Journalist of ‘Narodnaya Volia’ still gets no accreditation
Narodnaya Volia newspaper editorial office is going to file a court claim against the Chamber of Representatives of Belarus that refused to issue a journalist accreditation to Maryna Koktysh, a correspondent of the newspaper.
The editorial office of the newspaper received a letter of reply, signed by Ms. Skarynina, Deputy Head of Secretariat at the Chamber of Representatives of Belarus on 5 January 2009. The official informed the editorial that the application for accrediting Maryna Koktysh at the Chamber of Representatives had been forwarded to ‘the appropriate services’. However, the latter decided to reject the lady journalist access to "a complex of buildings on Savetskaya Street 11’, where the House of Government is located.
Harry Pahaniayla, Deputy Head of ‘Belarusian Helsinki Committee’, believes that the facts that were presented in the letter of reply from the Chamber of Representatives violated the existing legislation. Consequently, there appeared all grounds to claim against them in court.
‘The problem is that it is the Chamber of Representatives that has to take decisions as far as the journalist accreditation at the supreme legislative body is concerned. Therefore, the decisions, taken outside the institution can hardly be treated as legal.’
It is worth mentioning that Narodnaya Volia editorial office addressed the Chamber of Representatives with a request to provide its correspondent Maryna Koktysh with a journalist accreditation at the legislative institution in autumn 2007. Despite being accredited at the Lower Chamber of Belarusian Parliament for several recent years, the journalist was deprived of this right without explanation of reasons in 2007. The journalists were explained afterwards that the decision was taken by the President's Security Service.
Hence, the editorial office and Maryna Koktysh decided to defend their professional rights through court and sent corresponding claims against the illegal actions, taken in relation to the media worker by the Chamber of Representatives and the President's Security Service.
In June 2008 Maskouski City District Court in Miensk resolved that the journalist and the newspaper editorial had no right to appeal to court on the matter and refused to consider the claim. Having considered Narodnaya Volia representatives' appeal against the court decision, the Panel of Judges at Miensk City Court left their colleagues' verdict in force.
