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ALARMING NEW LAW WOULD TIGHTEN INFORMATION CONTROL

The International Federation of Journalists (IFJ) and ARTICLE 19 are expressing alarm at a new draft law on information security in Belarus. "The law says very little about the citizen's right to access to information, but makes detailed and complex provisions on how to control information in all forms of media," states IFJ, whose member organisation in Belarus, the Belarus Association of Journalists (BAJ), also strongly opposes the law. Of particular concern to IFJ is a plan to establish special authorities with the power to deal with vaguely-defined "harmful information." IFJ fears that legitimate media criticism of the authorities and others could be stifled.

ARTICLE 19 says the "all-encompassing" draft law "verges on the paranoid" and, if approved, it " would seriously undermine any remaining vestiges of media freedom in Belarus." According to ARTICLE 19, the document envisages an extremely large degree of state control on information. The organisation says that the draft law falls far short of acceptable standards for legitimate restrictions on freedom expression. Such restrictions should be "clearly and narrowly drawn according to the limitations permissible under international law" and should be understandable by those using and interpreting them. ARTICLE 19 calls the draft law's language "vague, subjective and open to gross abuse." With presidential elections scheduled for this year, ARTICLE 19 fears the law could wipe out the few independent voices that remain after five years of heavy attack by President Lukashenka's regime. For more information, visit http://www.ifj.org and http://www.article19.org.