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Censorship in Belarus refers to government policies in controlling and regulating certain information. Although censorship is prohibited by the Constitution of Belarus, various laws have been enforced that may infringe that right, such as a law that states that insulting the president is punishable by up to five years in prison, and a law that states that criticizing Belarus abroad is punishable by up to two years in prison.[1]
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Freedom of press
In 2006 Reporters Without Borders listed Belarus as one of the 13 "Internet enemies".[2] In 2007, Reporters Without Borders ranked Belarus 154st out of 173 countries in its 2008 press freedom index.[3] In the 2009 Freedom House Country Report, Belarus was one of the only two European countries to be rated as "Not Free".[4] The Lukashenko regime systematically curtails press freedom, the organisation says. State media are subordinated to the president, and harassment and censorship of independent media are routine.
Music censorship
In the past few years, many Belarusian musicians and rock bands have been unofficially banned from radio and television, have had their concert licenses revoked, and have had their interviews censored in the media.[5] Researchers Maya Medich and Lemez Lovas reported in 2006 that "independent music-making in Belarus today is an increasingly difficult and risky enterprise", and that the Belarusian government "puts pressure on ‘unofficial’ musicians - including ‘banning’ from official media and imposing severe restrictions on live performance."
Belarus government policies tends to divide Belarusian musicians into pro-government "official" and pro-democracy "unofficial" camps. Economic barriers have been placed against various artists, leading to self-censorship of many artists.[1]
References
- ^ a b "Freemuse: Maya Medich & Lemez Lovas: Music censorship in Belarus". http://www.freemuse.org/sw19372.asp. Retrieved 2009-08-22.
- ^ Reporters Sans Frontières
- ^ "Reporters Sans Frontières - Press Freedom Index 2008". http://www.rsf.org/en-classement794-2008.html. Retrieved 2009-08-22.
- ^ "freedomhouse.org: Country Report". http://www.freedomhouse.org/template.cfm?page=22&year=2009. Retrieved 2009-08-22.
- ^ "Freemuse: Freedom of musical expression in Belarus - report". http://www.freemuse.org/sw21039.asp. Retrieved 2009-08-22.
External links
- Freemuse report
- Belarusian Authorities to start Fighting against Satellite Dishes
- Various articles on music censorship in Belarus
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