New regulation against ‘fake news’ enacted
New restrictions against fake news and misinformation were enacted on Friday after being published in the Royal Gazette.
The new regulation was issued under Section 9 of the Emergency Decree on Public Administration in Emergency Situations. The emergency decree has been in place since March 26, 2020 and was recently extended for a 13th time, until September 30.
The new regulation bans the reporting, selling, or publishing of letters, publications, or other media “containing messages that might cause panic to citizens or intentionally falsify information that might cause misunderstanding during the state of emergency”.
It adds that the National Broadcasting and Telecommunications Commission (NBTC) will suspend any website discovered publishing fake news and immediately report it to the police.
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