18 February 2003

"SERIOUS CONCERN" OVER PRESS FREEDOM: COUNCIL OF EUROPE


Harassment and physical attacks against journalists, and a government proposal to stiffen penalties for the defamation of public officials, are giving rise to serious concern about press freedom in Georgia, says a new report released by the Council of Europe.

Written by two independent media experts who conducted a fact-finding visit to the country in July 2002, the report says media professionals throughout the country describe Georgia's media as less free in 2002 than five years ago.

Journalists everywhere, especially in the regions, "operate in fear, not only of interference by officials and prosecutors, but also of lawlessness, harassment and physical attacks," the report says. While local media are partly responsible for often reporting "inaccurate, incomplete or exaggerated information," attacks against journalists often go unpunished.

The media experts say another cause of concern is the government's proposal to amend the Criminal Code adding lengthier jail sentences for those convicted of defaming public officials. "This is an extremely worrying development. The criminalization of journalistic speech is unnecessary, and the longer maximum sentence for critics of public figures is particularly inappropriate," they write.

Read the full report here, including the experts' recommendations: http://cm.coe.int">http://cm.coe.int/stat/E/Public/2002/monitoring/2002cmmonitor17.htm">http://cm.coe.int

Visit these links:

- Human Rights Watch Report on Georgia: http://hrw.org">http://hrw.org/wr2k2/europe9.html">http://hrw.org

- Independent Association of Georgian Journalists: www.iagj.gol.ge/">http://www.iagj.gol.ge/">www.iagj.gol.ge/

- Internews Georgia: www.internews.org.ge




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Also from the Communiqué, 18 February 2003

RUSSIA: RUSSIAN JOURNALIST WINS OSCE JOURNALISM PRIZE 18 February 2003 UGANDA: MAGAZINE SEEKS SUBMISSIONS FOR FREE-EXPRESSION ISSUE 18 February 2003 AZERBAIJAN: CONGRESS TO DISCUSS PRESS COUNCIL, CODE OF ETHICS 18 February 2003 POLAND: WAN APPOINTS LAW EXPERTS TO MONITOR PRESS FREEDOM 18 February 2003 INTERNATIONAL: MISA ALARMED AT PRESS-FREEDOM SITUATION 18 February 2003 VIETNAM: PEN LAUNCHES FREE-EXPRESSION CAMPAIGN 18 February 2003 THAILAND: JOURNALIST MURDERED 18 February 2003 IFEX MEMBERS ISSUE STATEMENTS ON INFORMATION SOCIETY SUMMIT 18 February 2003

Georgia

IPI demands release of Serbian journalist detained in South Ossetia 15 September 2011 Three photographers arrested, accused of espionage 12 July 2011 At least a dozen journalists attacked by police dispersing protesters 30 May 2011 Reporter accuses Georgian authorities of trying to poison him during NATO meetings in Brussels 5 July 2010 Journalist receives death threats from authorities 23 February 2010 See all alerts: Georgia


Eastern Europe, Caucasus, Central Asia

RUSSIA: Journalist detained for questioning after publishing open letter to Putin 9 February 2012 RUSSIA: Government shuts HIV-prevention group's website 8 February 2012 AZERBAIJAN: Justice ministry harassment targets IRFS activities, says group's director 8 February 2012 KAZAKHSTAN / GERMANY: Make rights key to good relations, says Human Rights Watch 6 February 2012 RUSSIA: Authorities "at war" with bloggers in Chelyabinsk region 3 February 2012


 
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