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WARSAW, Poland — Poland’s right-wing leaders hinted Saturday they will not fully implement the European Union’s new copyright reform, saying it stifles freedom of speech.

Ruling party leader Jaroslaw Kaczynski said Saturday that a copyright directive adopted by EU lawmakers this week threatens freedom. The bloc’s 28 nations have some two years to incorporate it into their legal systems.

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Proponents say the changes ensure that authors and artists are paid for their work available in the internet. Critics, including the Polish government, say the rules will ban the linking of text, images and memes, thus stifling creativity and spread of information.

The most controversial section would require companies such as YouTube and Facebook to take responsibility for copyrighted material that’s uploaded to their platforms.

Without elaborating, Kaczynski said the Law and Justice party will implement it “in a way that will preserve freedom.”