Bulgaria

[BG] CEM Issues Declaration on Hate Speech

IRIS 2013-9:1/5

Rayna Nikolova

New Bulgarian University

On 13 August 2013, the Council for Electronic Media (hereinafter CEM) adopted a Declaration on the basis of Article 32(2) of the Radio and Television Act (RTA). In this Declaration, the Members of the CEM request the Bulgarian journalists community to dissociate themselves from the expression of hostile statements and hate speech in accordance with Bulgarian media law. The Declaration goes beyond the issue of how journalists report in their own wording and focusses on the way Bulgarian media report about statements of third persons that could be considered hate speech.

The CEM also addresses electronic media, calling on them to pay due respect to the principles embodied in Art. 10 of the RTA, which prohibits incitement to hatred on grounds of nationality, political or ethnic belonging, religious beliefs, race or sex. The CEM’s Declaration arose due to several recent cases of intolerant, discriminatory and hostile statements not being properly covered in Bulgarian media: Journalists often pass over these statements and/or do not distance themselves in the appropriate manner (see IRIS 2012-7/10).

The right of non-discrimination, the protection of private honour and dignity of any citizen and various groups of society, is of paramount importance for any democratic society and it shall be protected to the same degree as the right to freedom of opinion and expression.

Taking into account the complexity of balancing those rights, the Members of the CEM trust in the professionalism of Bulgarian journalists, which will safeguard them from sanctions as provided in the RTA.