Guaranteeing media freedom and the safety of journalists: an obligation of member States
- Author(s):
- Parliamentary Assembly
- Origin
- Assembly
debate on 25 January 2024 (6th sitting) (see Doc. 15891, report of the Committee on Culture, Science, Education
and Media, rapporteur: Mr Mogens Jensen). Text adopted by the Assembly
on 25 January 2024 (6th sitting).See also Recommendation 2268 (2024).
1. The Parliamentary Assembly stands
firmly for the defence of the right to freedom of expression and recalls
that media freedom and the safety of journalists are cornerstones
of true democracy. According to Article 10 of the European Convention
on Human Rights (ETS No. 5, “the Convention”), member States of
the Council of Europe have a positive obligation to establish a
sound legal framework for media pluralism and for journalists and
other media actors to work safely. However, this result is far from
being reached.
2. Since the Council of Europe Platform to promote the protection
of journalism and safety of journalists was established in 2015,
the number of alerts posted every year has grown constantly, and
it has more than doubled in eight years, rising from 108 in 2015
to 289 in 2022. Moreover, the number of countries concerned by alerts
has increased, while the percentage of alerts considered as “resolved”
has significantly decreased, to less than 5% in 2023.
3. Unfortunately, State authorities and political forces in power
are in many cases at the origin of threats to media freedom and
the safety of journalists, and the Assembly deeply regrets that,
almost ten years after the creation of the platform, its initial
goals of improving the protection of media professionals and fostering
the adoption of adequate laws and practices have not been fulfilled.
However, the Assembly welcomes the recently introduced changes to
the platform, for example by mentioning what type of action is expected
from member States in response to the alerts, and what circumstances
might lead to alerts being considered as resolved.
4. Worrying signals also relate to a lack of proper execution
of the judgments of the European Court of Human Rights (“the Court”),
including the lack of action to remedy violations in relevant specific
cases and solve systemic problems. Council of Europe member States
must honour their obligations under the Convention as determined
by the case law of the Court; this is not negotiable.
5. The negative economic and social consequences – in all sectors
and at all layers of society – of the Covid-19 pandemic and then
the war of aggression against Ukraine have also led to the deterioration
of the media environment and journalists’ working conditions. Governmental
control over information has been strengthened in various countries
and reactions to critical opinions have toughened. Social distress
and tensions triggered by these successive crises have also resulted
in public demonstrations during which, tragically, journalists and
their technical collaborators have been victims of violence, committed
both by demonstrators and by the police. The war in Ukraine has
raised new and grave concerns: journalists reporting on the biggest
conflict in Europe since the Second World War are putting their
safety and their lives at risk.
6. Year after year, the Assembly’s reports and resolutions identify
drawbacks in the media ecosystems of European States and urge the
relevant authorities to correct them. Surveys and analysis from
partner organisations, as well as statistical data on threats to
media operators and journalists, point to negative trends: numerous
criminal acts against journalists including murders; legal harassment
and smear campaigns; threats to women journalists; and “media capture”,
among others. Moreover, at the end of November 2023, 68 journalists
and media professionals were detained in Europe.
7. The Assembly expresses its strong concern over these multiple
attacks to media freedom and the numerous cases of impunity, especially
in relation to murders of journalists, some of which remain unresolved for
more than a decade. It insists on the duty of State authorities
to investigate each and every crime against journalists and bring
to justice the instigators, perpetrators and accomplices.
8. There is a pressing need to enforce the high standards for
media freedom which the Council of Europe has established, to ensure
the effective protection of journalists and to uphold in all member
States a favourable and safe environment for media independence
and pluralism. All political forces should work together in promoting
a change of culture in dealing with this issue: media freedom is
a public good and a key asset of incommensurable value for parties
in the majority and the opposition.
9. The Assembly warmly welcomes the recognition by the Heads
of State and Government of the Council of Europe, who met during
the 4th Summit in Reykjavik on 16 and 17 May 2023 of the “Council
of Europe’s prominent role in international standard-setting on
freedom of expression and related issues such as media freedom”,
and their commitment to “continue [their] collective efforts for
the safety of journalists and other media actors”. The Assembly
also commends the launch, on 5 October 2023 in Riga, of the Council
of Europe Campaign for the Safety of Journalists, which provides
the momentum for acting more effectively all together.
10. Therefore, the Assembly calls on member States to fully endorse
and take an active part in this campaign. Within this framework,
member States should:
10.1 develop
holistic national strategies and coherent action plans, also based
on Recommendation CM/Rec(2016)4 of the Committee of Ministers to
member States on the protection of journalism and safety of journalists
and other media actors, ensure the involvement of national parliaments
in their design and follow-up, and allocate adequate resources for
their implementation;
10.2 review legislation which can be abused or misused to unduly
restrict media freedom, threaten journalists and seek to silence
them; in this respect, decriminalisation of defamation and the introduction of
adequate countermeasures to strategic lawsuits against public participation
(SLAPPs) – including those foreseen in
Resolution 2531 (2024) “Countering
strategic lawsuits against public participation (SLAPPs): an imperative
for a democratic society” – are key steps to be taken urgently;
10.3 analyse the political, legal and economic conditions which
lead to media capture, and take adequate measures to counter this
phenomenon and safeguard independent media;
10.4 improve the legislative and regulatory framework against
political interference and the undue concentration of media ownership;
this requires, in particular, enhanced rules on transparency of
formal and beneficial media ownership and control, in line with
the requirements set forth by Recommendation CM/Rec(2018)1 of the
Committee of Ministers to member States on media pluralism and transparency of
media ownership and Assembly
Resolution
2065 (2015) “Increasing transparency of media ownership”;
10.5 support genuine public service media, securing their viability
and editorial independence, according to the basic standards set
by the “Guiding principles for public service media governance” appended
to Recommendation CM/Rec(2012)1 of the Committee of Ministers to
member States on public service media governance, and Assembly
Resolution 2179 (2017) “Political
influence over independent media and journalists”;
10.6 ensure that financing schemes for private media outlets
are based on fair and objective criteria and operated in a transparent
and non-discriminatory manner; public support schemes for private
media should be intended to reinforce pluralism and ensure access
to quality information in all regions of Europe, also paying attention
to non-commercial media outlets and media which are the expression
of local perspectives, or of cultural diversity;
10.7 monitor the execution of the judgments of the European
Court of Human Rights on Article 10 of the Convention, to ensure
their full and timely implementation by the concerned authorities;
10.8 establish early warning and rapid response mechanisms,
based on good practice, to deal effectively with serious alerts
seeking to avoid threats to media freedom and the safety of journalists,
or at least to remedy them rapidly; to this aim, reinforce dialogue
and co-operation between media professionals, the police and the
judiciary;
10.9 strengthen the operational capacity of the police and
judiciary to investigate and effectively prosecute the perpetrators
and instigators of unlawful acts against journalists;
10.10 adopt a gender-specific approach to countering gender-based
violence, which should be regarded as an aggravating circumstance
in crimes; introduce specific protective measures against harassment
and threats to women journalists, especially online, and ensure
that the criminal justice system is well equipped to investigate
all cases of sexist violence and prosecute all those responsible;
10.11 implement adequate measures to protect journalists during
public demonstrations and other public events, where they are most
at risk, including awareness raising and tailored training programmes for
police forces.
11. While there are serious threats to media freedom and the safety
of journalists in most member States, the alerts on the Council
of Europe Platform to promote the protection of journalism and safety
of journalists and reports from media freedom watchdogs show that
these problems are more acute in some member States than others.
The Assembly is concerned, in particular, by the high level of harassment
targeting journalists in Azerbaijan, the expanding phenomenon of
media capture in Hungary, Poland and Serbia, and the alarming number
of journalists detained in Türkiye. The Assembly urges these countries
to participate in the Council of Europe Campaign for the Safety
of Journalists and to implement, within this framework, adequate
measures to remedy these issues.
12. The Assembly recalls its
Resolution 2317 (2020) of 28 January
2020 entitled “Threats to media freedom and journalists’ security
in Europe” and reiterates its call for the prompt release of Julian
Assange.
13. The Assembly is aware of the difficult situation faced by
the media and journalists in Ukraine, who suffer from attacks and
the destruction of infrastructure, and urges member States to provide
targeted support to Ukrainian media and assistance to journalists
from Ukraine, but also to exiled journalists from the Russian Federation
and Belarus, in their work.
14. The Assembly calls on all member States to engage with the
partners of the Council of Europe Platform to promote the protection
of journalism and safety of journalists and to establish effective
response mechanisms to the alerts, followed by actions and measures
intended to redress violations of media freedom and avoid their
repetition in the future. A constructive approach can be taken through
dialogue between representatives of the member States and partner
organisations of the platform, as was the case in 2022 in Albania,
Hungary and Kosovo
Note.
15. Finally, the Assembly reiterates its full and strong commitment
to the enforcement of Council of Europe standards concerning the
right to freedom of expression, media freedom and the safety of
journalists. It considers that the Council of Europe Campaign for
the Safety of Journalists is a unique opportunity to raise awareness
among parliamentarians and strengthen the role of parliaments in
upholding media freedom. The Assembly would like a significant parliamentary
and interparliamentary dimension to feature in this campaign. Therefore,
it strongly encourages national parliaments to play an active role
and, in particular, to foster the required legislative reforms and
take initiatives to raise public awareness of the need to safeguard
media freedom and the safety of journalists. The Assembly is ready
to contribute directly to the success of the campaign and resolves
to stay closely involved in the process.
