Council of Europe calls on President to not sign media law

Nils Muižnieks, the Council of Europe's Commissioner for Human Rights has called on the President of Poland, Andrzej Duda, not to sign the law on public media and to "uphold the independence of Poland’s public service television and radio." The commisioner wrote that "the law worryingly places public service media under direct government control by giving the latter the powers to appoint and dismiss the members of the supervisory and management boards of public service television and radio. These arrangements contradict Council of Europe standards which notably require that public service media remain independent of political or economic interference." "Rushed through Parliament last week, the law has also not been subject to the public debate, which is required in a democratic society when considering such important changes in the field of media freedom", the statement concluded. According to the bill passed on December 30 by parliament, the head of the Polish public radio and television will be dismissed and replaced by three-member boards "appointed and dismissed by the Minister of the Treasury." The new board will be under the control of the treasury "until the introduction of new national media organisations," the bill specifies.