On October 2 journalists and citizens will stage the second protest against bill No. 11013 on the criminalization of slander authored by Regions Party parliamentary faction MP Vitaliy Zhuravsky.
According to the Telekritika publication, the protest will start at
1000. The event will be organized by the Independent Media Trade Union
of Ukraine and the Stop Censorship movement. The protesters will demand
from the parliamentarians to cancel the passing of the bill at first
reading.
“Journalists are calling on everyone to come to the rally with white
papers as a symbol of censored press and without party symbols,”
Telekritika says.
As reported, on October 1 around 200 people, mainly journalists,
picketed the building of the Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine, where a meeting
of the conciliatory council of the leaders of parliamentary factions and
committees took place.
On September 18, the Verkhovna Rada passed at first reading a bill by
Vitaliy Zhuravsky introducing amendments to the Criminal Code and the
Criminal Procedure Code of Ukraine concerning the tightening of
responsibility for infringement on honor, dignity and business
reputation.” The document proposes adding Article 145-1 on slander to
the Criminal Code.
A national protest against the adoption of the bill started in Ukraine on September 25.
On the same day, the author of the slander bill, Regions Party
parliamentary faction MP Vitaliy Zhuravsky registered at the parliament a
draft instruction on the cancellation of a decision by the Verkhovna
Rada to pass at first reading the bill on amendments to the Criminal
Code and the Criminal Procedure Code of Ukraine on toughening
punishments for the infringement of the honor, dignity and business
reputation of a person.
