Another criminal case concerning Charter’97
The General Procuracy of Belarus allegedly discovered insults and defamation in comments to articles at www.charter97.org website. It has been stated today at a press-conference by a journalist of charter97.org website Natallia Radzina.
’Today, a human rights activist Aleh Vouchak told me about initiation of the second criminal case for publications at charter97.org website. The criminal case had been initiated by the General Procuracy in connection with... comments to the articles posted at the website. The matter concerns the article reproduced from the newspaper of Lukashenka's administration, Sovetskaya Belorussiya, written by an Afghan war veteran Aliaksandr Ryzhankou, and which was written in the best traditions of Soviet propaganda: with condemnation to Afghan war veterans who oppose the regime and who refused to receive medals from Lukashenka's hands. This article caused indignation of many readers of the website, Natallia Radzina said.
The Co-chairmen of the Republican public association of Afghan war veterans Fatherland Defenders Aleh Vouchak and Aliaksandr Kamarouski have been summoned for interrogation to the General Procuracy already.
Natallia Radzina reminded that according to the laws in Europe, and recently in Russia as well, online media do not bear responsibility for comments of their readers.
‘However we can expect almost anything in our country. There's no precedent for this. Today Internet is the only source of truthful information about the situation in our country. Besides, all over the world Internet not only informs people, but mobilizes them in the run-up to election campaigns. The regime has been obviously frightened by that. There was no coarse language in the comments. There was a general indignation by ‘mobbing’ of principled people in state-run mass media,’ Natallia Radzina stated.
Bear in mind that earlier as a part of another criminal case initiated for defamation of the former head of the KGB directorate of Homel region, Ivan Korzh, searches at the places of a number of independent journalists were held, and all their computers were seized. A real devastation was caused in the news office of charter97.org website.
