Information minister: Changes in media law are required by Belarusian society

Minister of Information Alyaksandr Karlyukevich. Photo: ctv.by
Minister of Information Alyaksandr Karlyukevich. Photo: ctv.by

The changes to the Law on Mass Media are required by Belarusian society, Minister of Information Alyaksandr Karlyukevich told STV. In the interview, he referred to Belarusian citizens who are 'like guinea pigs' and who ‘express their opinions, make suggestions, demand to restrict access or close this or that outlet.'

The innovation urges the public ‘that cannot live without the Internet… just to be civilized.’ There are a lot of questions about the obligatory identification of users posting on Internet resources. “When it is time to bear responsibility, Internet resources must give account and specify who the author of this or that comment or article is,” the Minister said.

The draft amendments in the Law on Mass Media were made public in early April. The list of changes inludes among other things the mandatory identification of users who post on websites, leave comments under news articles and use discussion forum. Check more details here.