The joint European Union and Council of Europe action on Freedom of expression and freedom of the media in North Macedonia (JUFREX), in co-operation with the Association of Journalists of Macedonia (AJM), organised an inter-professional seminar with journalists and representatives of the Ministry of Interior (MoI) of North Macedonia to discuss the mutual co-operation for better accountability and transparency of the MoI.
The Spokesperson of the Ministry of Interior (Assistant to the Minister, for public relations), Mr. Toni Angelovski in his presentation focused on the tools the Ministry of Interior is using to inform the citizens and journalists, in particular the official bulletin of the Ministry of Interior. He presented on the strengths and weaknesses of this tool, as well as the availability of the Ministry to provide information to journalists and keep the overall public well informed. On the other hand, the representative of the journalists, Mr Ognen Chancharevic, a journalist himself, pointed out the timely and accurate provision of information as a prerequisite for objective information. Both parties agreed they will need to continue working together and producing guidelines and analysis that will contribute to the improvement of the cooperation between the Ministry of Interior and the journalists for the sole purpose of better accountability and transparency.
The international expert of the Council of Europe, Ms Mirjana Popovic, added value to this seminar by focusing on the relevant European standards in the field of freedom of expression, as well as particular Council of Europe recommendations and guidelines aimed particularly at the protection and safety of journalists. She pointed out that it is necessary to reiterate the need of mutual respect between the police and the media in order to deepen democracy and enhance safety of journalists. Mutual respect and cooperation between the police and the media help police in building a strong cooperation between the community and police. This cooperation is important as the community relies on the officers for protection and the officers rely on the community as well. Further in her presentation, Ms Popovic presented examples of good cooperation between the police enforcement and the journalists in the region, pointing the relevant bodies established and law amendments into force in Montenegro and Serbia.
The exchange of knowledge and practice on this inter-professional seminar will be summarized in an analysis that will be published by the Association of Journalists of Macedonia, with the support of the JUFREX action. The analysis “Improvement of the co-operation between journalists and police enforcement for better accountability and transparency” will be available in Macedonian, Albanian and English language.
This inter-professional seminar was organised under the EU & Council of Europe joint programme “Horizontal Facility for Western Balkan and Turkey 2019-2022” and the action on “Freedom of Expression and Freedom of the Media in North Macedonia (JUFREX)” in cooperation with the partner organisation Association of Journalists of Macedonia (AJM).
