About the project:
The project “Strengthening media freedom in Bosnia and Herzegovina, North Macedonia and Serbia” is a project financed by the MATRA Rule of Law program of the Dutch Ministry of Foreign Affairs. The project will be implemented by a consortium consisting of the Dutch Helsinki Committee and Free Press Unlimited, in cooperation with local partner organizations consisting of three judicial academies and three journalist associations (including the Independent Journalists’ Association of Serbia).
The project will directly contribute to strengthening the freedom of the media and strengthening the capacity of the judiciary. In addition, the project connects Dutch experts with experts from the target countries, which strengthen the ties between the various Dutch (semi) governmental institutions and those from Bosnia and Herzegovina, North Macedonia and Serbia.
An additional goal is to encourage improved cooperation and exchange between judicial academies and journalist associations by closely involving both groups in designing coherent and innovative capacity building. The project partners believe in the importance of enabling journalists and representatives of the judiciary to get the opportunity and proctor to gather and organize in a way that will enable faster, more meaningful cooperation in solving the ongoing issues of freedom of expression and safety of journalists in the region.
The project is based on the following key assumptions:
– Strengthening the legal and institutional framework that protects freedom of expression and freedom of the media requires the knowledge and commitment of public officials (law enforcement and judicial authorities) and the media in order to solve existing problems in a timely and efficient manner.
– Substantial and sustainable changes can only be achieved by proper, constant engagement of stakeholders – journalists, judges, state actors and civil society.
– There is a willingness of “agents of change” on both sides to engage in a discussion about the responsibility of the media and the judiciary in the defense of the public interest.
General objective: Contribution to the creation of an environment in which media freedom and freedom of expression are respected and can be exercised without fear or pressure.
Specific objective: Contribution to capacity building for the development of a more effective response to cases of intimidation and threats to journalists.
