We have become what we fight

New law: Half a million in fines for anyone who spreads Russian media
Foreign

19 april 2022

kl. 20.00

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Up to 50,000 euros in fines, or just over half a million kronor, risks anyone who, contrary to the EU's censorship dictation, spreads the Russian media RT or Sputnik. This according to a new law in Austria that came into force today.

Behind the law is the Austrian blue-green government, with the support of the Social Democrats and the Liberals. The Freedom Party (FPÖ) was the only party that voted against the law when the issue was discussed in the Austrian parliament.

FPÖ: Do the same as Russia
Susanne Fürst, FPÖ's spokeswoman on constitutional issues, warns of the development.

- Every time the government wants to protect us from something, extreme caution is required. Because it always leads to more state and less freedom, she says .

READ ALSO: KD says no to the censorship law after Samnytt's review

Her party colleague, legal policy spokesman Harald Stefan, believes that the law is a "significant restriction of fundamental rights, freedom of expression, freedom of the press and free access to information".

- With this law, Parliament is implementing the same thing that is currently being enforced in Russia where social media is blocked, but in the opposite way. A single opinion is allowed. Divergent views are silenced, erased and made criminal, he says.

"We do not allow fake news"
Eva Blimlinger is the cultural policy spokesperson for the Austrian Green Party, which is part of the government. She leads the committee that hastily drafted the new law.

Blimlinger dismisses the FPÖ's criticism and denies that the law is about censorship. According to her, the blue-green government allows different opinions "but not fake news", she says according to Die Presse.

The Austrian ban on sharing Russian media applies to RT's English, German, French and Spanish versions, as well as to Sputnik. This applies regardless of whether you share or distribute all or part of the Russian media's productions.

According to the committee 's minutes , re-publishing part of an RT feature, for example by uploading it to Twitter or Facebook, may be enough to be punished.

https://samnytt.se/ny-lag-halv....-miljon-i-boter-for-