“Ukraine Won’t Have Laws That Curb Free Speech” - Zelenskyy’s New Chief of Staff

12 February 2020 16:38

Volodymyr Zelenskyy’s newly appointed chief of staff has assured the press that no laws would be adopted in Ukraine that could restrict the freedom of speech in the country.

Andriy Yermak said this during a briefing that was held on February 12, one day after his appointment.

“I can say on behalf of the President of Ukraine that he is the guarantor of freedom of speech and free media. There will be no laws that would restrict free speech in Ukraine. This is a task for the parliament, but we will monitor it,” the head of the presidential office noted.

He added that President Zelenskyy calls this “a matter of personal concern”.

This comes after Ukraine’s Ministry of Culture, Youth and Sports published a bill set "to provide for national information security and the right to access reliable information" in January. Minister Volodymyr Borodyanskyi wants to allow a month for public discussion and plans to submit the document to the parliament in March.

Earlier, the UN Human Rights Monitoring Mission urged Ukrainian authorities not to restrict media freedom through the introduction of a new “disinformation law”.

NGO “Public Television” (Hromadske TV) opposes the Draft Law "On Amendments to Certain Legislative Acts of Ukraine on Ensuring National Information Security and the Right to Access to Reliable Information".