OSCE Agreement Reflects Concerns About Interference In Journalists' Lives - Zakharova

MOSCOW (Pakistan Point News / Sputnik - 08th December, 2018) The recently adopted OSCE document on the protection of journalists reflects concerns about the illegal interference with journalists' private lives that threatens their safety, the Russian Foreign Ministry's spokeswoman, Maria Zakharova, said.

On Friday, Italian Foreign Minister Enzo Moavero Milanesi said that at a meeting in Milan, the OSCE had reached a unanimous agreement on the safety of journalists and media pluralism for the first time in 27 years.

"Today, the OSCE Ministerial Council beat the odds. Despite the critical disintegration of the global community, the resolution on the safety of journalists was agreed upon for the first time. This was made possible due to the unprecedented efforts of the Russian side ... [The document] expresses concerns over the deliberate and illegal infringement on journalists' private lives, which can hamper their security," Zakharova wrote on Facebook late on Friday.

When commenting on such interference in media workers' lives, Zakharova referred to the Ukrainian Mirotvorets website which had published personal details of journalists from a number of OSCE countries.

The Foreign Ministry's spokeswoman added that the OSCE agreement "reflected concerns about the spread of the practice of conducting targeted campaigns against journalists in order to discredit them, particularly in the context of the actions of political leaders, officials and authorities to intimidate media workers and ignore violence against them".

Zakharova noted the relevance of the OSCE agreement in the light of increasing pressure on journalists in a number of countries that identify themselves as the "old democracies."

According to Zakharova, the document adopted by the OSCE Ministerial Council "stated concern about the introduction of restrictive measures against journalists which lead to increased risks posed to their security and restriction of freedom of expression."

The diplomat explained that such actions against journalists ranged from stripping of or denying accreditation and introducing bans on entry to a country and deportation, to passing laws on purging the information space under the pretext of fighting propaganda.

The OSCE agreement was linked to the UNSC Resolutions 1738 of 2006 and 2222 of 2015, which condemned violence against journalists during armed conflicts and ensured the media workers' legal protection as civilians, Zakharova argued.

The diplomat emphasized that the significance of this provision could not be overestimated since the number of journalists who died in the line of duty continued increasing.

The 25th OSCE Ministerial Council meeting was held in Milan on Thursday and Friday.