BT Considers Yury Khaschavatski’s Video Its Property

The television and radio broadcasting company has apparently forgotten that it almost completely funded from taxpayers' pockets.

The BTRC has commented on the emergence in the Internet the video with Yury Khaschavatski’s electoral statement.

The broadcaster’s press service calls uploading videos to the Internet “exceptional contrivance” and “the desire to hype oneself by means of the media holding.”

The report notes that the candidates, who have done that, did not ask the video owner’s permission, and then the BTRC was accused of “blocking access to illegally posted content.”

– We believe that someone, who is not far from the television, knows, what happens in the case of illegal use of other people's videos. Otherwise, he, as well as other potential people’s representatives, who consider themselves able to legislate in the Parliament, should find out more about the essentials of the current legislation.

The reason for the television and radio broadcasting company’s discontent is the video of film director Yury Khaschavatski’s electoral statement. He is a member of the United Civil Party. The video was first posted on Youtube, and then deleted at the request of the copyright holder.

In his comments to the charter97.org website Yury Khaschavatski noted that BT has no right to assume candidates' speeches.

“The YouTube moderators, who deleted the clip, have been misled, because this is my pre-election speech, and I want as many people as possible to watch it.

The fact remains that the authorities are trying to prevent the truth, I was saying, from being heard by the people by any means. They are cardsharps, those who arrange fraud. These actions are their conventional methods.

Maybe the Belarusian TV says it's their video. But it's not theirs, this is my pre-election material, this is my speech! They have nothing to do with it,” – Yury Khaschavatski said.

It is also worth mentioning that the Electoral Code does not prohibit candidates to place campaign materials on the Internet. Moreover, the BTRC is a governmental organization, which is funded by the state budget, to be exact – at the expense of taxpayers. Accordingly, the videos, made by BT, are not unique content and not the property of the Television and Radio Broadcasting Company, but the property of all the Belarusians, who chip in for its maintenance.