Bulgarian Banks Try To Silence Web Site That Called Them 'Bad Apples'
from the give-those-people-a-medal dept
Whatever your views on the value of Wikileaks, one of its useful side-effects has been the appearance of other sites that have tried to do a similar job of calling the powerful to account using leaked information, but at a more local level. One of the most successful of these is BalkanLeaks, created by the Bulgarian investigative journalists Atanas Tchobanov and Assen Yordanov. In fact, it’s been rather too successful for some, and is now on the receiving end of some legal threats, as a column in Forbes explains:
Earlier this month, Tchobanov and Yordanov’s news outlet Bivol.bg, which publishes documents from their WikiLeaks-like leak site BalkanLeaks, received a letter from Bulgaria’s central bank threatening to fine the news organization for publishing “false information and circumstances” that undermine the “reputation and credibility” of four Bulgarian banks that filed the complaint with the government — a violation could carry as much 150,000 Bulgarian lev ($100,000) in penalties.
As Reporters without Borders notes, the “false information and circumstances” originated in a US embassy cable obtained by WikiLeaks, which was published by Bivol.bg back in June:
The article consisted of an analysis of a US embassy cable published by WikiLeaks about “bad apples” in the Bulgarian banking system, but it corroborated the US ambassador’s comments with information from its own sources.
It’s some of those alleged “bad apples” that have complained to the Bulgarian National Bank (BNB), accusing the news site of violating Bulgaria’s Credit Institutions Act. But as Reporters Without Borders comments:
“The Credit Institutions Act concerns only the banking world and cannot be used against the media or to defy the constitution, which guarantees media freedom. Moreover, the BNB has no jurisdiction over media law and cannot be allowed to impose heavy fines on news outlets.”
This seems likely a clear case of bullying, using banking laws and the threat of a big fine to silence a small news organization. As the Forbes article points out, this isn’t the first time that the Bivol.org journalists have chosen to take on extremely powerful groups:
Using the same anonymity tools as WikiLeaks, the group has obtained leaked documents exposing judicial bribery, former members of the Soviet-tied secret police, and blackmailing between Bulgarian prosecutors. After obtaining and publishing a State Department cable on Bulgarian organized crime the group received from rogue WikiLeaks ex-associate Israel Shamir last summer, Bivol partnered with WikiLeaks to release the rest of the Bulgaria-related cables. One accused Bulgarian prime minister Boyko Borisov of close mafia ties, a claim he vigorously dismissed in a Bulgarian TV interview as “yellow journalism.”
At a time when many people are wondering whether WikiLeaks is a spent force, it’s heartening to see BalkanLeaks and Bivol.org continuing to expose wrongs through the use of leaked information, despite the very clear risks.
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Filed Under: balkanleaks, bivol.bl, bulgaria, censorship, leaks
Comments on “Bulgarian Banks Try To Silence Web Site That Called Them 'Bad Apples'”
...the appearance of a other sites
the appearance of a other sites
Something lost in translation.
Re: ...the appearance of a other sites
Something lost in translation.
Or just an extra “a” which has now been removed.
Bulging bully boy Bulgarian bank bandits battle borderless bloggers. Bravo brevity.
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Achievement unlocked: added allitereve appeal
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Looks like I just unlocked “you can’t speel stupid” :_:
What will happen to this site if I use it to call UK banks and investment bankers a moral cancer eroding away at all that is good in society?
There it is again, as always the article tells only one side of the story, citing lobby groups like Reporters without Borders! Traitor Mike and his terrorist shills are clearly in the pockets of Big Leaks. Defending child-molesting activities like journalism really shows what kind of despicable person he is.
No you can’t report on everything. It’s the rule of law. It’s the difference between Bulgaria and, say, Narnia. Hiding behind your “Free Speech” beating stick doesn’t change that! Look how Osama made his videos, he used a camera, just like reporters do. That should tell you something!
Bankers’ children need to eat, you know, otherwise there will be no more professional banking in the future! There are literally billions of jobs at stake, because almost every wage on earth is paid by some kind of banking transaction and without those there would be no jobs.
And what does this story have to do with technology or dirt anyway? I thought the name of this blog was “TechDirt”. False advertising, much?
Now i demand you finally debate me, chubby. Time and time again you refused because you know you’d lose and your corporate masters wouldn’t like that. That’s why you won’t engage in a polite and rational discussion with me. At least answer one simple question: Have you already stopped waterboarding cute puppies? Yes or no?
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9/10 would read again. Wonderful satire.
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I know you’re trying to be sarcastic, but you’re pretty much spot-on. Except the part where you invoke “rule of the law” – there’s a rule and there’s a law and the two sometimes see over coffee, but as practised, the rule sometimes sends the law on vacation so it can rule in peace.
The politics in this country are beyond saving.
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2/10 Nice try with the rule of law quip but it’s a little labored. Two points for general lack of coherence though.
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*slow clap*
Fine piece of trollish sarcasm. I’m trying to think who would be our usual critic that would write such thing and strongly believe it. I’ll guess ootb, he seems to be in a bad insanity spree this week.
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A thing of beauty. Well done.
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Bravo good sir (or ma’am). Bravo.
You hit all the usual points, invoked all the usual troll buzz words, and ended it in the style of a certain person who shall not be named, as if it matters because even quoting him is tantamount to directly addressing him and thus opens the door for him to further derail any/all comments (per his own words).
We all know what’s gonna happen. The Russian Mafia will disappear these guys, and that’s the end of it.