VietNamNet Bridge – The Ministry of Information and Communications (MoIC) is compiling a circular to deal with violations related to the provision, use of the Internet, including information on blogs, said a senior official.

Mr. Luu Vu Hai

The Chief of the MoIC’s Broadcasting, Television and Electronic Information Control Agency, Luu Vu Hai, said: “The state encourages the use of blogs to serve personal freedom but bloggers have to respect social interests and community interests under the laws”.

VietNamNet talked with Hai about the new rules on blog, which was issued recently by the MoIC.

According to circular 07/2008/TB-BTTT, bloggers are banned from some things. But they can claim freedom of speech as stipulated in the Constitution. What is your opinion about it?

Nobody is banned from freedom of speech and giving information but freedom of speech and information must not harm the public interest, the personal freedom of others and the interests of the country and society in general.

Bloggers are not forced to declare their true names when they use blog services. When they commit violations of the rules, will it be very difficult to find out who they are?

It is difficult but it is not impossible.

We will have to ask social network service providers to force blog service users to declare their true personal information.

An issue always has two faces. But we have to see the requirement of development of the society to have measures of management. State agencies want to take feasible measures of management, which are appropriate to the trend of development and create favourable conditions for the people to use scientific and technological achievements, especially Internet applications.

Why does the circular ban bloggers from diffusing press works on their blogs? Maybe bloggers are correspondents who want to archive their works on their blogs or bloggers who are not correspondents but want to archive information for their own reference.

The Press Law stipulates responsibility in using press works. When we use the press freedom right we have to obey the Press Law and we couldn’t use the press freedom right in a non-press environment.

Blogs are encouraged to develop to help individuals share information which is suitable to customs and habits and Vietnamese laws.

Is it troublesome for social network service providers to report on their blog services every six months?

I don’t think this is an administrative difficulty because the contents that they have to report are readily available. This is two-way cooperation between businesses and state agencies.

How will bloggers who commit violations be punished?

The MoIC is compiling a circular on dealing with violations related to the provision and use of Internet services, including information provision on blogs.

Violations related to blogs are stipulated in various legal documents and now they are being grouped together.

Xuan Linh