Day 27 a change in the law on defamation was voted on ithrough of it Albanian Parliament. With the change in law, journalistst opportunities for freedom of expression are strengthened to some extent, but the Albanian civil society would have liked to see more far-reaching relief and warns of loopholes that could still make it difficult for journalists and freedom of expression activists.
The legal wording excludes important actors: civil society actors, activists, researchers, whistleblowers and citizens, said Blerjina Bino from the Safe Journalists Network ahead of parliament's vote on the government's election proposals.
Freedom of expression was already a key issue in last year’s parliamentary elections, and the government promised to decriminalize defamation of journalists. In parliament, Justice Minister Besfort Lamallari described the updated text of the law as a sign of the government’s intention to “protect freedom of expression and strengthen democracy,” the Albanian news site reports. CNA.
While the new legal text is seen as a step in the right direction, it had several civil society and media actors wanted to go further and advocated that defamation be completely decriminalized instead. The new text of the law only protects journalists who are formally registered and Albania lacks a register of journalists. Journalists and others can also continue to be prosecuted for insult. Something that a number of European journalist organisations means enabling the legal system to circumvent the law reform and continue to punish critical expressions.
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