A few days before the seventh anniversary of the murder of Slovak investigative journalist Ján Kuciak and his fiancée, Martina Kušnírová, the European Parliament paid tribute to these individuals during a debate session on Wednesday, 12 February, while calling for greater media freedom and better protection for journalists in the European Union.
“No journalist should ever have to sacrifice their life in pursuing the truth”, declared European Commissioner for Justice Michael McGrath, calling for strict implementation of the ‘Anti-SLAPP Directive’, which aims to limit SLAPPs (see EUROPE 13317/16).
One by one, MEPs warned of the growing threats that are weighing on the European press: “intimidation, surveillance, physical and psychological violence, [and] judicial and economic harassment”, listed MEP Emma Rafowicz (S&D, French), who believes that there is an urgent need to take action for “the citizens who want a fighting democracy and not illiberal democracies corrupted by media concentration”.
Irena Joveva (Renew Europe, Slovenian) expressed concern about the consequences that the dismantling of the United States Agency for International Development (USAID) would have on access to information in Russia, Belarus, and the other countries from the former Soviet Union. The MEP insisted that European authorities have a responsibility to “fill the void left by the United States in promoting independent journalism”.
The elected representatives also stressed the need to better protect investigative media. “[Journalists] who dare to expose corruption [...] have to choose between putting themselves [...] at risk or succumbing to the chilling effect”, warned Tineke Strik (Greens/EFA, Dutch). She asked, “Did the EU honestly listen closely enough to this deadly warning sign?”
For his part, Konstantinos Arvanitis (The Left, Greek) focused on attempts at foreign interference, citing the surveillance software Pegasus in particular (see EUROPE 13107/10). He predicted that “as long as the EU does not adopt measures on transparency”, the number of journalists being threatened would increase.
Several MEPs urged the European Commission to ensure that the ‘European Media Freedom Act’, which came into force in May 2024, is being implemented and to penalise states that infringe it. “The time has come to use all available tools to combat this phenomenon”, concluded David Casa (EPP, Maltese). (Original version in French by Justine Manaud)