“Free media must not be a tick box exercise”

On Wednesday, 8 March 2023, MEP Irena Joveva co-organised a conference titled Western Balkans Media – Lost in Disinformation on the pressures on independent media and media freedom in the Western Balkans. “Media freedom and pluralism are not a given, which, unfortunately, is true also for the Western Balkans. Ensuring the functioning of a free media is one of the key priorities in the EU candidate countries, but it should not be a requirement ticked off on paper as if fulfilled but then filed away and forgotten about“, said Joveva.

Foto: Philippe BUISSIN

All the participating experts from the Western Balkan countries agreed that the state of media freedom in the region is worrying. “There should be a genuine desire to provide their citizens with credible and reliable information, as well to ensure that journalists are free to speak out about facts, including about corruption and political developments, without fear.” Political pressure, threats to journalists and the media, financial instability, sensationalism and biased media reporting, as well as physical, emotional and financial pressure on investigative journalists are just some of the challenges that were highlighted at the roundtable discussion.

Unfortunately, media freedom should not be taken for granted, pointed out Joveva, recalling that there has been considerable pressure on the media in recent years, even within the EU, ranging from attacks on journalists, even violent murders, to political pressure in Hungary, Poland, … and the list goes on. That is why, according to Joveva, it is necessary to constantly bring to light and speak out against intimidation campaigns, pressure and attempts to silence the media. “We have also seen in Slovenia that autocratic governments, when in power, can put strong pressure on this pillar of democracy and use it to exert pressure and misinform the public. Fortunately, that government is no longer in power in Slovenia, but it is nevertheless right to regulate this at the European level,” explained Joveva, who is the rapporteur for her political group Renew Europe on the European Media Freedom Act (EMFA).

Foto: Philippe BUISSIN

The MEP concluded the event by expressing her wish that these topics would feature more prominently, as they are important for both the EU and the Western Balkan countries. “Only well-informed citizens can make informed decisions”, she stressed, adding that only by joining forces can the right environment and conditions for the work of journalists in the region be ensured.

The event was opened with keynote addresses by MEP Viola von Cramon-Taubadel (The Greens/EFA) and Goran Miletić, Director Europe and MENA Department at Civil Rights Defenders. The guest speakers in the first panel, moderated by MEP Joveva, included Flutura Kusari from the European Centre for Press and Media Freedom, Selma Zulić Šiljak from BiH, Project Coordinator at Mediacentar Sarajevo, and Lutfi Dervish, an independent media expert from Albania. The second panel, entitled Disinformation campaigns in the Western Balkans, was moderated by MEP Thijs Reuten (S&D) and featured guest speakers Dr Jasna Jelišić, Head of the Western Balkans Task Force of the European External Action Service (EEAS), Milka Tadić Mijović, President of the Centre for Investigative Journalism of Montenegro, and Nemanja Todorović Štiplija, Editor-in-Chief of European Western Balkans, a regional web portal.