DUSHANBE, February 23, Asia-Plus -- A roundtable meeting to discuss the current state of media in Tajikistan and ways of cooperation was held in Dushanbe on February 22. 

The meeting staged by Internews Network Tajikistan brought together journalists and representatives from three public associations implementing projects on providing legal assistance to media.  

The meeting was held as part of the project aimed at improving legal and regulatory frameworks for NGOs and Media in Central Asia.   

Addressing the meeting, Troy Etulain, Internews Network in Tajikistan Country Director, outlined the current state of media in Tajikistan, including the challenges that Tajik journalists and media outlets face.  According to him, that level of self-censorship among journalists in the republic is still high and difficulty of access to information is still to be observed in the republic.

He noted that the main objective of the meeting was in discussing ways out of this situation.  

Presenting the “Improvement of Legal Situation and Regulation of NGOs and Media in Central Asia” Project, Etulain noted that the project is designed for three years and includes several aspects such as development of civic society and providing legal assistance on media issues.    

The country director for Internews Network in Tajikistan also noted that international conference on licensing issues is scheduled to be held in July.