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Written question asked by Angela Crawley (Scottish National Party) on Wednesday, 13 February 2019, in the House of Commons. It was due for an answer on Monday, 18 February 2019. It was answered by Mark Field (Conservative) on Wednesday, 20 February 2019 on behalf of the Foreign and Commonwealth Office.

Europe: Press Freedom

Question

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what steps his Department is taking to promote press freedom in Central and Eastern Europe.

Answer

​We believe that media freedom is the lifeblood of democracy, and that it is vital to protect the ability of journalists and other media workers to hold the powerful to account. We are concerned by the increase in the number of journalists being targeted because of their work. For this reason we are placing the resources of the Foreign & Commonwealth Office behind a campaign to shine a spotlight on this issue and to galvanise a consensus behind the protection of journalists.

We regularly raise media and press freedom in visits to Central and Eastern European countries as well as in multilateral fora, including the Council of Europe and the Organisation for Security and Cooperation in Europe. We work with media organisations and civil society across the region to deliver projects to protect and support journalists.

Additionally, the UK continues to be vocal in calling for an end to attacks on journalists, including in the case of the horrific murder of investigative journalist Jan Kuciak and his fiancée in Slovakia in February last year.

Secondary information

Type
Written question
Reference
220961
Session
2017-19
Subjects
Press freedom Eastern Europe Central Europe
Link
View this Written question on www.parliament.uk