The Office of the Prosecutor General has further clarified the restrictions on access to information about military criminal offenses during martial law, specifically why these restrictions are imposed and what information they concern, UNN reports.
Details
The Office of the Prosecutor General emphasized that criminal offenses stipulated in Articles 407, 408, and other articles of Chapter XIX of the Criminal Code of Ukraine "Criminal offenses against the established order of military service (military criminal offenses)" fall under the category of restricted access information.
Restricting access to information about military criminal offenses is a forced and legitimate step aimed at:
- protecting national security;
preventing the use of such data against Ukraine;
- maintaining stability and trust in the defense forces during wartime;
- countering information-psychological operations of the aggressor state.
Why this information is restricted
As reported by the Office of the Prosecutor General, providing or disclosing information about criminal offenses against the established order of military service during martial law creates risks for national security. Such information can be used:
- to discredit the defense forces;
- to form false conclusions about the moral and psychological state of military personnel;
- to assess the level of discipline, combat readiness of units, and the mobilization system;
- as a tool for information-psychological operations against Ukraine, aimed at undermining trust in the military leadership and the state's defense capabilities.
Even the dissemination of generalized statistical data on the number of such offenses can cause significant harm to defense activities and information security, particularly by creating a favorable environment for manipulation and hostile propaganda.
According to Part 2 of Article 6 of the Law of Ukraine "On Access to Public Information," access to information may be restricted only if three criteria are simultaneously met:
- exclusively in the interests of national security, territorial integrity, or public safety;
disclosure of the information may cause significant harm to these interests;
- the harm from disclosure outweighs the public interest in obtaining such information.
In the case of military criminal offenses, these conditions are fully met.
What specific information is restricted
During martial law, the following are subject to restriction:
- generalized statistical data (current and for previous reporting periods since 24.02.2022) on criminal offenses stipulated in Chapter XIX of the Criminal Code of Ukraine;
- information about persons who committed such offenses;
- information contained in the documents of prosecutor's offices and related to the specified category of criminal offenses.
This also applies to restricting their publication on the official information resources of prosecutor's offices.
At the same time, the Office of the Prosecutor General emphasized that such restrictions are introduced only for the period of martial law in Ukraine.