Skopje, 30 October 2023 (MIA) – In recent years, North Macedonia has made continued progress on media freedom, albeit disjointed and with limitations, states the Fact-Finding Press Freedom Mission Report titled “Media Freedom in North Macedonia: Fragile Progress”.

The report presents the findings and recommendations stemming from an international fact-finding mission to North Macedonia organized by the Association of Journalists of Macedonia (AJM) from 5 to 7 June 2023, in which the European Federation of Journalists (EFJ), European Centre for Press and Media Freedom (ECPMF), Free Press Unlimited (FPU), International Press Institute (IPI) and the Osservatorio Balcani e Caucaso Transeuropa (OBCT) participated. The mission held meetings with the most relevant policymakers in Skopje to assess the problems of the media sector.

At an event Monday at the Agency for Audio and Audiovisual Media Services held within the frameworks of Media Literacy Days, the Secretary General of the EFJ, Ricardo Gutiérrez, said the report has positive findings for the work of journalists. However, he also stressed that politicians don’t consult the journalists’ associations when making decisions and added they should do so in order to be able to adopt real solutions.

The report states that journalists continue to face difficulties with their safety, including significant concerns regarding hate speech and negative labelling of journalists and media workers.

The working conditions, it states, remain unacceptably poor for many reporters, not only regarding their salaries and employment status, but also regarding respect for their labour rights. Media outlets also struggle to survive in a small and crowded market, in which, it stresses, “pluralism is under threat pursuant to an ill-advised push to reintroduce state advertising.”

The report proposes the establishment of a public fund in support of media based on objective criteria and with complete independence, in line with the existing European standards; the upholding of the ban on state advertising in media; the strengthening of external monitoring of the courts; the improvement of working conditions for journalists; and greater accountability from politicians and public servants regarding hostile statements and behavior towards journalists and media workers.

At the event, the President of the AJM, Mladen Chadikovski, said that now is the right time to adopt real, systemic solutions. “Otherwise,” he said, “we could easily drop from the 38th spot to the 128th spot in the media freedom ranking, as was the case in 2015.”

Photo: MIA