Uzbekistan

[UZ] Legislation on Freedom of Information and Protection of Journalists

IRIS 1997-10:1/14

Alexander Scheuer

Institute of European Media Law (EMR), Saarbrücken/Brussels

On 24 April 1997 the President of the Republic of Uzbekistan approved two Acts containing fundamental guarantees for the activity of the media and journalists.

The Act on guarantees and freedom of access to information serves to confirm the exercise of the constitutional rights to freedom of information under Article 67 of the Constitution. The corresponding statutory regulation affords everyone free access to information, to keep the same, and to disseminate it (Art.3). Art.4 sets out the principles of the public nature, accessibility and trustworthiness of information. The Act also lays down the procedure for creating information, the duties of state authorities in dealing with applications, and the legal means of redress in the event of authorisation being refused (Art.6-12). According to the final provision in Art.14, regulations contained in international agreements ratified by the Uzbekistan Republic which differ from the statutory provisions shall override the latter.

The Act on the protection of the professional activity of journalists provides a legal framework for the work of journalists. Following the legal definition of a "journalist" in Art.3 of the Act, there is a provision containing the prohibition of censorship (Art.4); rights and duties are then set out, as well as a secrecy regulation in respect of information received in the course of exercising their profession (Art.5-8). There are also regulations on the procedure for accreditation and a framework regulation for sanctioning infringements of the fundamental rules laid down.