"Lukashenka Is Enemy Of Internet" Campaign Held In Minsk

Caricature portraits of the dictator appeared in the center of the capital.

A campaign under the name of Lukashenka Is Enemy Of Internet was held in Minsk. Numerous caricature portraits of the dictator with such a slogan appeared in the center of the Belarusian capital. Public activist Kiryl Vasileuski reported about that on Facebook.

We remind that on January 24, Lukashenka's regime blocked the independent information resource Charter97.org. The blocking was confirmed by the First Deputy Minister of Information Ihar Lutski. The Ministry of Information is headed by Aliaksandr Karliukevich.

We remind that On April 19, the so-called Belarusian "house of representatives" adopted scandalous amendments to the Law on Mass Media, which totally destroy the freedom of speech in Belarus. The amendments suggest the registration of Internet resources as media (they will be called "online publications"). Employees of unregistered Internet resources will not be classified as journalists, will have no right for the obtaining and protection of the source of information, and will be regarded as demonstrants during mass actions.

Also, the compulsory identification of those who post materials on Internet resources (not only on online publications), including commentators on forums, come into use. That is, editors of informational resources working in Belarus will be forced to give away the data of their journalists and readers, commenting the articles, to the special services. Also, there is a possibility of blocking social networks and limiting access to a resource on an out-of-court basis.

Experts call these amendments "a crack-down on independent journalism" and "a new turn of the screw."

On the eve of the adoption of amendments to the law on the media in Belarus, the largest independent website, Charter97.org, was blocked.