(RSF/IFEX) – Reporters Without Borders has welcomed the Ukrainian Transport and Telecommunications Ministry’s decision to rescind a May 2005 decree requiring online publications to register with the authorities. The requirement was a threat to free expression and had been criticised by many local organisations and media outlets. The ministry said the decree had been rescinded […]
(RSF/IFEX) – Reporters Without Borders has welcomed the Ukrainian Transport and Telecommunications Ministry’s decision to rescind a May 2005 decree requiring online publications to register with the authorities. The requirement was a threat to free expression and had been criticised by many local organisations and media outlets.
The ministry said the decree had been rescinded because it did not respect “the principles of state regulatory policy in the field of information technology development.”
Aside from a few repressive countries such as China, only Bahrain has made it obligatory for online publications to register. Reporters Without Borders and the Representative on Freedom of the Media of the Organisation of Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE) took a clear position on this issue in a joint statement about online free expression in June.
They said, “Any requirement to register websites with governmental authorities is not acceptable. Unlike licensing scarce resources such as broadcasting frequencies, an abundant infrastructure like the Internet does not justify official assignment of licenses. On the contrary, mandatory registration of online publications might stifle the free exchange of ideas, opinions, and information on the Internet.”
