On 31 July, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs prevented Zdislava Pokorná, a journalist working for the independent daily newspaper Deník N, from attending a press conference. The ministry claimed that the conference was not intended for “alternative” or “conspiracy” media. The International Federation of Journalists (IFJ) joins its affiliate, the Syndicate of Journalists of the Czech Republic, in condemning this discriminatory action by the government, which hinders journalistic work and contributes to a broader climate of distrust and hostility towards the media.
Zdislava Pokorná, a journalist working for the independent daily newspaper Deník N, was denied accreditation to attend a press conference organised by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. This is the second time that Pokorná has been barred from attending a government press conference.
Deník N, which was founded in 2018,has uncovered a number of corruption scandals and sexual harassment cases involving public figures.
According to the editorial team at Deník N, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs informed the journalist in an official letter that “another press conference for alternative media and conspiracy blogs will be held at a later date”. Despite being denied accreditation, Pokorná showed up at the press conference, but was refused entry on the grounds that her name was not on the list of accredited journalists. Pavel Tomášek, editor-in-chief of Deník N, called the decision to bar Pokorná “unacceptable and outrageous.”
On 31 July, the Syndicate of Journalists of the Czech Republic issued a statement condemning the Ministry of Foreign Affairs’s action. The statement called on the authorities to reconsider their discriminatory approach, and to provide explanations and measures that would guarantee equal access to information for all media. In solidarity with Pokorná, the union has called on Czech media to boycott the Ministry of Foreign Affairs’ press events, unless the ministry changes its discriminatory conduct and apologises.
This incident is not isolated, but part of an escalating government campaign of Prime Minister Andrej Babiš against independent media, and public service broadcasting in particular. In May, thousands of Czech citizens protested against a government bill that aimed to abolish the licence fee for public service media and transfer their funding to the state budget. At the IFJ’s Centenary Congress, held from 4 to 7 May, a motion to protect public service broadcasting was adopted.
Chairwoman of the Syndicate of Journalists of the Czech Republic, Ivana Šuláková, said: “[…] State representatives do not have the right to categorize media as suitable or unsuitable, nor to decide which journalists gain access to information provided by a public institution. Access to information must be guaranteed under equal conditions to all media outlets conducting journalism in compliance with the law.”
IFJ President Zuliana Lainez added: “No government can decide what journalism is acceptable and what is not. Such a claim constitutes an unacceptable interference in journalistic work and undermines the fundamental principles of press freedom. The IFJ expresses its full solidarity with our colleague Zdislava Pokorná and supports our union’s decision not to cover the Ministry’s press conferences. Respect for media pluralism and non-interference in the exercise of journalistic work are basic prerequisites for the proper functioning of a democracy.”
Source: IFJ
