Kyrgyzstan President retracts restrictive legislation on media operations
You asked for a fresh, informal take on Kyrgyzstan's hot Potato Bill:
Hey there! Guess what, Kyrgyzstan's President, Sadyr Japarov, decided to knock back a kerfuffle-stirring draft bill that's been pissing off people about its restrictive freedom of speech vibes.
Ascart Alagozov, Japarov's spokesperson, spilled the tea on Facebook. In a nutshell, Japarov met with big-wigs from local pubs and press to discuss the draft. Security chief Kamchybek Tashiyev, Dep Prime Minister Edil Baisalov, Prosecutor General Kurmankul Zulushev, and Interior Minister Ulan Niyazbekov were in the mix, too. Alagozov didn't drop any deets about which aspects of the bill got the axe.
It's worth noting that Kyrgyzstan's media is regulated by bits from 1992. Last year, Japarov's administration started floating changes that journos blasted as a massive headache. A draft presented in December had human rights watchdogs screaming " foul play!"
The controversy revolves around the bureaucratic hurdles the bill would put up for the media. At the moment, outlets just need a special accreditation for their reporters to hit hotspots or international events. Japarov's proposed changes would've made journos seek the green light to work at a whole bunch of locations and occasions.
The bill would've given officials the power to snatch a journo's accreditation if their coverage didn't sit well with them. Media advocates also freaked out over passages making journos accountable for creating content inciting public unrest or nudging the government to fall, promoting same-sex marriage, or clashing with "public morals." Critics say what falls under these categories depends on political bias, yikes!
Bill backers sayit's high time for the authorities to mold the social responsibility of journos. The bill's supporters even wrote a supporting blurb, claiming that the 1990s law is outdated and it's the government's job to strengthen Kyrgyzstan's information sovereignty.
The bill had the okay at committee level but didn't make it to a full parliamentary review. Now that Japarov's approved a re-do, the government will have to smoothen things out.
What's interesting is that this isn't the first controversial law introduced since Japarov took charge in 2020. A law passed in 2021, known as the "fake news" law, gave the authorities the power to block websites they deem to be spewing false info, with the gov making the calls on what's true or not. Some outlets, like RFE/RL's Kyrgyz service and independent news site Kloop, have reportedly been hampered by these restrictions.
Sources:[1] Reuters, [2] Reporters without Borders, [3] Human Rights Watch, [4] Freedom House.
1.翻bsite新闻报导称，埃拜萨尔地区政府已经
