Beneficiaries and partners’ advocacy activities at national level
Beneficiaries and partners in the project are also advocating for the implementation of pending free speech judgments at national level through various activities. Notably, several visibility and training events have taken place at national level with the support of EIN, exercising pressure on respondent States to adopt effective general measures required to resolve freedom of expression problems identified by ECtHR judgments. Here is an overview of the activities that took place since the beginning of the project in late 2023.
Croatia
Public event on the limits to freedom of expression and the protection against SLAPPs, organised by our beneficiaries Human Rights House Zagreb (HRHZ) and Croatian Journalists Association (CJA) on 16 April 2024
Conference on SLAPPs and their detrimental impact on media freedom and democratic discourse, organised by our beneficiaries Human Rights House Zagreb (HRHZ) and Croatian Journalists Association (CJA), in cooperation with the Center for Democracy and Law Miko Tripalo on 30 September 2024
Written contribution to the European Commission 2024 Rule of Law report, submitted by our beneficiary Human Rights House Zagreb together alongside other Croatian civil society organisations
Italy
Roundtable on pressing concerns regarding freedom of expression in Italy, organised our beneficiairies Coalition for Civil Liberties and Rights (CILD) and StraLi for Strategic Litigation (StraLi) on 8 May 2024
Lithuania
Petition advocating for substantive amendments to the legal framework, specifically in response to concerns raised by the Macate case, coordinated and disseminated by our beneficiary Human Rights Monitoring Institute (HRMI)
Bilateral meetings to build support for further legislative reforms, organised by our beneficiary Human Rights Monitoring Institute (HRMI) with newly elected members of the Seimas on 26 and 29 November, and on 4 December 2024
Poland
High-level debate on the future of criminal defamation reform in Poland, organised by our beneficiary the Helsinki Foundation for Human Rights (HFHR) on 25 March 2025
Statement concerning the reform of the public service media, published by our beneficiary the Helsinki Foundation for Human Rights (HFHR)
Romania
Article on the growing concern over Strategic Lawsuits Against Public Participation (SLAPPs) and momentum to regulate their use, published by our beneficiary Balkan Investigative Rreporting Network’s Sinopsis initiative on 25 July 2024
Public debate on combating Strategic Lawsuits Against Public Participation (SLAPPs) through national legislation, organised by our beneficiairies APADOR-CH and Freedom House on 20 February 2025
Slovakia
Webinar addressed the situation of journalists in Slovakia and the legal risks they face, including criminal proceedings and SLAPP lawsuits, organised by our beneficiary FORUM for Human Rights on 20 November 2024
Spain
Report (yet to be published) on the use of Pegasus by Spanish intelligence from an international law perspective, including a reference to the main relevant ECtHR judgements on Article 10, written by our beneficiary Gentium
Meeting with representatives of the Spanish Ombudsman to explore the institution’s knowledge, experience, and potential interest in engaging more actively in the implementation of ECtHR judgments, including on freedom of expression cases, organised by our beneficiary Gentium on 16 April 2024
Türkiye
New monitoring report on Turkey’s Radio and Television Broadcasting Authority by our partner Media and Law Studies Association (MLSA)