Legal Ruling: Electoral Silence Not Applicable To Electronic Media Platforms

In a significant legal verdict, the Criminal Court of Appeal, led by Counselor Muhammad Ghazi Al-Mutairi and comprising Counselors Muhammad Al-Duaij and Muhammad Jaafar, clarified that electoral silence does not encompass electronic media platforms, citing the absence of legal provisions for punishment.

The court overturned a previous ruling that fined an electronic media platform on a social media network, deeming it a legal violation due to the lack of specific legislative penalties, as reported by Al-Jarida daily.

Stating its decision, the court disagreed with the Public Prosecution's stance that applying criminal statutes regarding publication restrictions before elections constitutes an offense without explicit legal provisions.

Highlighting the case's basis on evidence from a legal researcher at the Ministry of Information, the court noted an accusation against the accused for failing to verify the accuracy of information published on their Twitter account regarding electoral silence violations on a specific date.

While the Ministry of Information's complaint cited a violation of Article 7 of Ministerial Resolution No. 143 of 2016, prohibiting the broadcast or publication of content related to National Assembly election candidates on polling day and the preceding day, the court concluded that such actions, while against regulations, do not constitute criminal offenses without specific legal penalties.

Consequently, the court found the prosecution's accusation unsubstantiated, as there was no evidence to prove the published information's inaccuracy or falsehood. Thus, the court annulled the lower court's verdict and acquitted the accused of all charges.

Initially, the prosecution charged the accused with failing to ensure information accuracy and violating electoral silence, seeking penalties under various articles of the Electronic Media Law No. 8/2016.

Comments Post Comment

Leave a Comment

Submit