The Sejm’s Culture and Media Committee dealt with information on the situation of journalists, who Ringier Axel Springer Polska Publishing House brought a lawsuit. The Committee expressed deep concern about the attempts to systematically intimidate journalists and the Polish media by Ringier Axel Springer Polska (RASP).
“The prosecution of journalists for their views – instead of polemics with them within the freedom of debate – indicates that the RASP is referring to a legacy distant from the democratic principles of freedom of speech. This must be of utmost concern,” we can read in the adopted desideratum.
The Committee also asked the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the Ministry of Culture and National Heritage to emphasize the problem in relations with German partners.
16 deputies took part in the vote on the desideratum, 14 were in favor, 2 were against.
The Director of the Press Freedom Monitoring Center, Jolanta Hajdasz, who was present at the meeting of the committee and presented information on the situation of journalists, said that bringing lawsuits against journalists by RASP is “a mechanism that serves to silence independent journalists or those journalists who publicly dare to have a position different from that presented by the Ringier Axel Springer company”.