MOSCOW, November 19 (RAPSI) – A bill envisaging that internet resources using censorship with respect to Russian media outlets has reached the State Duma, a document published on the official website of the lower house of Russia’s parliament reads.

The bill seeks to introduce a special status of an “owner of an information resource involved in violations of basic rights and liberties of citizens of the Russian Federation”; the status is to be granted by the Prosecutor General’s Office in consultation with Russia’s Foreign Ministry.

The same measure may be applied to internet resources found to restrict access to information of public character on grounds of nationality, language, or in answer to the introduction of sanctions against Russia or its citizens.

In case the initiative is approved, Russia’s media watchdog Roskomnadzor will be empowered to fully or partially restrict access to such resources by technical means.