Central Asian judges discuss how to protect freedom of speech and press
A two-day II regional judicial dialogue “Protecting freedom of expression and freedom of the media in the context of countering illegal content: legal opportunities in Central Asia” began in Samarkand. This was reported by the press service of the Ministry of Justice of Uzbekistan. The meeting is attended by an OSCE delegation led by Representative for Freedom of the Media Arlem Desir and more than 50 judges and experts from Turkmenistan, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Uzbekistan, as well as Russia, Spain, Germany and the Netherlands. The judges focused on world trends in the field of freedom of speech and issues related to preventing restrictions on the work of the press. The main topics of the judicial dialogue are security issues, public interests and freedom of expression, legal measures regarding incitement of interethnic and religious hatred in the region, provisions regarding defamation and slander in Central Asia and the OSCE area. For a more effective meeting, participants will discuss legal cases related to slander and insult in the Internet media and social networks, as well as present relevant recommendations. This is a relatively new form of discussion of issues of freedom of speech and the media at the level of judges. The first regional judicial dialogue took place in 2018 in Bishkek. The usefulness of the judges' dialogue on such issues is obvious. Judges, in accordance with their authority, can protect freedom of speech and the media from illegal restrictions.
