BAJ slams domain name seizure as crackdown on independent media

April 9, Pozirk. The regulation allowing authorities to confiscate and sell domain names from media branded extremist violates property rights and the right to receive and disseminate information, Barys Harecki, of the Belarusian Association of Journalists (BAJ) has told Pozirk.

Andrej Paŭlučenka of the Operation and Analytical Center (OAC), a state-run agency in charge of Belarus’ information security, approved the regulation on April 4. The regulation, published on April 9, allows the center to auction domain names within 45 calendar days from the date of seizure.

Authorities illegally seized baj.by, the BAJ website, in early January, Harecki said, noting that the BAJ owned the name and kept paying for its use.

In late December 2023, the OAC seized tut.by and affiliated domain names from the late media tycoon Juryj Zisier’s family.

Other media outlets may face similar problems with the new regulation in force.

The BAJ intends to report domain names seizure to the Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers (ICANN) that regulates domain name use and the United Nations that sponsors global and local forums on Internet governance, Harecki stressed.