News on freedom of expression
Enabling proactive transparency and access to information in North Macedonia
Everyone has the right to freedom of expression. This right shall include freedom to hold opinions and to receive and impart information and ideas without interference by public authority and regardless of frontiers. – paragraph 1, Article 10 of the European Convention for Human Rights. Towards...
Empowering Bosnia and Herzegovina's judiciary: enhancing freedom of expression through training of trainers
Strengthening the capacities of local legal professionals to serve as educators in the realm of freedom of expression, in accordance with the standards outlined in Article 10 of the European Convention on Human Rights and the jurisprudence of the European Court of Human Rights (ECtHR), is a...
Press Release
“Upholding journalistic integrity and advancing freedom of expression in North Macedonia”: Journalists and media actors in North Macedonia discuss key measures and challenges.
The recent amendments to North Macedonia's Criminal Code enhance journalist protection by allowing the Prosecutor's Office to initiate criminal cases on their behalf, alleviating the burden of private prosecutions. Additionally, since defamation and insult were decriminalised in North Macedonia,...
Steering towards freedom of expression in line with European standards
Underscoring the commitment to safeguarding freedom of expression and media in North Macedonia, the second Steering Committee Meeting under the joint EU and Council of Europe action on "Protecting freedom of expression and of the media in North Macedonia" (PRO-FREX) that convened today in...
European Union and Council of Europe organise thematic discussion: “Upholding Journalistic Integrity: Safeguarding Journalists and Media Actors in North Macedonia”
A thematic discussion on "Upholding Journalistic Integrity: Safeguarding Journalists and Media Actors in North Macedonia," will be organised on 17 April 2024 in Hotel Aleksandar Palace, in the framework of the European Union and the Council of Europe joint action “Protecting freedom of expression...
Montenegro: Beneficiaries Steering Committee approves a plan for the Freedom of Expression action in Montenegro
The action “Protection of the freedom of expression and of the media in Montenegro (PRO-FREX)” held its Second Beneficiary Steering Committee in Podgorica on 5 April. In the light of recent expert support, by providing a Legal Opinion on three main laws regulating media in Montenegro, as well as...
Strengthening the protection of journalists in Bosnia and Herzegovina
Strategic Lawsuits Against Public Participation (SLAPPs) are often used by the political and economic power holders as means of pressuring journalists. This and other common threats against journalists and how to address them were among the issues discussed at the two-day workshop in Neum. The...
Empowering Legal Professionals from North Macedonia to safeguard journalists and freedom of expression
To uphold the principles of freedom of expression and protection of journalists, a capacity-building initiative was organised in Gevgelija gathering legal professionals from various backgrounds including judges, prosecutors, and lawyers. They worked together during the three-day training course...
Building a safer environment for media professionals
Keeping journalists safe is key to a free press! Therefore, a group of thirty journalists from various media outlets gathered in Pristina for a specialised training focused on their safety. Thanks to expert insights, including those from the European Court of Human Rights, these media...
Strengthening data protection standards in Serbia
The intrinsic link between data protection and freedom of expression is encapsulated in the Article 85 of the General Data Protection Regulation "Processing and freedom of expression and information". This provision mandates the EU Member States to navigate the delicate balance between the...
Montenegro: aligning the media legislation with the European standards
Council of Europe provides legal and policy advice to many of its member state which are on the path of joining the European Union. To this end, with the support of the European Union and the Council of Europe, a Legal Opinion on three main laws regulating media in Montenegro – on Media, on Audio...
Threats to the safety of journalists in Serbia: new report
Institutional pressures are a form of a threat that most journalists in Serbia often and regularly encounter in their work (46.2%), followed by economic pressures or job insecurity (40.2%). 29.9% of journalists often or regularly encounter the problem of targeting and smear campaigns, and 30.5%...
Promoting inclusivity in media content in North Macedonia
Persons with disabilities have a right to enjoy the content of audiovisual media. To this end, a public presentation of a draft Rulebook to ensure accessibility of audiovisual media services (AVMS) for persons with disabilities took place today in Skopje with the support of the EU and Council of...
Safety of journalists: training session held in Bosnia and Herzegovina
The prosecutors and police officers from across Bosnia and Herzegovina were designated points of contacts for the safety of journalists, as a mechanism to improve the systematic protection of journalists. In the training session organised in Sarajevo on 28 and 29 February, they have been...
Access to information, regulation of electronic media, and safety of journalists to be addressed by the action in Serbia
Freedom of expression and freedom of the media are among the key democratic principles, as highlighted by the Reykjavik Declaration. The Steering Committee of the joint European Union and Council of Europe action "Protecting freedom of expression and of the media in Serbia (PROFREX)" met in...
Purchase of local consultancy services in the field of freedom of expression and of the media in North Macedonia
In the framework of the European Union/Council of Europe “Horizontal Facility for the Western Balkans and Türkiye” (Horizontal Facility III), the Council of Europe is currently implementing the action on “Protecting Freedom of Expression and of the Media in North Macedonia” (PRO-FREX). In that...
Support to freedom of media initiatives highlighted in the 1st Steering Committee meeting of PROFREX action in Pristina
Free, independent, plural and diverse media constitutes one of the cornerstones of a democratic society. Key local institutions and stakeholders gathered in Pristina at the first meeting of the Steering Committee of the EU and Council of Europe joint action on “Protecting freedom of expression...
Towards the co-regulation of harmful online content in Bosnia and Herzegovina
Balancing the mitigation of harmful online content while fostering freedom of expression and public debate is a key challenge in contemporary societies. A groundbreaking publication “Towards coregulation of harmful content online in Bosnia and Herzegovina: A study of European standards and...
Raising capacities of local training institutions on freedom of expression and safety of journalists
Fifteen law enforcement instructors and ten prosecutors underwent a two-day intensive training of trainers on topics of European standards on freedom of expression, hate speech, and safety and protection of journalists accompanied by case-law analysis of the European Court of Human Rights...
European Union and Council of Europe supported the "Srđan Aleksić" journalism award
Haris Rovčanin, the journalist of Bosnia and Herzegovina (BiH) web portal Detektor, in the category of „contribution to the community“; Bojana Jovanović, the journalist of the Belgrade portal KRIK, in the category „for the courage“; and Zagreb--based portal Novosti in the category „for the...
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