from Belarus - independent press Den is close

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Posted by Petunia on August 24, 2005 at 13:06:03:

23 August 2005

City officials kill off independent weekly Den

Reporters Without Borders today condemned the action of Minsk city officials in striking Denpress, publisher of the independent weekly Den, from the list of registered companies on the grounds that it "interrupted its commercial activities for six months without giving any explanation to the tax office."

The move means that a hitherto de facto ban on Den, enforced by means of police seizure of its copies, now has a legal basis, the press freedom organisation said.

"The Belarusian authorities have gone all out to sabotage the independent press," Reporters Without Borders said. "They always find a pretext for silencing dissident voices. The situation is Belarus is very worrying, with some 20 independent publications forced to close in less than two years."

Denpress chief executive Mikolai Markevich, who was notified of the decision on 19 August, said it was politically motivated and was done in order to kill off the newspaper. "Neither the real facts nor the law justify this decision," he said. "We published an issue of Den on 26 May but it was confiscated by the authorities." He said he would appeal.

http://www.rsf.org/article.php3?id_article=13959

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: 23 August 2005 : City officials kill off independent weekly Den : Reporters Without Borders today condemned the action of Minsk city officials in striking Denpress, publisher of the independent weekly Den, from the list of registered companies on the grounds that it "interrupted its commercial activities for six months without giving any explanation to the tax office." : The move means that a hitherto de facto ban on Den, enforced by means of police seizure of its copies, now has a legal basis, the press freedom organisation said. : "The Belarusian authorities have gone all out to sabotage the independent press," Reporters Without Borders said. "They always find a pretext for silencing dissident voices. The situation is Belarus is very worrying, with some 20 independent publications forced to close in less than two years." : Denpress chief executive Mikolai Markevich, who was notified of the decision on 19 August, said it was politically motivated and was done in order to kill off the newspaper. "Neither the real facts nor the law justify this decision," he said. "We published an issue of Den on 26 May but it was confiscated by the authorities." He said he would appeal. : http://www.rsf.org/article.php3?id_article=13959

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