25/01/2011 Session
Strasbourg, 25.01.2011 – Following a debate on the protection of journalists’ sources, the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe (PACE) today declared that the disclosure of information identifying a source should be “limited to exceptional circumstances” where vital public or individual interests are at stake. In specific cases, the competent authorities should state why the vital interests of disclosure outweigh the interests of non-disclosure. “If sources are protected against their disclosure under national law, their disclosure must not be requested,” the Assembly said in a recommendation.
Members of the Assembly believe that the protection of journalists’ sources “is a basic condition for both the full exercise of journalistic work and the right of the public to be informed on matters of public concern”.
They expressed their concern at the large number of cases in Europe in which “public authorities have forced, or attempted to force, journalists to disclose their sources”, despite the clear standards set by the European Court of Human Rights and the Committee of Ministers.
Referring to a new Hungarian law on the press and the media, the Assembly called on the government and parliamentarians to amend the legislation in question, ensuring that its enactment did not restrict the right enshrined in Article 10 of the European Convention on Human Rights.
The Assembly called on member states to analyse and improve their legislation on the protection of the confidentiality of journalists’ sources, in particular by supporting the review of their national laws on surveillance, anti-terrorism, data retention and access to telecommunications records.
Member states which did not have legislation specifying the right of journalists not to disclose their sources of information should, according to the text, “pass such legislation in accordance with the case-law of the European Court of Human Rights” and the recommendations of the Committee of Ministers.