APPENDIX 17
Memorandum submitted by the Secretary-General
of Raad voor de Journalistiek, Flanders, Belgium
A few weeks ago, I heard that your Committee
has announced an inquiry into the work of the Press Complaints
Commission and into its record on privacy complaints. I am writing
to you as the Secretary-General of the "Raad voor de Journalistiek"
(Council for Journalism), a body for self-regulation of the press
that has been established in Flanders/Belgium in 2002.
As you probably will know, during recent years
more and more bodies for self-regulation of the media have been
established in democratic countries. Our common experience is
that the involvement of the press and journalists themselves is
the most effective way to maintain a code of conduct for the media.
In my own country, until recently only legal
action was available to members of the public who felt unfairly
treated by the press. But this method proved to be slow, expensive
and, for that reason, not very effective. That is why our Council
was created, with the support of the political world, a great
number of civic organisations and many judges themselves. The
initiative was taken by editors, media houses and journalists
union. However, one third of the members of our Council are lay
persons, not directly active in the media. We mediate in issues
between the public and the press, and adjudicate quickly in complex
situations. We believe that our way of dealing with complaints
will prove to be faster and more effective than the legal procedures
that had been available to the public until now. One of the aims
of our work is to create debate among the public and among media
workers on the code of conduct for journalists. This will help
us to modernise the code in view of new matters that arise. All
this has been done with the support of the media sector itself,
which guarantees that the rules will also be applied.
Britain has a long tradition of self-regulation
of the press. We in Belgium are impressed by the history and the
experiences of the Press Complaints Commission. Its role in finding
an adequate balance between free speech and the rights of the
public—such as the right of privacy—is commendable.
The Press Complaints Commission plays also a key role in an informal
network of European bodies for self-regulation of the press, where
it shares its experiences with younger organisations like ours.
The issues which we are confronted with are
common. That is why I hope that the work of your Committee will
strengthen the impact of the Press Complaints Commission, an evolution
that will positively influence and help mediation and self-regulation
of the media all over Europe.
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