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Information minister defends censorship, wants to step up propaganda
May 4, Pozirk. State censorship of the media is a necessary element in securing law-abiding behavior, Information Minister Marat Markaŭ has said during his appearance on a cooking show broadcast today by the state-run STV.
“Somewhere, we even went along with those wonderful promises that the West made to us before 2020. . . . the fairy tales about democracy, independence, freedom of speech and so on, but I’d say directly, in Russian, that it was nonsense,” he said.
“What they [the West] are doing now, is not just censorship, it is a severe infringement of freedom of speech. If they do not benefit from the information, they just suppress it,” he added, without giving any specific examples.
The official accused independent media of working to “destroy” Belarus until 2020 and pushing the country to a “Ukrainian scenario” five years ago. “When it was necessary to take drastic measures, we took them. Call it censorship if you please.”
“Our opponents continue to create information resources that will try to destabilize the country,” Markaŭ said, hinting that in response, Minsk would strengthen its long-term propaganda effort ahead of the 2030 presidential election.
Many independent media outlets were branded extremist groups for political reasons in Belarus after the disputed 2020 presidential election. Belarusian authorities keep silencing critical voices, equating criticism, solidarity, advocacy, the free media and free expression to extremism and terrorism.
This year, Belarus ranked 166th out of 180 countries in the World Press Freedom Index. At least 40 media workers remain behind bars, according to the Belarusian Association of Journalists.
Minsk has been ignoring calls by democratic countries and advocacy groups to respect its international obligations and allow a free and independent press.
