OSCE assists Belarus in evaluating new information law

MINSK, 26 March 2008 - A draft law on information and protecting information is the focus of a roundtable discussion in Minsk today.

The event, held at the Chamber of Representatives, brought together government officials and experts from the Office of the OSCE Representative on Freedom of the Media, who have analyzed the draft and have offered recommendations on ways to improve it.

"I am convinced that the openness of the parliamentary commission on this matter and the fact that some of the comments provided by the OSCE in their first evaluation have already been taken into account in the present draft of the bill are hopeful signs that such co-operation will continue in the future," said Ambassador Hans-Jochen Schmidt, the Head of the OSCE Office in Minsk.

The draft law will be presented during the Spring session of Parliament which opens 2 April.

Roland Bless, the Director of the Office of the Representative on Freedom of the Media, said: "I hope that the reform of the media will continue in a transparent manner, and involve all stakeholders, including the Parliament Commission, NGO's and international experts. Our office stands ready to further assist the Government of Belarus in adopting a media-friendly law to improve the country's legislation and bring it in line with OSCE commitments."

The review of the second draft of the law is available at www.osce.org/fom