UzA, Tashkent, 03 Oct 2008 – An international seminar on liberalization of mass media as an essential condition for democratization and modernization of the country was held in Tashkent on 2-3 October. The forum was attended by representatives of non-governmental organizations working in the media sphere, experts and journalists of Uzbekistan and some European states.
The seminar discussed liberalization of the media in the context of reforms in Uzbekistan aimed at democratic renewal, important issues of strengthening the media independence, ensuring practical implementation of international legal norms and democratic standards in the media, political and legal aspects of freedom of expression, access to information, Internet regulation and other issues of development of the information sphere in the democratic society.
The seminar participants noted that freedom of the speech and expression were fundamental human rights enshrined in the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, and the documents of the OSCE Human Dimension. Without real freedom of information, turning the media into a forum where people can freely express their thoughts and ideas, views and attitudes about what is happening, one can not speak about deepening democracy and growing political activity of the people, their real participation in social and political life.
During the discussion and debates, it was noted that in Uzbekistan, the process of liberalization of media was a systematic and consistent process. An effective regulatory framework for development of independent media, strengthening their logistical base and ensuring economic self-sufficiency has been created. Non-state media and their associations have seen extensive development. More than 1,000 various media function in the country today.
The forum participants highlighted the objective difficulties and problems, as well as shortcomings existing in the discussed area. It was noted that preparation of journalists fully proficient in modern methods and forms of work, able to comprehensively cover today’s life, to actively influence the formation of democratic values required further improvement. There is a need for a more effective promotion of the dialogue between the media and the authorities at the central and local levels, and for use of modern information and communication technologies, it was said.
The need to develop creative and business contacts between journalists and experts and of Uzbekistan and the developed European countries through conferences, round tables and other forums was emphasized.
In the framework of the seminar, the foreign guests visited the National Electronic Media Association, as well as the editorial office of the Uzbekistan Today newspaper. They held meetings with representatives of independent news agencies and print media of the country.
The seminar on liberalization of media became yet another important step towards deepening mutually beneficial cooperation in the framework of the Uzbekistan-EU dialogue.
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