Skopje, 6 June 2023 (MIA) – Parliament Speaker Talat Xhaferi held a meeting Wednesday with representatives of the Association of Journalists of Macedonia and several international journalists’ organizations, which focused on the country’s progress in media freedom, Parliament’s activities promoting transparency and accountability, and laws and procedures that affect journalists and media, as well as the inclusion of journalists’ associations in their adoption, said Parliament in a press release.

“Speaker Xhaferi stressed he perceives the journalists as partners in the development of democratic processes in the country, for which it is necessary to boost the transparency of the highest state institutions and a constant dialogue between journalists and state officials. To that end, the Speaker spoke about the practice implemented by him about regular monthly briefings with reporters in Parliament, during which he informs them about the completed, current and planned tasks and activities in Parliament. Xhaferi, also noted that in the interest of the public and the citizens, all public information that are related to the work of Parliament are regularly published and updated on its website,” said the press release.

At the meeting, the adoption of amendments to the Criminal Code was welcomed, with the goal of greater security and safety to media workers, as a regulative drafted in cooperation with AJM.

Xhaferi and the representatives also spoke about the possibilities of establishing a fund in support of media, as one of the mechanisms securing greater pluralism in the media space. 

The fact that North Macedonia has registered progress in the field of media freedom, by climbing to the 38th spot in the Reporters Without Borders press freedom index, was also highlighted at the meeting, with Speaker Xhaferi saying that additional efforts should be made to ensure progress in this field continues in the future.

The meeting is held within the frameworks of the Fact Finding mission of the Association of Journalists of Macedonia, which aims to better understand the media situation in the country, with the expertise of representatives of credible international organizations, who in the past few days held meetings with key institutions in the country.

Photo: Parliament of North Macedonia