Law Against Defamation Splits Romanian Media

Romanian journalists are protesting against a draft law on defamation, which was initiated by the leftist Social Democratic Party, PSD, calling it a device to shield politicians from criticism.

"This law aims to protect the politicians from being criticised for their actions," TV producer Radu Banciu claims.

"In the name of defending tolerance of group differences, they just want to control not only the mass media but also Facebook and other social media," he added.

According to the draft law, social defamation represents an act or the statement through which a person is put in a position of inferiority because he or she belongs to a group of people "who can be socially distinguished through one or more features related to gender, age, race, religion, ethnic origin, native language, cultural traditions, sexual orientation, social origin, disability, non-contagious disease, or HIV/AIDS infection".

The Social Democrats say the law aims only to promote human dignity and tolerance of group differences.

The proposal stipulates that public radio and television should include programs that promote tolerance, while teachers should take classes on the subject, and schools should adopt an "annual plan for the implementation of actions to combat discrimination".

Any company with more than 50 employees will have to include in its regulations a set of rules on human rights, fighting discrimination and on promoting human dignity and tolerance of differences.

But some journalists are not impressed, seeing other motives at work. "We risk paying a fine for saying that PSD members are corrupt, even if we have clear evidence of it," a blog post by journalist Simona Tache, which has been widely redistributed on Facebook, warns.<...