What Do Belarusian Authorities And Mozambique Have In Common?
3- 22.08.2018, 17:17
- 12,347
The regime has long sunk to the African level with regard to the freedom of press.
In Mozambique (South Africa), a decree which in fact imposes “tax on Journalism” is coming into force, Human Rights Watch reports.
Foreign correspondents will have to pay $2,500 per trip to Mozambique for media accreditation, or $8,300 for working in the country steadily, Belsat reports.
Mozambique is one of the poorest countries in the world. Over 50% of its citizens get by on $30 per month.
Local freelancers will have to pay $500 for the right to publish their articles in the Mozambican press “legally”. Local journalists working for the foreign media will be charged $3500 for one-year accreditation. Mozambican media organizations will also pay the “journalism tax” ($34,5K to $69K annually).
“Imposing prohibitive fees against journalists will have a serious effect on their ability to cover the October municipal elections and the 2019 general elections,” said Dewa Mavhinga, Southern Africa director at Human Rights Watch.
Director of the Mozambican Information Office Emilia Moiane, defended the fees as a “response to market circumstances” and the need to “impose discipline on the media”.
“Journalism tax” in Belarus
It seems that Belarusian freelancers contributing to Belsat TV have an “exclusive” right to pay the journalism tax in the form of fines for working without accreditation (violation of Article 22.9 of the Administrative Code of Belarus).
In the first hals of 2018, freelance journalist Kanstantsin Zhukouski has been Bn 4,189 fined; cameraman Ales Barazenka – Bn 3,307, cameraman Andrus Kozel – Bn 4,531. Reporter Volha Chajchyts got fines to the amount of Bn 5,389 (appr. $2,700). As one can see, she even could purchase a single accreditation to work in Mozambique.
Last year, Belsat journalists paid $ 25,000 of fines. This year it could be even more: only for the first 6 months of 2018, the judges ruled to collect from the journalists, who work with the TV channel, more than Bn 46 253.
