broadcast with pro-Kremlin pundit Vladimir Solovyov on Russia One.

At first, the presenters addressed the possible pitfalls of blocking YouTube and whether more children would pick up reading as a result. Solovyov presumed that children would not read anyway and would “install a VPN tool”.

Butina argued that, if adults are unable to control their children and raise them properly, “we don't exist”. After that, Solovyov wondered if the adults of Yekaterinburg can re-educate the students who had declared they were “against the letter Z” and asked another question, to which Butina replied affirmatively:

“Do you suggest jailing their parents?”

“Sure.”