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More than 900 journalists and media professionals were attacked in the EU in 2020

THE European Union presented today a series of recommendations to improve their protection journalists during demonstrations mainly but also online, worrying about the increase in attacks on the media in recent years in the European Union.

“Today we call on the Member States to act decisively to make the EU a safer place for journalists,” she said. Vera Giurova, recalling the 2017 murder of a Maltese journalist Daphne Caruana Galicia and the 2018 of the Slovak Jan Kuciak.

He said that “more than 900 journalists and media professionals “were victims of attacks in the EU in 2020: physical attacks, insults, cyberbullying, equipment destruction.

Member States are called upon to pay particular attention to the protection of women journalists, the “73% of whom they stated that they had experience of cyberbullying in their work “, also noted Vera Giurova, according to APE BPE.

He described the verbal violence or the tweet of political leaders as “particularly unacceptable”. A report that mainly focuses on the Slovenian Prime Minister Janez Jansa, which does not hesitate to insult journalists on social media and whose country holds the EU presidency this semester.

The President of the European Commission Ursula von der Leyen had recalled him to the press freedom class on the occasion of the start of the Slovenian presidency in July, AFP reported.

“But it is not just about Slovenia,” said Vera Jurova. “It simply came to our notice then very aggressive rhetoric [και] in other countries”.

With regard to non-binding legal measures for Member States, he acknowledged that there is danger “This recommendation should be taken more seriously in countries with the least problems.”

In its annual report on the rule of law in the EU in July, the Commission expressed concern about political pressures and threats to media independence in Czech republic, τη Malta, τη Slovenia, Poland, Bulgaria and Hungary.

The 27 are also called upon to improve the safety of the journalists they cover demonstrations. Nearly one in three incidents targeting journalists occurs in these cases, the Czech Commissioner said.

The Commission calls on the Member States to ‘provide regular training in repression services“And is in favor of” efficient and appropriate processing identification methods of journalists ”during these demonstrations.

The Commission also requires the 27 to support the establishment of the services they propose legal, psychological help and accommodation solutions to threatened journalists.

The European Commission is also preparing one law on the protection of the independence of the media, as well as one text to protect journalists from abusive prosecutions.

It is pointed out that the Reporters Without Borders described the recommendations presented today as a “step in the right direction” and called on the Heads of State and Government to in application “So that no letter is left dead”.

* File photo

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