Azattyk Media applied to Demir Bank for official clarification on the reasons for blocking of its accounts. Statement of the media outlet says.
In accordance with the requirements of Part 1 of Article 58 of the Law on Banks and Banking Activities, a ban on the disposal of funds can only be imposed by a court. According to the document, the request, the requirement of law enforcement officers are not grounds for suspending transactions on current accounts.
«If the bank violates this norm, it bears responsibility in accordance with the concluded agreement. In addition, the bank will have to pay material damage if the employees’ wages are not paid on time within the terms established by the Labor Code. Thus, in accordance with the requirements of Article 157 of the Labor Code, if the employer violates the deadline for paying salaries, vacation pay and other payments, he or she is obliged to pay additionally for each overdue calendar day 0.15 percent of the unpaid amount of money. In case of such payments, the employer may file a recourse suit against the bank, which unreasonably suspended operations on settlement accounts, respectively,» the law says.
The day before, Demir Bank verbally reported that the media outlet’s accounts were blocked, and recommended to contact the State Committee for National Security for clarification. Azattyk has not received an official written notice from the financial institution. The security services promised to provide an answer later, but as of the morning of November 1, it still has not been received.
The Ministry of Culture, Information, Sports and Youth Policy of Kyrgyzstan suspended the work of Azattyk Media website for two months on October 26, referring to the law of the ex-deputy Gulshat Asylbayeva on protection from inaccurate (false) information. The reason was a video from Current Time (a TV channel created by Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty) titled «Heavy fighting on the border of Kyrgyzstan and Tajikistan.» The material was also published on Azattyk Media website.
In a statement issued the same day, RFE/RL President Jamie Fly said the broadcaster had reviewed the content in question and found «no violation of our standards.»
«We will not succumb to pressure to remove balanced reporting from our sites, be it from the Kremlin or the Kyrgyz government,» he added.
