Activity Details (ID# 5006)

Activity Synopsis

The right of journalists not to disclose their sources has been qualified by the European Court of Human Rights (ECHR) as a basic condition for press freedom and as an essential factor allowing journalists to carry out their function and to contribute to the maintenance and development of genuine democracy. This seminar was organised following concerns raised by the Steering Committee of the European Federation of Journalists (EFJ) over the rising pressure on journalists to reveal their sources. The event took place in conjunction with the EFJ annual meeting.
The seminar aimed at:
· taking stock of the situation concerning the protection of journalists' sources in Europe and in particular the recent changes in legislation and in the public authorities' practices in the context of the fight against terrorism;
· identifying possible actions to better protect the right of journalists not to disclose their sources.
 

The seminar included four different sessions focusing on:
· case law of ECHR and the protection afforded to journalists' sources by Article 10 of the European Convention on Human Rights;
· recent case studies and union actions to defend source protection;
· the role of journalists testifying at the International Criminal Court in the Hague;
· threats to press freedom and source protection from new 'security legislation'.

The participants agreed that the basic principle of source protection is under increasing pressure from governments and companies and will continue to be so due to:
· weaknesses in national legislation that fail to meet standards set by the ECHR;
· poor awareness among the police and judiciary of European and national legislation;
· new legislation introduced as part of the security response to terrorism.

In particular the participants were concerned about recent strategies adopted by the authorities to circumvent source protection. These include:

· phone tapping, monitoring of internet traffic and mobile telecommunications;
· direct seizure of journalists' material including computers, notebooks, etc.;
· requiring media to provide film as evidence - e.g. following violent demonstrations;
· turning a journalist witness into defendant - e.g. journalists are increasingly prosecuted for possession of 'stolen property' received from whistleblowers.
 

At the end of the seminar the participants recommended that IFJ should develop and strengthen its campaign on freedom of expression and protection of sources with the following actions:
· establish the means within the secretariat and member unions to monitor and report on cases and developments affecting source protection as they occur;
· dedicate a section of the IFJ web-site to source protection. As part of this the IFJ should produce a handbook for unions including an overview of European standards, case studies and a campaign strategy;
· continue to raise the issue in international fora including at the Council of Europe's Steering Committee on the Mass Media and the forthcoming World Summit on Information Society;
· seek to establish a fund in co-operation with lawyers' associations to support the lengthy and expensive route to the ECHR;
· develop joint actions with lawyers and civil society groups such as Statewatch.
No specific follow-up is envisaged on the part of the Council of Europe but it is worthwhile mentioning that the European Court of Human Rights has delivered its judgment in the case of Ernst and others (Application No 33400, judgment of 15 July 2003), which concerns several issues discussed during the seminar.

 

Journalists, representatives of unions of journalists, lawyers 

Mr Ronan BRADY, freelance journalist, Ireland
Professor Dirk VOORHOOF, University of Gent, Belgium
Ms Inger Hoedt RASMUSSEN, Danish Bar and Law Society
Mr Thomas VERFUSS, President, Association of Journalists at the International Criminal Court, the Hague
 

Ms Charlotte de BROUTELLLES, Media Division