Activity Details (ID# 18432)

Activity Synopsis

Update Recommendation No. R (99) 15 on media coverage of election campaigns in the light of the development of digital broadcasting services and other new communication services in view of information provided by expert consultant, Mr Wolf Ludwig, and in the light of the proposed amendments of representatives of Austria, Malta, Slovakia, EBU and ENPA and observations of the European Broadcasting Union.

Finalise the draft guidelines on the the ethical conduct and and responsibilities of stakeholders in the Information Society with particular regard to the transparency of their work in the processing and presentation of information.

Assess implementation of the 2003 Declaration on freedom of communication on the Internet by the member States with regard to the synthesis of member states’ responses to the questionnaire on the Declaration prepared by the representatives of Bulgaria and the Netherlands.

Examine and consider the implementation of the Recommendation Rec(2006)12 of the Committee of Ministers to member states on empowering children in the new information and communications environment and the Action Lines of the 2006 Council of Europe Pan-European Forum (Yerevan, Armenia, 5 and 6 October 2006)

Decide on the proposals for updating the Council of Europe Handbook on Internet literacy having regard to the written proposals of representatives of Switzerland and Malta.
 

General consensus on the need for MC-S-IS representatives to work together between meetings in order to prepare discussion papers and/or draft reports regarding the draft terms of reference of the MC-S-IS for the period 2007/8. On this basis, the following representatives of the Group agreed to participate in the following informal working groups:

- Representatives of Bulgaria and Turkey to work on: (i) the preparation of a standard-setting instrument which promotes a coherent pan-European level of protection for children from harmful content when using new communication technologies and services and the Internet, while ensuring freedom of expression and the free flow of information (cf. items 17, 19 and 23 of the Kyiv Action Plan), and (ii) the follow-up to Recommendation Rec (2006)12 on empowering children in the new information and communications environment (cf. items 23 of the Kyiv Action Plan);

- Representative of Austria to work on: the preparation of a report on the use and impact of technical filtering measures for various types of content in the online environment, with particular regard to Article 10 of the European Convention on Human Rights and, if appropriate, make concrete proposals (e.g. in the form of a draft standard-setting instrument) for further action in this area (cf. items 19 and 23 of the Kyiv Action Plan);

- Representative of Switzerland to work on: the examination of the respect for human dignity in the new communication services and, if appropriate, make concrete proposals for further action designed to complement or reinforce existing standards in this area (cf. item 27 of the Kyiv Action Plan);

- Representatives of Malta, Norway and Slovakia to work on: the preparation of a report on emerging issues and trends in respect of, on the one hand, the protection of intellectual property rights and technical protection measures in the context of the development of new communication and information services (and the Internet) and, on the other hand, the fundamental right to freedom of expression and free flow of information, access to knowledge and education, the promoting of research and scientific development and the protection and promotion of the diversity of cultural expressions and artistic creation and, if appropriate, make concrete proposals for further action in this area (cf. item 18 of the Kyiv Action Plan);

- Representative of Bulgaria and the Secretariat to work on: the follow-up Council of Europe work on Internet governance and on the implementation of the World Summit on the Information Society action lines regarding the media (C9) and the ethical dimensions of the Information Society (C10);

- Representative of Armenia to work on: the development of tools to assist key state and non-state actors in their practical understanding of, and compliance with, human rights and fundamental freedoms in the Information Society in particular with regard to Article 10 of the European Convention on Human Rights (cf. items 19 and 23 of the Kyiv.
 

Agreement to take action to facilitate the translation, discussion and implementation of the Action Lines and General Report resulting from the Pan-European Forum on Human Rights in the Information Society: Empowering children and young people (Yerevan, 5 and 6 October 2006)

Updated version of the draft Recommendation No. R (99) 15 on media coverage of election campaigns was prepared and generally agreed upon.

Agreed to further rework the draft guidelines on the the ethical conduct and and responsibilities of stakeholders in the Information Society with particular regard to the transparency of their work in the processing and presentation of information.

Concluded that, in view of the 16 responses received to the questionnaire, that member states generally complied with the 2003 Declaration on freedom of communication on the Internet by the member States and that there was no need to revise nor develop the instrument further. Furthermore, it was decided to prepare a report on the findings and analysis of member states’ compliance with Declaration.

Agreed to consolidate and insert the proposals of the representatives of Malta and Switzerland into each fact sheet of the Council of Europe Handbook on Internet Literacy and to finalise these revisions at the next meeting.

 

Mr David SANDUKHCHYAN, Head of Legal Department, Project Manager, Internews Armenia

Mr Michael TRUPPE, Federal Chancellery, Constitutional Service, VIENNA, Austria

Ms Zornitza ANGUELOVA, Ministry of Transport and Communications, SOFIA, Bulgaria

Ms Nelly STOYANOVA, Ministry of Transport and Communications, SOFIA, Bulgaria

Mme Maria GIANNAKAKI, Press Attaché, Permanent Representation of Greece to the Council of Europe, Greece.

Mr Hubert THEUMA, Senior Counsel for the Republic, handling Human Rights litigation as well as Intellectual Property issues, Office of the Attorney General of the Republic, VALETTA, Malta

Mrs Dorina ROMAN, Head of Mass Media and Public Relations Directorate, Ministry of Foreign Affairs, CHISINAU, Moldova

Mr Bengt HERMANSEN, Deputy Director General, Ministry of Cultural and Church Affairs, OSLO, Norway

Mr Zeljko SAMPOR, Media Department, Ministry of Culture, BRATISLAVA, Slovak Republic

Mr Thomas SCHNEIDER, Service des Affaires internationales, Office fédéral de la communication, BIENNE, Switzerland

Mr Mehmet Bora SÖNMEZ Radio and Television Supreme Council, ANKARA, Turkey

Monsieur Louis TER STEEG, Holy See

Mr Henrik MUNTHE, Attorney at Law, Norwegian Businesses' Association, Member of ENPA, OSLO, Norway, European Newspaper Publishers’ Association

Mr Denton HOWARD, Coordinator – INHOPE, International Association of Internet Hotlines, DUBLIN, Ireland, Association of Internet Hotline Providers in Europe/INHOPE

 

Mr Wolf LUDWIG, Journalist, Author, NEUCHÂTEL, Switzerland 

Mr Jan KLEIJSSEN, Director of Directorate II - Directorate General of Human Rights

Mr Jan MALINOWSKI, Head of Media Division, Directorate General of Human

Mr Lee HIBBARD, Administrator, Media Division, Directorate General of Human Rights

Mr Mats LINDBERG, Co-Secretary to the Ad-hoc Committee on E-democracy (CAHDE)