CoE commissioner urges amendments in media regulations, warns of rise of intolerance

Strasbourg (MTI) – The Council of Europe’s human rights commissioner recommended further changes to Hungarian media regulations and warned of the rise of intolerance in a report published on Tuesday.

Commissioner for Human Rights of the Council of Europe Nils Muiznieks also urged improvements for asylum-seekers in his report on Hungary.

Muiznieks and his delegation gauged media freedom, the fight against intolerance and discrimination and the rights of asylum seekers during a visit in July, when they held discussions with state authorities, and national and international NGOs.

Muiznieks noted amendments to bring Hungary’s media legislation in line with European norms but raised concern that, in practice, some existing provisions had a chilling effect on journalistic freedom.

“This is particularly true for the severe sanctions, including high fines which, although rarely imposed, appear to have forced a number of media outlets to engage in self-censorship,” he added.

Muiznieks recommended in the report that the Hungarian authorities adopt additional amendments to media regulations, including repealing or reformulating certain passages on opinion and political views contained in the media law, extending the protection of journalists’ sources to freelance journalists, and excluding print and online media from the registration requirements.

“Regarding the independence of the Media Council, the Commissioner notes that the political constellation in Hungary, characterised by a dominant majority, coupled with the wide-ranging powers of this body, leads to the fact that the Media Council is not seen as independent from political influence and control. The Commissioner calls on the authorities to review the appointment procedure for media regulatory bodies,” the report said.

Muiznieks also expressed concern about increasing threats to media pluralism. He said measures such as the tax on advertising revenues and restrictions on political advertising as “further attempts to curb media freedom in the country”.

The report also puts forward concerns about the deterioration of the situation as regards racism and intolerance in Hungary, with “anti-Gypsyism” being the most blatant form of intolerance, as illustrated by distinctively harsh manifestations, including violence targeting Roma people and paramilitary marches and patrolling in Roma populated villages.

“Despite positions taken by the Hungarian authorities to condemn anti-Semitic speech, anti-Semitism is a recurring problem,” the report stated.

Muiznieks referred to “the growing visible presence of extremist organisations in the last years” as one of the most worrying trends in the area of racism and intolerance in Hungary.