In a statement delivered on the occasion of the world Press Freedom Day, the High representative of the European Union, Mr. Josep Borrell Fontelles, in particular,  noted that in 2024, with elections taking place in over 60 countries around the globe, the work of journalists is more significant than ever.  

“As our eyes and ears on the ground, journalists must be protected at all times, everywhere. The EU firmly condemns all acts of violence, including threats, against journalists for exercising their profession, whether perpetrated by states, organized groups or individuals. There must be no impunity for such crimes, no matter where they take place,” Mr. Borrell noted.   

“Around the world, independent media faces a number of existential threats.  More than ever, we must take decisive action to ensure that the media can operate in viable political, economic and legal conditions,” he said, noting that the European Union remains steadfast in its commitment to protect media freedom and pluralism across the world.

“In defending media freedom, we protect not just our right to know, but our very ability to shape a future guided by truth and accountability, he added.

Meanwhile, the situation with the freedom of speech in Central Asia has become worse over the last few years.  CABAR.asia notes that the countries of the region apply new restrictions to bloggers and the media, block websites and close editorial offices, while detaining and initiating criminal cases against journalists.

CABAR.asia spoke to editors of media outlets about what is happening to journalism in the states of Central Asia today and what challenges and restrictions are faced by the media.

In Tajikistan, the situation with the freedom of speech and access to information reportedly gets worse every year.  According to CABAR.asia, journalists always encounter difficulties in their activity – they are prosecuted, charged with criminal cases, and sentenced to serious terms in prison.  Very few independent outlets in the country publish analytical materials and can afford to criticize the government. 

Bahmanyor Nadirov, editorial director of Asia-Plus, considers that Tajik independent media are in a complex situation now: their financial stability is unstable, authorities keep on pushing against them, level of self-censorship is rising, access to information gets worse, the list of taboo themes becomes longer, both world events and events in particular countries get banned.

“Activities of foreign media and private independent media are restricted in the country, and they face a problem of accreditation of journalists.  Authorities try to delay and complicate the process of accreditation of foreign media employees by applying pressure to the editorial policies or decreasing the number of accredited full-time employees,” Mr. Nadirov said in an interview with CABAR.asia. 

Asked about how freely is it allowed now to cover the current situation in the country and in the world, he said a couple of independent and foreign media still try to cover the situation objectively, but they cannot do it in full.  They prefer to produce smooth content: they publish official news, tells stories of interesting people, write about culture, etc.

Independent media rarely publish critical materials about the policy of authorities, activities of the government or particular officials, corruption, other negative events in the country.

As to the situation and events in the world, there were no special bans on their coverage.  But over the last two years, security agencies have tried to take control of such themes, too.  Thus, in the very beginning of the war in Ukraine, representatives of these agencies 'recommended' the media not to cover the events.  As a result, rare independent media write about the war, and they do it with caution.

Self-censorship of media and journalists has reportedly risen in the country in recent years.  Journalists are very cautious for any and no reason.

The reasons for increasing self-censorship among media and journalists are the facts of prosecution, intimidation, arrests, and sentences to journalists, as well as the closure of private media in recent years. No one wants to be another victim: media owners do not want to lose their business, journalists do not want to be in prison.