Polish government, opposition commit to media freedom ahead of elections

A leading Law and Justice (PiS) party politician has pledged to advocate in her party for the decriminalisation of defamation, while a former ombudsman running for the opposition has promised to strive for an in-depth reform of the public media in response to a call by Reporters Without Borders (RSF).

Ahead of the 15 October general elections, RSF published 15 press freedom recommendations drafted in cooperation with Polish experts and media. They pointed to the public media’s promoting the ruling camp in its programming and the National Broadcasting Council’s (KRRiT) failure to fulfil its duty to protect the independence and pluralism of the media.

“The current government has perpetuated a vicious circle of polarisation. After having taken total control of the public media, it stigmatises the private media whose resistance is then used as a pretext for further political pressures on the whole media landscape,” Pavol Szalai, Head of EU-Balkans Desk at RSF, said in a press release.

Substituting the right to information with propaganda undermines the fairness of the Polish election and the country’s international standing. By improving press freedom according to our recommendations, Poland can win back the place its people deserve: the democratic core of Europe, he added.

Another problem of the Polish media landscape RSF pointed to is “systematic attacks on the independence” of private media and lawsuits against the media, paralysing citizens’ right to information.

During his mission to Warsaw from 2 to 5 October, Szalai discussed the recommendations with media outlets and political parties. In response to RSF’s call, PiS MP Joanna Lichocka, a member of the National Media Council, committed to act in favour of media freedom.

Abusive lawsuits are an existing issue for press freedom in Poland, she recognised, pledging to oppose prison sentences for journalists for defamation and advocate within PiS for legislation decriminalising defamation.

The Polish public media and the oversight institutions need a systemic reform to guarantee their independence from the government,” said former Polish ombudsman, now the Civic Coalition politician Adam Bodnar, quoted by the RSF.

He added he believes the political influence in selecting the public media leadership “should be reduced to the benefit of the involvement of civil society and experts.”

Also, the leaders of the two other opposition camps, the centrist Third Way coalition and the Left party, showed a willingness to conduct media freedom reforms if they entered the government, according to RSF.

RSF’s recommendations aim for “a reform of the public media, the same level-playing field on the market and in access to information for both private and public media, measures against abusive lawsuits, as well as for guarantees of journalists’ safety and rights.”

The issue of media freedom is hardly present in the election campaign in Poland, giving way to topics such as immigration, privatisation of state assets and the retirement age, which the Polish people will be asked about in the referendum that will take place together with the elections.

Poland is ranked 57th out of 180 countries in RSF’s World Press Freedom Index, the fifth worst place in the EU.

(Aleksandra Krzysztoszek | Euractiv.pl)