Experts meet over media freedom lies at the heart of modern democracies

VIENNA, Austria – The COVID-19 pandemic has brought new challenges to the freedoms of expression, information and the media, highlighting the need to find new approaches to digital technologies if we are to safeguard these freedoms that lie at the heart of the OSCE commitments to human rights and democracy.

The topics, media freedom lies in democracy will be discussed intensively during a two-day OSCE meeting starting today.

“Modern media offer an unprecedented opportunity for humans throughout the world to enjoy the right of freedom of expression and to exercise their right to seek, impart and receive information,” said Inid Milo, Head of the 2020 Albanian OSCE Chairmanship Task Force.  “It is critically important that the benefits of new platforms are open to all and that we strive to have many different voices heard on any available media.”

Some 320 participants from across the OSCE region are registered to take part in the online meeting, including participating States, intergovernmental organizations, journalist associations, and civil society. The meeting offers an opportunity to discuss the vital role of free media in informing the public, countering disinformation and ensuring the free flow of information, including during crisis situations. Freedom of expression and access to information are prerequisites for media freedom, which is essential to build free and open societies.

”Freedom of expression, media and information, both online and offline, are indispensable conditions for the development and well-being of our society. This holds true even more when hit by a crisis as the one we are currently facing. Restricting information is never the proper answer to addressing our safety concerns,” said Harlem Désir, OSCE Representative on Freedom of the Media. “Well-informed people make well-informed decisions, which is the indispensable foundation for modern democracies to build upon.”

Societies in which information is shared freely and openly and where a diverse and independent media are free to report on issues of public interest are more resilient during periods of crisis.

 “The states of emergency declared in response to the COVID-19 pandemic have brought up new challenges for the freedoms of expression, media and information,” said ODIHR Director Ingibjörg Sólrún Gísladóttir.

 “The general public relies to a great extent on information they obtain from the government and from the media. This is not a time to clamp down on the media, but on the contrary to ensure that all citizens have the information they need to keep themselves safe”, he said as nations continue to clampdown on information exposing the media freedom lies even in advanced democracies.

Supplementary Human Dimension Meetings are a platform for the OSCE’s participating States and OSCE institutions, as well as international organizations and civil society, to exchange views and good practices in order to find common solutions for the challenges facing societies across the OSCE region.

Organizations speaking at today’s meeting include ARTICLE 19, Access Info Europe, the International Press Institute, and the European Federation of Journalists, as well as the Council on Freedom of Speech and Protection of Journalists at the Office of the President of Ukraine and the Council of Europe.