ABSTRACT
The significance of the link between free speech and democracy has been established in classic works on constitutionalism and the majoritarian judicial approach. Dahl has investigated the classification of political systems such as polyarchies, hegemonies and hybrid regimes. This is an effective method for analysing how China and Russia have restricted online free expression. The management of pluralism and political differences is one of the reasons why China cannot be labelled a polyarchy using Dahl’s description. The concept of authoritarian deliberation acknowledges the greater civic and political speech freedoms under authoritarian states. In the instance of the Russian Federation, the Extremism Act was introduced in 2012 and has been revised many times to incorporate more extremism classifications. Following the 2006 revisions, it became lawful to prosecute critics of federal and municipal governments and officials. In the continuing confrontation between Russia and Ukraine, the Russian government has utilised this law provision to stifle domestic opposition. The legislation against extremism in Russia has been criticised for being overly broad and unclear. On a frequent basis, nontraditional religious organisations including Jehovah’s Witnesses, Hare Krishnas and Scientologists have been persecuted.
