10 February 2003
Vladimir Putin
President
Russian Federation
Dear Mr President,
Draft Federal Law on Mass Media
On behalf of the International Federation of Journalists, the world's largest journalists' group, I wish to raise some serious concerns over proposals to revise the 1991 Federal Law on Mass Media.
We have examined the draft prepared by your Ministry in this area and we see a number of fundamental problems in the text that conflict with international norms and standards concerning freedom of expression and the rights of journalists.
Structures for the operation of media - whatever the mode of dissemination whether it is print, broadcast or electronic - should not be intrusive in the work of media, but should be the minimum necessary to protect pluralism, ensure fair market conditions and create public confidence that there is no political or commercial power manipulating the work of journalists.
But these ideas, which are fundamental to the mission of journalism, are sidelined when we turn to the draft law. I am concerned that this draft is vague and fails to define, narrowly and clearly, the structures and means by which law will be applied.
First of all I think it is imperative that any media law must begin by referring to the context in which the law is placed - that is respect for freedom of expression and opinion under Article 19 of the Universal declaration of human rights.
Second, the law must spell out Russia's obligations under international law to create the conditions for citizens to enjoy this right. The law must also clearly define the government's responsibility to create safe and professional conditions for the exercise of journalism on the territory of the Russian Federation.
Third, the law must not interfere in the process of selection and definition of content in media - that is the job of journalists and of journalists alone. The work of journalists and accreditation of journalists should not be subject to discrimination. The draft law has numerous provisions that inhibit journalists in their work and add fresh burdens related to defamation. This is an area that should be liberated from controls.
Fourth, the law should make it clear that free expression and freedom of information is something to be enjoyed by all citizens, not just journalists. We are privileged professionals who exercise free expression as a professional duty, but all citizens have the right to receive information, not just through mass media, but as of right.
Fifth, freedom of information provisions should be set out in detail in this law. The law should define what structure will be put in place to guarantee these rights, how it will be secured and should include provisions protecting the rights of journalists to gather information and the rights of whistle blowers to speak to journalists in the public interest.
Sixth, we are concerned by obligations regarding authenticy and privacy that undermine or compromise our professional duty to protect sources of information (Articles 9/16). The protection of sources should be a clearly defined right set out under Article 6). Journalists themselves have a professional duty to provide accurate, reliable and quality information and they should be allowed to do so with appropriate measures for self-regulation.
Seventh, we fear the proposals for complex registration procedures might open the door to government abuse on arbitrary grounds. Registration should be a matter of administrative rules that apply to all without discrimination.
Eighth, we believe the public interest requires that government involvement in media be kept to a minimum. Where the government has a role it is to act as a guarantor of pluralism and quality, particularly in the broadcasting sector. Too often in this law we see the government insisting on the right for its voice to be heard, setting limits on what journalists can and cannot say, and creating potential bureaucratic obstacles to media freedom.
Finally, the IFJ believes that this draft of a new law is a regrettable statement of the failure, after 13 years of reform, to create and establish a democratic media culture within the Russian Federation.
It is our view that successive governments have failed to create the conditions for media freedom as enjoyed in other democratic countries. Media owners have failed too, particularly in their abuse of the social and professional rights of journalists and through their use of media as weapons of political and commercial influence.
It is appalling that in Russia today many journalists, some in distant parts of the country, still live and work in conditions of poverty, professional neglect and intolerable pressure from powerful groups in society.
The IFJ strongly believes that journalists and media professionals - owners, editors, and creators - should be allowed to resolve their differences themselves. Editorial independence should be guaranteed by respect within government and society at large for the independent, neutral status of journalists. Ethics of journalism and the news gathering process should be left to professionals inside journalism.
But none of this will happen overnight. We strongly support the efforts of our colleagues in the Russian Union of Journalists to build an inclusive, socially just and decent society for journalism. We ask you to give them support, too. Our colleagues deserve the right to work without interference, to receive decent pay and secure working conditions and to have the status of journalists properly respected. These do not have to be defined in law beyond the minimums required in any civilised society.
We ask you not to support actions - through the support of new and potentially dangerous legislation - which will further retard the process of development in Russian media.
Journalism in Russia has a long way to go before you create the freedom that is central to our modern mission of journalism. Law can at best provide a level playing field on which we have to struggle for professional integrity, but it cannot substitute for the ethical and moral values upon which journalism is based.
Yours Sincerely,
AIDAN WHITE
General Secretary,
The International Federation of Journalists