The Presidential Decree and the Decision of the National Security and Defense Council (NSDC) of Ukraine on sanctions in terms of the websites ban are contradictory to the national and international law and violate human rights, the lawyers and experts on the Internet freedom, human rights and digital security who united into a FreeNet Ukraine Coalition emphasized.
The Coalition calls the Presidential Administration and the NSDC to overturn the Decree on sanctions that entail the websites ban and invite civil society to discuss initiatives that aim to regulate the Internet.
According to the lawyers of Coalition, the Presidential Decree and the NSDC Decision in a part of the websites ban is not in line with constitutional standards and manifests unlimited discretion of the Government.
Moreover, the Presidential Decree contradicts to the Law of Ukraine On Sanctions although the Decree was adopted to implement this very Law. In particular, the Law does not entail a sanction such as “prohibiting Internet providers to let Internet users access certain resources/services.”
In addition, the websites ban runs contrary to the international legal instruments ratified by Ukraine which are legally binding, including the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, and Convention for the Protection of Human Rights and Fundamental Freedoms.
The Coalition “For Free Internet” stresses that the Presidential Decree in a part of the websites ban should be abolished as it contradicts to the effective law. If the authorities or line agencies are about to develop mechanisms to regulate the Internet, it is mandatory that they engage experts and human rights activists.
The Coalition produced a detailed analysis of legal compliance of the Decree with regards to the websites ban with the national and international law which is available here.
For reference: On 14 May 2018, Presidential Decree # 126/2018 on enacting the Decision of the National Security and Defense Council of Ukraine as of 2 May 2018 on economic sanctions that entail “prohibiting Internet providers to let Internet users access certain resources/services, including subdomains” was published. The sanction list contains over 190 Internet resources. The first Decree signed on 15 May 2017 banned access to the popular social networks Vkontakte, Odnoklasniki, Yandex and other websites.
The FreeNet Ukraine Coalition was established in May 2018 in response to the Government’s repeated measures to ban websites and regulate the Internet in violation of the rule of law. The Coalition united human rights organizations and experts to ensure human rights standards on the Internet. Currently, it includes the NGOs Human Rights Platform, Digital Security Lab Ukraine, Human Rights Information Centre, Crimean Human Rights Group, Office of Freedom House in Ukraine, The Influencer Platform, Nadia Babynska and Mykola Kostynian.
Contacts:
+380632787645
The Presidential Decree and the Decision of the National Security and Defense Council (NSDC) of Ukraine on sanctions in terms of the websites ban are contradictory to the national and international law and violate human rights, the lawyers and experts on the Internet freedom, human rights and digital security who united into a FreeNet Ukraine Coalition emphasized.
The Coalition calls the Presidential Administration and the NSDC to overturn the Decree on sanctions that entail the websites ban and invite civil society to discuss initiatives that aim to regulate the Internet.
According to the lawyers of Coalition, the Presidential Decree and the NSDC Decision in a part of the websites ban is not in line with constitutional standards and manifests unlimited discretion of the Government.
Moreover, the Presidential Decree contradicts to the Law of Ukraine On Sanctions although the Decree was adopted to implement this very Law. In particular, the Law does not entail a sanction such as “prohibiting Internet providers to let Internet users access certain resources/services.”
In addition, the websites ban runs contrary to the international legal instruments ratified by Ukraine which are legally binding, including the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, and Convention for the Protection of Human Rights and Fundamental Freedoms.
The Coalition “For Free Internet” stresses that the Presidential Decree in a part of the websites ban should be abolished as it contradicts to the effective law. If the authorities or line agencies are about to develop mechanisms to regulate the Internet, it is mandatory that they engage experts and human rights activists.
The Coalition produced a detailed analysis of legal compliance of the Decree with regards to the websites ban with the national and international law which is available here.
For reference: On 14 May 2018, Presidential Decree # 126/2018 on enacting the Decision of the National Security and Defense Council of Ukraine as of 2 May 2018 on economic sanctions that entail “prohibiting Internet providers to let Internet users access certain resources/services, including subdomains” was published. The sanction list contains over 190 Internet resources. The first Decree signed on 15 May 2017 banned access to the popular social networks Vkontakte, Odnoklasniki, Yandex and other websites.
The FreeNet Ukraine Coalition was established in May 2018 in response to the Government’s repeated measures to ban websites and regulate the Internet in violation of the rule of law. The Coalition united human rights organizations and experts to ensure human rights standards on the Internet. Currently, it includes the NGOs Human Rights Platform, Digital Security Lab Ukraine, Human Rights Information Centre, Crimean Human Rights Group, Office of Freedom House in Ukraine, The Influencer Platform, Nadia Babynska and Mykola Kostynian.
Contacts:
+380632787645
