Rules of restricting access to Internet being work out in Belarus

The rules of restricting access to the Internet are being worked out in Belarus.

This was told at a press conference in Minsk by Pavel Pyatrulevich, the chief specialist of the telecommunications department at the Ministry of Communication and Informatization.

“This issue is being studied by the operative and analytical center (at the President of Belarus – Interfax) and the Ministry of Communication,” he said, Interfax informs.

“The draft has already been sent to governmental bodies for approval. We have received a number of comments regarding the restriction of access to information, clear understanding of what, when and how should be restricted. The document was amended, but as far as I know it hasn’t been sent for approval,” the specialist said.

Speaking about approaches to restrict access, Pyatrulevich noted: governmental bodies, educational, cultural and other institutions mentioned in the decree (#60 – Interfax) will restrict access to information, which spreading is forbidden by the law.”

What to individuals, “a client can request for restriction of access in accordance with an agreement with an Internet service provider,” the specialist said. The representative of the Ministry of Communication explained that “a client tells the ISP access to what information should be restricted. This can be a list of websites or any content.”

“If an ISP has enough technical opportunities and can satisfy the request (on restriction of access – Interfax) in full, it will render this service to a client. If there are technical moments (that prevent from restricting access – Interfax), they will be settled by a client and an ISP in due course,” Pyatrulevich added.

However, he wasn’t absolutely sure that the document would be approved by July 1, when decree #60, providing for such possibilities, takes force.

Pyatrulevich said that under the draft, Internet service providers were supposed to get technically prepared to implement the decree’s norms by July 1. He found it difficult to name the term approved in the amended documents. He supposed the ISP would be offered a certain period to time to prepare themselves.

He added that a service of restricting access would be rendered to governmental bodies for free.

“What concerns individuals, it will be a decision of an ISP whether this service will be free or not. The parties will come to term on the issue,” Pyatrulevich said.

Head of the telecommunications department Volha Fedareeva spoke about decree #60 that offers a possibility to create a new telecommunications operator, alternative to Beltelecom, which will have the right to route international traffic and connect to foreign states’ telecommunications networks. She noted: “The list of such operators will be made by the operative and analytical center on the president’s approval.” She said the Ministry of Communication didn’t have information about the list and telecommunications operators.

Answering a question about cooperation between the Ministry and the analytical center on the issue, Fedareeva said the Ministry of Communication hadn’t received requests to make a list yet.

As it has been reported earlier, under president’s decree #60 of February 1, 2010, Internet service providers can restrict access to certain information for individuals (on their request), governmental bodies, educational and cultural institutions. This regards the content aimed at carrying out extremist activity, arms trafficking, drug smuggling, human trafficking, spreading porn materials, promoting violence and cruel treatment, and other activities forbidden by the law.