Source Blic
It is customary that on the occasion of 3rd May, International Media Liberty Day, relevant subjects dealing in the status and protection of media freedom shall give adequate evaluations about the level of that freedom in some or all countries of the world. So we could recently hear that the Freedom House evaluated Serbia as a free media country, in which open political competition is represented, with respect to media independence. Additional specific weight of this really good evaluation is achieved by receiving it for the first time. So far the best result was only “partially free media“.
Some would be, out of understandable reasons thrilled by this evaluation. And the others shall find it subjective, due to not any less understandable reasons. But, instead of disputing, it is better to remember some issues on the Media Freedom Day, which are really important for media functioning in the way adequate to democratic society.
Regardless of certain advance in exercising free access to information, there are still many of those who trample with the rights of public and infringe on them. Isn’t it the high time to activate responsibility mechanisms for infringing the law?
Insufficient information on the work of government is available in the easiest, most practical way, by their public presentation on the Internet. Can we be satisfied with the existing level of electronic communication between our government and public, if it classifies us near the bottom of the European ladder?
It is necessary to completely eliminate all mechanisms of implicit censorship, and the space for action of journalists and media should be both legally and factually harmonized with the democratic world principles. Is it now in line with Article 10 of the European Human Rights Charter?
The obligation of the state is to secure the journalists elementary personal safety, as well as to punish those who infringe it, which is at least in words undisputable. However, cases in which even several years after the death of the journalists the public didn’t know what have the authorities done in relation to that and if they have done anything are constantly “maintained”. Is it equally undisputable that due to the past, and even more so due to the future, it is of extraordinary importance for the authorities to resolve them?
