Translation of "La Presse des politiques " (French → English) :

1. Recognises that governments have the primary responsibility for guaranteeing and protecting freedom of the press and media; points out that governments also have the primary responsibility for hampering freedom of the press and media and, in the worst cases, are increasingly resorting to legal pressures in order to restrict that freedom, e.g. through the abuse of anti-terrorism or anti-extremism legislation and laws on national security, treason or subversion; notes that a balance between national security issues and freedom of information needs to be struck in order to prevent abuses and guarantee the independence of the press and ...[+++]media; recognises that media empires owned by politicians are sometimes empowered to carry out misinformation campaigns; emphasises that it is essential that the press and the media can operate independently and free of pressure through political and financial means; is alarmed at the general downward trend in the grading of the press and media freedom environments in various countries both within and outside Europe, according to the latest annual Indexes and Analysis Reports (see list in the Annex at the end of report A7-0176/2013);

43. Recalls that freedom of expression and media pluralism, including on the internet, are core European values; stresses the fundamental importance of press and media freedom in the EU’s enlargement policy and of digital freedoms in this context, considering these freedoms as human rights and therefore as part of the Copenhagen political criteria;

B. whereas restrictions on freedom of expression have serious consequences, should be very limited, and can only be justified subject to narrow and strict conditions provided by laws which themselves are considered legitimate under international law; whereas freedom of expression is a fundamental right and is closely linked to press and media freedom and pluralism; whereas states that have signed up to the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR) and to the European Convention on Human Rights (ECHR) are obliged ...[+++]to ensure that independent, free and pluralistic press and media are guaranteed;

Chechnya, condemning first and foremost the terrible Beslan massacre, but also the increasing number of war crimes and crimes against humanity committed by the Russian authorities against the civilian populations, in particular abductions and forced disappearances, targeted operations which have taken on a systematic and punitive character; condemning the situation of women, particularly targeted in such punitive operations; deploring the continued impunity enjoyed by the perpetrators of such crimes; condemning the systematic abuses committed and obstructive measures taken by the Russian army against human rights defenders in the exercise of their activities, obstruction and violation of the freedom of the ...[+++]press and the threats against people lodging complaints with the European Court of Human Rights; and calling for an immediate start to political negotiations between the parties to the conflict with a view to finally finding a peaceful solution to the conflict; Turkmenistan, condemning the violent repression of any form of press freedom and political conviction; and Uzbekistan, condemning the outlawing of religious groups in particular and the serious interference with activities of political parties;

It is crucial, therefore, that the synergies between certain Community policies (industrial policy, research and development policy, competition policy, internal market strategy, fiscal policy, employment policy, education and training policy, environment policy, transport and energy policy, regional policy) are exploited to obtain the best results in terms of competitiveness, both at European and national level.

11. Deplores the attacks on the diversity and freedom of the press in Russia and calls on the competent authorities to do everything possible to re-establish press freedom in that country and to provide clear assurance that pluralism in the Russian media is a political priority;