MOSCOW, June 5 - RAPSI. During its second reading of the draft law on increasing fines for rally violations, the State Duma approved the amendment introducing compulsory community service as a new punishment into the Code on Administrative Violations.

The corresponding amendment was put to a separate vote. 237 deputies voted for it - 226 was the number needed to pass the amendment.

The amendment will require condemned individuals to do unpaid work in their free time for the benefit of the community.

The work itself will be set by judges. The term of community service will be from 20 to 200 hours, with a maximum of four hours a day.

According to A Just Russia party member and Duma deputy Gennady Gudkov, this amendment contradicts international laws and makes the law significantly more severe.

Chairman of the State Duma Committee for Constitutional Legislation Vladimir Pligin said that international law describes the notion of compulsory work very thoroughly and makes a clear distinction between forced and compulsory work.

He states that forced work is something that someone is obligated to do under some kind of threat. Compulsory work ordered by a court ruling does not qualify as this.