OSCE media freedom representative addresses Council of Europe parliamentary committee, meets top officials in Strasbourg

STRASBOURG, 25 January 2011 – The OSCE Representative on Freedom of the Media, Dunja Mijatović, called for Council of Europe member states to address grave challenges to media freedom in an speech to the culture, science and education committee of the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe (PACE) today.

She discussed problems including continuing violence against journalists, as well as legal obstacles and administrative interference impeding the work of media professionals.

“Criminal defamation laws are still excessively used in many countries which are members of both the OSCE and the Council of Europe. These laws threaten journalists and inhibit debate on issues of public interest. I call on your support as members of parliament and politicians to re-invigorate the push for decriminalization,” said Mijatović in her address to the committee.

Mijatović paid her first official visit to the Council of Europe as the OSCE media freedom representative. During the visit she held talks with Council of Europe Secretary General Thorbjørn Jagland, PACE President Mevlüt Çavuşoğlu and Human Rights Commissioner Thomas Hammarberg on strengthening co-operation between her office and the Council of Europe.