Minister calls on HND to join in efforts to draw up media laws

Representatives of the Croatian Journalists' Association (HND) met with Culture Minister Nina Obuljen Korzinek on Wednesday to discuss the HND's eight demands against censorship, and the minister called on the association to submit concrete proposals and join in efforts to draw up a new media law and a new electronic media law.

After a three-hour meeting that was initiated by the minister, HND president Hrvoje Zovko said that readiness was expressed to resolve all issues the HND had been warning about and to do so in the near future.

"As for the HRT's lawsuits, the minister said that the suits which the broadcaster had launched against publishers and reporters were unreasonable. She reiterated Prime Minister Andrej Plenkovic's statement and the conclusion by the parliamentary Media Committee that the matter should be resolved though conciliation," Zovko said.

Today's meeting was held following a protest rally held in Zagreb on March 2 under the slogan "You took over media, we won't give up journalism!" to counter the trend of a rising number of civil lawsuits lodged against reporters and media outlets.

The HND then put to the government eight demands against censorship which, among other things, call for current lawsuits to be dropped, for legal protection to be provided for reporters who warn of the pressure they are exposed to, for the Electronic Media Council to be depoliticised, for HRT's management to be dismissed, and for urgent amendments to the HRT Act.

Apart from that, the HND demands that the Media Act be implemented, that local power-wielders who have usurped the media be stopped and that attackers on reporters be identified and brought to justice.

Text: Hina

News