Vienna, 22 July 2018
The South East Europe Media Organisation (SEEMO) is concerned about the today death threats via email received by Natallia Radzina, a Belarusian journalist living in exile in Poland. SEEMO calls on the Polish authorities to take whatever measures are necessary to protect Radzina.
Vienna, 20 July 2018
The South East Europe Medai Organisation (SEEMO) is asking the local authorities in the Puglia region to give a stronger support to Marilú Mastrogiovanni, a Puglia-based investigative reporter and editor of Il Tacco d’Italia, a regional news website , who has been under police protection for seveeral years. The police protection did not stop some persons to use death threats against the journalist.
Vienna, 10 July 2018
The Vienna South East Europe Media Organisation is worried about the langauge that Czech President is using in describing journalist. President Miloš Zeman has appointed 40 new judges nominated by a former minister of justice, Robert Pelikán. In a ceremony at Prague Castle, the head of state told the judges that while ministers came and went the court system remained. Mr. Zeman also warned the judges against journalists, who he described as wasps.
Vienna, 6 July 2018
The Vienna South East Europe Media Organisation is worried about the latest decission by a court in Turkey against journalists from the daily Zaman. The court found six journalists guilty of “being a member of an armed [terrorist] organization.” Mümtaz’er Türköne and Mustafa Ünal were sentenced to 10 years and 6 months in prison, Ibrahim Karayeğen was sentenced to 9 years in prison and three journalists, Ali Bulaç, Şahin Alpay, and Ahmet Turan Alkan were sentenced to 8 years and 9 months in prison. İ.
Vienna, 3 July 2018
The South East Europe Media organisation sent a protest letter to the Police Administration of Ljubuški in BIH for threats to journalists on the protest of demobilized fighters held on Monday at the cross border Bijača.
Police commander has tried to forbid journalists to record and take statements from protesters. He mark journalists responsible for blocking traffic near the cross border. The police commander was threatening a journalist from the news webportal Bljesak.info.
Kristina Mackik
Free and professional journalism
There are merely two concerns with the latest amendment of the Hungarian media law: that which has been included and that which has not been included.
The amendments of 19 July 2011 contain no changes concerning those sections of the media law that were strongly criticised by international organisations and European Union institutions, moreover, in certain cases these amendments even aggravate the situation. Major concerns have prevailed with respect to the media law.
Although the amendments refine the language of the law in various places, the amendments continue to curb the independence of public media service providers, and give additional entitlements to the already super-powered Media Council and its president.
The following provisions are unchanged:
that it prescribes content-related requirements for media service providers
there are insufficient guarantees to ensure the independence and impartiality of the Media Authority
applicability of the media legislation to all types of media, including the press and the Internet
excessive fines and other administrative sanctions
registration requirements applicable to press products, coupled with a
lack of sufficient protection of journalistic sources.
Major changes to the legislation:
Fines are getting stricter: from now on they become collectable similar to taxes due, and are considered as public dues. Independence of public media service providers is further curbed: from now on, instead of the Act, the Media Council will decide whether it maintains their respective media services, or changes their system; the Media Service Support and Asset Management Fund will from now on qualify as a business organisation, further curbing independence of the public media service providers, whereby the Fund, supervised by the Media Council, will be engaged in business activities instead of the public media service outlets. (This Media Service Support and Asset Management Fund has already taken over the entire assets and the majority of the employees of the public media service outlets.) The right of the President of the Media Council to issue decrees was significantly broadened. From now on, the licensing of commercial frequencies will, admittedly, be carried out “in accordance with government policy,” pursuant to the decree of the President of the Media Authority.
These amendments deepen the divide between the Hungarian media legislation and basic civil liberties, the freedom of press and the freedom of expression, as well as EU conventions and adopted international standards guaranteeing the independence of public media service providers.
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Vienna, 17 June 2018
The South East Europe Media Organisation (SEEMO) is worried about the arrest of Kyrylo Vychynski, a Ukrainian journalist who is head of RIA Novosti Ukraine, the Ukrainian branch of the Russian state news agency RIA Novosti. He was arrested two days ago on 15 May, when the State Security Service of Ukraine (SBU) searched his office and his home. He has been charged with high treason. According to SBU Vyshinsky participated in “propaganda actions” in support of the Russia’s annexation of Crimea in 2014.
Vienna, 16 June 2018
The South East Europe Media Organisation (SEEMO) condemned the last night physical attack and death threat against journalist, Hrvoje Bajlo, in Zadar.
The journalist was beaten. Hrvoje Bajlo is owner of news portal Zadar News and correspondent of Index newsportal and Nacional weekly.
Vienna, 16 June 2018
The South East Europe Media Organisation (SEEMO) is asking for a independent and transparent investigation in the case of Stefan Cvetković, a journalist from Bela Crkva in Serbia
The journalist was missing on Wednesday night and after one day he was found alive and unhurt.
Vienna, 12 June 2018
The South East Europe Media Organisation (SEEMO) is alarmed after a new threat against a journalist in Kosovo. Valon Rashiti, who works for T7, was attacked on Tuesday around 7 pm by a citizen, family member of a victim, while he was reporting about a story.