Judiciary aims to strengthen cooperation with the press

The freedom of expression in the press and other media is guaranteed by the Constitution if it does not cause harm to other persons or the constitutional regime. Therefore, a balance should be established between the people’s right to be informed and the fundamental rights of the persons involved in carrying out investigations or legal procedures, Moldova’s Acting President Marian Lupu said in the opening of the national conference “Informing the public – aspects of the cooperation between the mass media and the law enforcement bodies in the context of the constitutional law”, Info-Prim Neo reports. Marian Lupu stressed that the freedom of expression and the observance of the right to be informed are fundamental for the functioning of a state of law. The people have the right to demand that the information be verified in the case of news and truthful in the case of opinions. The Acting President said the relations between the press and the law enforcement bodies are not very fruitful in Moldova yet. On the one hand, the law enforcement bodies blame the journalists for the deplorable image of the judiciary. On the other hand, the journalists claim that they cannot have professional communication with the legal system because the law enforcement bodies do not have press officers or the existent offices are inefficient. The law enforcement bodies are dissatisfied that some of the reporters do not fully understand the legal procedures and sometimes provide incorrect information. Dumitru Pulbere, president of the Constitutional Court, said that the mass media and the law enforcement bodies are obliged to inform the people about the work of the legal system and should identify cooperation mechanisms so that the people are provided with correct information on time. The president of the Supreme Council of Magistrates Dumitru Visternicean said the mass media is not an opponent for the judiciary, but a partner and this partnership should be correct and fair. In the conference, Ion Muruianu, the president of the Supreme Court of Justice, who called the journalists rabid dogs who are dangerous for society, said the representatives of the mass media and the judges are human beings and can make mistakes. He stressed yet that the journalists should not teach the judges to do their work and vice versa. The conference was organized by the Constitutional Court with support from the German foundation Hanns Seidel. On February 23, it is 16 years of the foundation of the Constitutional Court.