Belarus Fines Freelancer For Working With Foreign Media
There is so much happening in the world and news organizations have limited resources. The smarter news groups reach out to freelancers to fill the gaps in reporting around the world.
Belarus — one of the last hard-core holder overs of Stalinist rule after the collapse of the Soviet Union — enacted a law that forbids Belarus journalists from working for foreign media.
Now the government has fined freelance journalist, Larysa Shchyrakova about US$245 for breaking that stupid law.
The European Federation of Journalists is calling on the Belarus government to withdraw the fine and repeal the law.
Belarus ranks right at the bottom of press freedom according to Freedom House, with a score of 93 out of 100 for media repression and control. It also has a political freedom rating of 6.5, with 7 representing an absolute lack of any freedoms.
From the Freedom House 2015 Press Freedom report on Belarus
Despite constitutional provisions for freedom of the press, criticism of the president and the government is considered a criminal offense, and libel convictions can result in prison sentences or high fines. There are no effective legal guarantees of public access to government records. Judges, prosecutors, police officers, tax officials, and bureaucrats from the Information Ministry regularly use politicized court rulings and obscure regulations to harass independent newspapers and websites.
That puts Belarus in the same neighborhood as Chad, China and Cuba.
Tags: Belarus, Censorship, China, Cuba, Harassment, Human Rights, International Journalism, Press Freedom
Defending the First Amendment and promoting open government are more crucial now than ever. Join SPJ's fight for the public’s right to know — either as an SPJ Supporter or a professional, student or retired journalist.
