VARZOB, Tajikistan, 30 September 2010 — A workshop bringing together media law experts from the lower house of the Tajik Parliament, civilsociety and academia concluded today with concrete proposals to improvethe existing law on press and other mass media.
The three-day expert workshop, supported by the OSCE Office inTajkistan, was initiated by civil society during a public debatefollowing the publication of draft amendments to the law. The Members ofParliament who authored the draft amendments, as well as Andrei Richter,director of the Moscow Media Law and Policy Institute, also took part.
«The public debate on this legal initiative and the openness of membersof parliament to listen to the arguments from media law experts in civilsociety and academia and international expertise at an early stage arean excellent praxis in media law making,» said Dunja Mijatovic, the OSCERepresentative on Freedom of the Media, in a message to workshopparticipants.
Ambassador Ivar Vikki, the Head of the OSCE Office in Tajikistan, said «The workshop made it possible for expert opinions, and civil societyexpertise and experience to be heard by decision-makers in thelegislative process.»
Olim Salimzoda, the Head of the Parliamentary Committee forInternational Relations, Public Organizations and Information, added: «The discussions in this workshop give us excellent insight into issuesthat are of concern for civil society with regard to the regulatoryframework for the media in Tajikistan. We will consider them togetherwith our colleagues in the parliamentary committee in the ongoingdiscussion on this law.»
The workshop resulted in detailed recommendations on the draft whichtake into account experience with the practical implementation of thecurrent law, as well as key OSCE commitments on media freedom, includingaccess to information, defamation and libel and freedom of expression.
For further information, please contact: Michael Unland, Media Officer, OSCE Office in Tajikistan, tel.: (+992 918 67 74 13) E-mail: Michael. Unland@osce.org Website:http//www.osce,org
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