Bahrain – Members of Parliament have submitted an emergency proposal to reduce the proposed fine for editorial discrepancies by 20 times from BD10,000 to a maximum of BD500.
The move by several MPs led by Jalal Khadem was considered by the Parliamentary Services Committee.
The bill follows a lively debate over the amended Publications Act, which was scheduled for last Tuesday and was postponed for two weeks due to concerns over registration requirements and the threat of high fines.
Lawmakers last week expressed displeasure with a provision that would require all websites and social media accounts offering news or advertising services to officially register, imposing penalties similar to existing publications for violating the rules. expressed.
Under the latest proposals, fines for those who start an unauthorized publication, operate an unauthorized print shop, sell an unauthorized publication, or engage in unauthorized media or advertising activities would be The fine will be BD100 instead of the maximum fine of BD5,000 as stated in the disputed judgment. version.
Anyone who opens or operates a bookstore without a license or publishes or distributes unauthorized or prohibited publications will be subject to similar penalties.
Failure to publish amendments within the agreed period will result in fines ranging from BD50 to BD300, instead of the current BD1,000 to BD10,000.
If the amendment is published before the deadline for legal action, the violation will be revoked.
Other rules stipulate that online-only news websites can operate with permission from the information minister. All existing websites will have six months to comply with the new rules.
“We do not want to delay the enactment of the law, but we believe that the current penalties are restrictive,” he added. “A responsible committee needs to consider the proposals we have made and upgrade the overall law accordingly in a stable and effective manner.”
Information Minister Ramzan Al Nuaimi told parliamentarians at their weekly session last Tuesday that the purpose of registering website and social media accounts is to provide two-way protection for account holders and members of the community. He said there is.
Other MPs expressed concern that members of dissolved political groups would not be able to obtain licenses.
Under the agreed terms, the court will be empowered to confiscate all publications and shut down offending printing facilities.
The editor-in-chief or managing editor of a publication or website found to be in violation of the law must post a correction on the same page and in the same space within three days.
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