Parliamentary Assembly of Council of Europe (PACE) called up the countries-members of Council of Europe to make mechanism for studying of reasons of attacks on journalists and other significant encroachment on the freedom of the mass media in Europe.
“Some thousand of signatures, demanding to carry out investigation of murder of Anna Politkovskaya, were collected by the Parisian department of organization “Reporters without limits” and forwarded to the chairman of PACE,” the resolution says.
The deputies of PACE discussed murder of journalist Grant Dink in Turkey, Politkovskay in Russia and also attacks and murderous assaults of many journalists for the previous years in Azerbaijan, Moldova Ukraine, France, Serbia and other states of Europe.
“If the journalists incur discrimination at will of by political reasons, it is a violation of press freedom,” resolution says.
Parliamentary Assembly of Council of Europe also expressed concern on lack of progress in investigation of Gongadze’s case, committed in 2000.
The resolution has an appeal to “create special mechanism of monitoring for discovery and investigations of encroachment on the journalists life in Europe and on their freedom to express opinions”.
The resolution was adopted in the scope of urgent discussions on life threat, freedom to express opinions by the European journalists.
“Freedom to express opinions and freedom of information in mass media includes right to express political convictions and criticize government and society, denounce government mistakes, corruption and organized crime, to appeal against religious doctrines and practices. This freedom is guarantied by article 10 of the European convention on human rights,” the document says.
