70 years after its foundation, the Council of Europe counts 47 member states which all signed up to the European Convention on Human Rights - a treaty designed to protect human rights, democracy and rule of law. On the occasion of 70th anniversary of the continent’s leading human rights organisation, the Ministry of Culture and Media of the Republic of Serbia in co-operation with the Council of Europe Office in Belgrade organised an international conference on the Implementation of the Council of Europe Instruments and Standards in the Field of Media and Information.
Mr Aleksandar Gajovic, the State Secretary of the Ministry of Culture and Media congratulated this important jubilee to the Council of Europe. “In order to respond to many challenges human rights are facing in a modern world, the Council of Europe often relies on co-operation with experts, through an open and consultative approach. The Ministry of Culture and Information has been actively co-operating for more than a decade with the Council of Europe, thus contributing to creation of the highest standards regarding different types of freedom,” he concluded.
“Freedom of expression constitutes one of the fundamental principles upon which a democratic society is based. The media is crucial for upholding these rights and for the protection of all other human rights. Thus, we need to emphasize the importance of our joint, continued work and support to freedom of expression. And the Council of Europe has developed a comprehensive set of standards guaranteeing the right to freedom of expression and information based on the European Convention on Human Rights, the case-law of the European Court of Human Rights and the findings of the Organisation’s monitoring mechanisms which serve as benchmarks in member states of the Council of Europe, and beyond”, said Ms Irina Sahakyan Vetter, Deputy Head of the Council of Europe Office in Belgrade.
Mr Nicolas Faye, Deputy Head of Mission of the Embassy of France to Serbia highlighted the independence of media as one of the priorities during the French Presidency of the Committee of ministers of the Council of Europe. “Here in Serbia, the issues of freedom of expression, safety of journalists, media pluralism and public service media have been topics regularly discussed for many years. It is now a very important aspect of Chapter 23 of the EU accession negotiations. As you know, France is very dedicated to follow the concrete implementation of Serbia’s obligations in this area”, said Mr Faye.
The participants of the international conference had an opportunity to get acquainted with the work of the Organisation in the area of media and information and the efforts the members states are investing in the protection of freedom of expression. International and local experts presented and discussed the issues related to safety of journalists and freedom of expression, media pluralism, gender equality and media.
Freedom of expression, as enshrined in Article 10 of the European Convention on Human Rights, has been one of the main foci of the Council of Europe. Freedom of expression and information enable individuals to make informed choices, to participate actively in democratic processes, and to help ensure that powerful interests are held to account in line with the rule of law.
