30. 07. 2014

UNS: Amendments prerequisite for support to media bills

The UNS said in a release that the association submitted amendments to the bill on public information and media and bill on electronic media to parliamentary groups.

As underscored, the UNS requests that the law on public information and media lays down the obligation that the municipalities and cities secure the project-financing in the public interest in the field of information provision amounting to at least two percent, while stressing that for cities with over 300,000 citizens the sum must not be below one percent.

The UNS believes that if the minimum funds are not stipulated, there is a danger that the state's exit from the media will result in a mass closure of local media, on which Serbian citizens depend for acquiring the relevant information.

The UNS dismisses as unacceptable the stand of the ministry of public administration and local self-government that that setting the sum that local self-governments have to earmark for the purpose would infringe on their constitutional rights as, for example, the law on financing of political parties envisages the funding of political parties with the set amount.

Noting that the right to information is more important than the financing of political parties, the UNS warns that it will not back the media bills unless that amendment is accepted.

The UNS also requests that the law sets the obligations for publishers to enter donations from the country and abroad into the media register.

"It is not enough that the law obliges the media to register the assistance from Serbia. It is important that citizens know which media get the assistance from other states and international organizations," notes the UNS release.

The association also thinks that the provision in the bill on electronic media under which the Regulator would take on some competences of the Press Council as a self-regulatory body and thus jeopardize the freedom of expression is also contrary to the European standards in that field.