Greece was informed about the steps taken on the protection of the journalistic function and the freedom of the media, the Undersecretary of State for the Prime Minister and government spokesman Pavlos Marinakis his spokesman for the freedom of the media Jan Bratu (Jan Braathu).

“I came to support and encourage a number of activities or actions by the Greek government on the freedom of the media and the security of journalists. One of them was to encourage the Greek government to draw up a strategy and an action plan to reform the media, “Mr Bratou said in an interview with RES-EIA just hours after his meeting with Mr Marinakis, which took place on Tuesday.

For his part, Mr Marinakis, according to a statement, during a meeting with Mr Bratou referred to the progress Greece has made in the rule of law, the protection of journalistic function and the freedom of the media.

Mr. Marinakis made special reference to the five actions of the Greek government, which have already been recognized as good practices by the OSCE and included in his online toolbox and are as follows: the Memorandum of Understanding, the Task Force for the security of journalists, and RES-EIA and the signing of a collective contract for journalists employed in public bodies.

Speaking to RES-EIA, Mr Bratou about the steps that the government has taken in recent years said that “I can only say that I have heard when I heard all the activities that are in progress or planned”, and added: “But yes, I see substantial efforts being made. The essence at the end of the day has to do with the application, but at least we see the steps now taking and I hope that these steps will lead to practical application in the near future. “

According to what Mr Bratou said, he would like to encourage the Greek government not only to convey the EU directive on the law against Slapps, but also to incorporate the law against domestic Slapps. “You will know that the EU directive from last year only applies to cross -border slaps. But almost all slapps in each country are domestic slaps. So I encourage all EU Member States to the OSCE, and all participating states, in fact, to draft laws against Slapps applied to domestic slaps.

And I was told that there is already a commitment to this. “He even said that a paragraph on domestic laws against Slapps is included in the new bill. And that one of the issues considered in this context is the premature completion of cases considered slapps, which is also a European Commission.

Mr Marinakis, in his meeting with Mr Bratou, made special reference to the abusive lawsuits against journalists, while stressing that many of the EMFA forecasts (European regulation to integrate into national law – Member States) are already national laws in Greece.

At the same time, he pointed out that the draft law on the modernization of public television is in public consultation, as well as the incorporation of further EMFA forecasts into the Greek legal order. He also stressed that he was approved by the Council of Ministers and the draft law on the definitive licensing of the regional channels was being launched, and within the next time a corresponding procedure for the radio stations will proceed.

“The goal of the Greek government is clear: with legislative initiatives to support journalists and journalism, so that citizens can have the right information,” Mr Marinakis said.