Nine out of 12 candidates signed the Pact guaranteeing the freedom of expression

Nine out of the 12 candidates running for Romania’s presidency signed the Pact for the freedom of expression guaranty. The Pact has been initiated by 14 media organisations from Romania, according to the Media Organisations Convention. The nine signed the document without objections, while candidate Eduard Manole did not show total agreement. George Becali and Corneliu Vadim Tudor did not respond to the request of signing the Pact.

The Media Organisations Convention addressing the freedom of expression:

Pact for the guaranty of the freedom of expression – signed by 9 out of 12 candidates

The Pact initiated by 14 media organisation across the country has been signed by the majority of Romania’s presidency runners. Thus, they took responsibility for the principles and action directions proposed by the Pact for the Guaranty of the Freedom of Expression and the Press Responsibility Growth.

The candidates signing without objections: Traian Basescu, Mircea Geoana, Crin Antonescu, Sorin Oprescu, Kelemen Hunor, Remus Cernea, Constantin Ninel Potarca, Ovidiu Cristian Iane, Constantin Rotaru.

We received a reply for candidate Eduard Manole, but he did not express his total agreement regarding the Pact.

We didn’t receive any reply from candidates George Becali and Corneliu Vadim Tudor. We salute the decision taken by the nine candidates to sign this document. We express our hope that the principles and direction of actions featured in the Pact will not remain simple electoral promises and that the candidates will support them in their political roles, regardless the result of the elections.

ActiveWatch – The Agency for Press Monitoring, Centre for Independent Journalism, The Romanian Centre for Investigative Journalism, Local Editors Partonal Assciation (APEL), the Romanian Journalists Association (AJR), the Union of Journalists from Galati, The Romanian Federation for Journalists MediaSind, the AltPHel Association, The Hungarian Journalists Assembly from Romania – Mures, The Journalists’ League Sibiu, the Romanian Journalists’ Association „Ariadna”, the Association for Protecting and Promoting the Freedom of Expression (APPLE), the Press Professionals Association – Cluj (APPC), the Romanian Press Patronage – ROMEDIA.

The text of the pact states that the future president of Romania will support the journalists’ access to public information, including data from the Commerce Record; will insure transparency in the way advertisements is bought by the mass-media institutions; will modify the law of the public radio and television to safeguard their independence from the political sphere; will draft a law project for more transparency in regards to who sponsors and owns the mass-media institutions; will support fiscal policies for the media industry to guarantee financial independence; will cancel penal punishments for press offences and will sign the European Charter for the Freedom of Press.