OSCE media freedom representative urges Belarusian government to reform media regulations
There
is an urgent need to reform and liberalize Belarus’ media
regulations, Dunja Mijatovic, the OSCE representative on freedom of
the media, said in Minsk on Tuesday while meeting with members of the
country’s lower parliamentary chamber, the House of
Representatives.
“I say this with full respect of the
Belarusian authorities, but at the same time, my role it to emphasize
and remind the authorities of their OSCE media freedom commitments,”
she said.
Ms. Mijatovic said that her office had earlier made a legal evaluation of Belarus’ Media Law, and that the law should be revised.
She expressed hope that members of the House of Representatives would use their “expertise in order to push media reforms in a right direction.”
Mikalai Samaseika, who chairs the Committee on International Affairs in the House of Representatives, told reporters prior to the meeting that Belarus expected Dunja Mijatovic to be impartial and ready for an equal and open dialogue.
“Belarus is open for such a dialogue in all areas,” Mr. Samaseika said. “We hope that this stance will be accepted by the European Union. Such a dialogue is the way of the future because an analysis of the EU’s sanctions and ultimatums against Belarus has showed them to be counterproductive.”
After visiting Belarus, Ms.
Mijatovic should form an impartial opinion about the situation in the
country based on her own observations and not allegations by the
“so-called opposition,” Mr. Samaseika said.
Dunja
Mijatovic arrived in Belarus on Monday for a three-day official
visit. She was to have meetings with high-ranking Belarusian
officials, including Foreign Minister Uladzimir Makei and
representatives of the Presidential Administration, the House of
Representatives of the National Assembly, the Supreme Court of
Belarus. She is also to meet with leaders of the Belarusian
Association of Journalists and the pro-government Belarusian Union of
Journalists, journalists and civil society activists.
Ms. Mijatovic's previous
visit to Belarus came in October 2010. She also wanted to come to the
country shortly after a brutal crackdown on a post-election
demonstration in Minsk on December 19, 2010, during which hundreds of
people were arrested, including journalists Iryna Khalip and Natallia
Radzina. She appealed twice to the then foreign minister, Siarhei
Martynau, to arrange for her to visit Minsk, but received no reply.
Ms. Mijatovic has repeatedly criticized the Belarusian
authorities for stifling media freedom and persecuting journalists
working for non-state media outlets.