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Doc. 9213
21 September 2001
Freedom of expression and information in the media in Europe
Recommendation 1506 (2001)
Reply from the Committee of Ministers
adopted at the 765th meeting of the Ministers’ Deputies (19 September 2001)
1. The Committee of Ministers has considered Parliamentary Assembly Recommendation 1506 (2001) on freedom of expression and information in the media in Europe, has brought it to the attention of member governments and forwarded it for information to the Steering Committee on the Mass Media (CDMM) and the Commissioner for Human Rights.
2. As stated in its reply to Parliamentary Assembly Recommendation 1407 (1999) on media and democratic culture, the Committee of Ministers attaches the highest importance to the unfettered exercise of freedom of expression and information through free, independent and pluralist media, in accordance with Article 10 of the European Convention on Human Rights, and reiterates that it is essential for public authorities to establish an appropriate legal framework that ensures that this fundamental freedom can be properly exercised, whilst acknowledging at the same time the importance and value of self-regulatory measures taken by the media themselves in order to exercise their activities in a responsible manner.
3. In this context, the Committee of Ministers recalls its declarations and recommendations in the media field, in particular its Declaration on freedom of expression and information of 29 April 1982.
4. Furthermore, the Committee of Ministers also recalls its replies to Parliamentary Assembly Recommendations 1497 (2001) on freedom of expression and the functioning of parliamentary democracy in Ukraine as well as Recommendation 1466 (2000) on media education.
5. Moreover, the Committee of Ministers had identified freedom of expression and information as its first theme to be considered in the context of its thematic monitoring procedure. In June 2000, it initiated a stock-taking of measures adopted in this field and took a “specific action” by requesting the Secretary General to make contacts and collect information on this theme. The results provided by the Secretary General, concerning a number of member states, were discussed in-depth by the Ministers’ Deputies at their monitoring meeting of June 2001. At this meeting, the Ministers’ Deputies requested the Secretary General to further pursue his contacts and collect information on freedom of expression and information in all member states. The results of this new round of collection of information will be discussed by the Ministers’ Deputies in 2003. On this occasion, if it is deemed appropriate, the Committee of Ministers may consider to communicate its findings to the Parliamentary Assembly. In the meantime, the latter will be regularly informed of new developments in this regard. The Ministers’ Deputies recall that an exchange of views with the OSCE Representative on Freedom of the Media will take place on the theme freedom of expression and information on 28 September 2001.
6. In line with the spirit of Parliamentary Assembly Recommendation 1506 (2001), the Committee of Ministers emphasises the importance of a holistic approach to the protection of freedom of expression and information in the media, which comprises three levels of action: (i) firstly, the setting of standards by the Committee of Ministers through its conventions, recommendations and declarations against the background of Article 10 of the European Convention on Human Rights as interpreted by the European Court of Human Rights, (ii) secondly, specific assistance to, and co-operation with, member states for the effective implementation of these standards and, (iii) finally, a political debate on these standards and their domestic implementation, both within the organs of the Council of Europe and in society at large through, in particular, non-governmental organisations.
7. This approach is based on the specific role and expertise of the Council of Europe as a pan-European platform for the development of commonly recognised norms and values between sovereign states committed to human rights, pluralist democracy and the rule of law. In this context, it should be recalled that these standards are also used by other European and international institutions, such as the OSCE and the European Commission, in their activities concerning freedom of expression and information. The Committee of Ministers therefore reaffirms its determination to maintain a strong emphasis on this sector in the intergovernmental programme of activities.
8. The Committee of Ministers also recalls that Article 10 of the European Convention on Human Rights is the supreme standard in Europe in this field, whose respect by signatory states is supervised by the European Court of Human Rights. The European Court of Human Rights hereby exercises an indispensable and unparalleled function in the protection of freedom of expression and information in Europe.
9. As indicated above, particular emphasis has also been put by the Committee of Ministers on assistance and co-operation programmes in the media field, which are targeted and adapted to the specific needs of member states and applicant countries. The Committee of Ministers takes this opportunity of calling on member states and observers with the Council of Europe as well as the European Union to consider contributing greater financial and technical resources to these programmes. The Committee of Ministers also welcomes the parallel efforts by the Parliamentary Assembly to mobilise support by national parliaments, including support for the domestic implementation of the above standards by national parliaments.
10. With respect to individual recommendations made in paragraph 16 of Parliamentary Assembly Recommendation 1506 (2001), the Committee of Ministers:
a. wishes to assure the Parliamentary Assembly that the protection of freedom of expression and information in the media is a priority for the intergovernmental work of the Council of Europe, in particular in the context of the co-operation and assistance programmes;
b. recalls the significant protection achieved by means of the supervisory function of the European Court of Human Rights as well as the standards set by the relevant European conventions, and Committee of Ministers’ recommendations and declarations;
c. recalls also the work of its monitoring exercise, i.e. the request made to the Secretariat to assess the way in which intergovernmental work, co-operation activities, current and possible Joint Programmes with the European Commission and other forms of ‘common initiative’ can be developed and/or re-adjusted to reflect priorities, as highlighted in its monitoring procedures as well as further contacts and collection of information by the Secretary General in all member states;
d. agrees with the Parliamentary Assembly that it is necessary to ensure the effectiveness of the legislative expertise provided by the Council of Europe, notwithstanding the co-operative and non-binding nature of such expertise;
e. invites the Commissioner for Human Rights to pay particular attention to issues concerning freedom of expression and information in the media;
f. welcomes with interest the appointment of a General Rapporteur on the media of the Committee on Culture, Science and Education of the Parliamentary Assembly, assures the Parliamentary Assembly of its willingness to study ways of efficient co-operation in this respect, and notes the Parliamentary Assembly’s intention to allocate specific resources for this purpose;
g. recalls its Recommendation No. R (99) 1 on measures to promote media pluralism and the work under way under the authority of the Steering Committee on the Mass Media (CDMM) as regards the challenges to freedom of expression and information and to media pluralism and diversity stemming from globalisation and from the further development of the information society, and looks forward to the results of this work;
h. invites the CDMM to examine and identify new areas in the media field where common policy and legal standards should be formulated through conventions, recommendations or declarations in order to guarantee freedom of expression and information, and to take account of the results of the monitoring exercise in its activities;
i. invites the governments of member states to give due regard to the standards set by the Council of Europe concerning freedom of expression and information in respect of action in other relevant fora, in particular in the United Nations, OSCE and the European Union.