Mijatovic: No security without media freedom

BELGRADE - There is no security without freedom of the media and expression, and there is no freedom of speech unless we live in a secure society, Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe (OSCE) Representative on Freedom of the Media Dunja Mijatovic said on Wednesday.

Many countries are passing laws in an effort to react to security threats, but those restrictions curtail media freedom, Mijatovic said, at the opening of a conference titled "Strategic Communications in the Security Sector".

The media are sometimes unprofessional and do not check all facts, but this must not be an excuse for governments to impose pressure on them, she said, underlining that "there is no excuse for violence against those who have a different opinion."

The answer to the question as to what is allowed in the name of security can be found in international documents, in the respect of the principles of democracy, freedom and human rights, Mijatovic said.

German Ambassador to Serbia Heinz Wilhelm said that freedom of the media was not limitless, and it was hard to define where the limits were.

It is not enough just to say that there is no excuse for violence, but rather an answer has to be found to the issue of limits, and what constitutes a verbal attack on states, people or their beliefs, Wilhelm added.

Photo Tanjug, N. Milosevic (archive photo)