Infamous law On Media comes into force today

Today, March 31, the Law of Ukraine On Media came into force. The law is known to be opposed by western journalists and the Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe (OSCE).

This follows from the law, the Ukrainian News agency reports.

The document introduces regulation by the National TV and Radio Broadcasting Council, online media, print media, and even web-sharing platforms (such as YouTube and social networks). A co-regulation mechanism is also foreseen, but with the participation of the National Council.

In general, the regulator's authority is significantly expanded; in particular, it will have the right to block and close media without a court decision, including online media.

The law also provides for a number of measures to strengthen the state's information security, which is the reason for the expansion of the powers of the National Council declared by the legislator.

Also, the bill's authors in the explanatory note emphasize that the bill harmonizes Ukrainian legislation with European norms. Still, according to the National Union of Journalists of Ukraine (NUJU), such norms occupy only about 10% of the law.

As the Ukrainian News agency earlier reported, the European Federation of Journalists called on the Ukrainian government to postpone the bill On Media. The OSCE also criticized the bill.

Most print media editors do not support the bill on media.

Maksym Tuliiev, a board member of the Internet Association of Ukraine, believes that if the bill on media is adopted, the National Council will become a worse institution than Russia's Roskomnadzor.

The primary legal department of the Council believes that the bill On Media does not sufficiently consider the constitutional prescription for the prohibition of censorship.

In addition, according to the assessment of the legal administration, the norms of the Directive of the European Parliament regarding the status of the regulator are insufficiently taken into account.

The NUJU issued a statement that subjected the bill to sharp criticism and called for its consideration to be postponed until Ukraine's victory in the Russian-Ukrainian war.