“The protests of the people on the street have given way to real political freedoms in the Ukraine, freedoms which were unthinkable just a few days ago: the freedom to demonstrate, freedom of expression and press freedom.” — Serhiy Holovaty, Ukrainian Member of Parliament Speaking at an event organised by the International Press Institute at […]

On 6 November, Rita Csik, a journalist with the daily Nepszava newspaper, was charged with the “deliberate breach of a state secret” under Article 221 of the Hungarian Penal Code that is titled, “Violation of a State Secret,” which dates from the 1970’s. Csik’s prosecution arises from an article written by her in May 2004 […]

In two recent decisions involving the Finnish government, the European Court of Human Rights (ECHR) reaffirmed the fundamental principle of press freedom and the right of the media to report on matters of public interest. Seija Selistö of the Vaasa newspaper Pohjalainen brought the case after she authored an article concerning a patient who died […]

On 20 October, Congressman Chung Rae Jung of the Uri party, which has a parliamentary majority, tabled a proposed amendment to the “Registration, etc. of Periodicals Act” titled, “Act on Preserving the Functions of Newspaper, etc. and Protecting the Interests of the Readers.” The act contains a number of provisions that are deeply hostile to […]