OSCE media freedom representative calls on Tajikistan to protect free flow of information on Internet

VIENNA, 21 September 2007 - Miklos Haraszti, the OSCE Representative on Freedom of the Media, today called on Tajikistan to bring its legislation in line with its OSCE commitments by revoking recent criminal code amendments that restrict the freedom of speech.

The amendments to articles 135 and 136, recently signed into law by President Emomali Rakhmon, call for prosecution of the "intentional distribution via the Internet of knowingly false, libellous and insulting information, as well as expletive words and phrases which denigrate the dignity of human personality".

"Under this law, any factual mistake or strong opinion published, re-published, reported or discussed on the Internet, can be penalized," said Haraszti.

He added that the new legislation used words including "Internet", "information" and "distribution" so vaguely that it could be broadly interpreted and arbitrarily implemented to criminalize public discussions.

"Distribution could mean sharing, debating, or just obtaining information through any Internet-based media, from e-mails to personal websites, from online diaries to news portals," Haraszti said.

"Tajikistan missed an opportunity to transfer all press offences from the criminal to the civil-law court, as expected by international standards of facilitating free discussion of public issues," he said.

"I ask the Majlisi Oli, Tajikistan's Parliament, to bring the legislation in line with the country's OSCE commitments to protect the free flow of information. Whether published on the Internet or in any other media, only explicit incitement to violence or discrimination should be criminalised; the rest of the verbal offences should belong to civil courts."