Dunja Mijatovic against Internet censorship in Belarus

The OSCE Representative on Freedom of the Media made a statement on the Belarusian law on the Internet.

“I hope the legislation in this sphere will see some changes to ease this complicated effect of the news legislation on the right of online self-expression, including in the conditions of the upcoming presidential election in Belarus scheduled for December 19,” OSCE representative Dunja Mijatovic said in Minsk on Monday at a round table sitting on issues on development of the Belarusian Internet segment, Interfax-Zapad news agency reports.

She expressed a hope that “the new legislation and practice won’t restrict pluralism and freedom of expression of Internet media in Belarus”. Speaking about the recent changes in the Belarusian legislation in the Internet sphere, Mijatovic noticed some positive moments, in particular apprehensions regarding registration of Internet resources and drawing a “black list” of Internet resources with restricted access failed.

Mijatovich noted that in comparison with other media Internet has the least regulation in the world. “I think it’s due to this fact that the Internet has become an arena to exchange opinions and information on different issues, especially when there are problems with pluralism,” she said.

At the same time the OSCE representative admitted there were some transnational problems of the Internet, among them pedophilia, human and human organs trafficking, terrorism, extremism, etc. “This is the legal rights of a state to solve these issues. But I don’t like that some OSCE countries, too many of them, use this aspiration (fighting negative developments) to restrict the freedom of expression, demonstration of satire, criticism and to some degree provocative discussions,” she said.

The OSCE representative stressed that “these threats had also existed before the Internet appeared, these threats are both online and offline.”

In her view, “self-regulation is the only answer to a question on instruments of Internet regulation.” “An attempt to regulate this sphere will bring no results taking into account the nature of the sphere,” Mijatovic believes.