An international conference held on 24 October in Vilnius, under the Lithuanian Presidency of the Committee of Ministers of the Council of Europe, discussed ways of strengthening judicial capacity to implement Council of Europe standards and instruments protecting freedom of expression, in addition to the European Court of Human Rights' case law on Article 10.
"Effective execution of judgments and implementation of Council of Europe's recommendations can help prevent and counter threats posed to democracy" - this is the main message of the conference, which also called on the organisation to continue supporting member states in raising awareness of freedom of expression issues.
The "Vilnius Dialogue" was organised by the Council of Europe and the Supreme Court of Lithuania and brought together presidents of supreme courts, judges of the European Court of Human Rights, high-level judges, representatives of the ministries of justice, experts and journalists from Lithuania, Latvia, Estonia, Luxembourg, Poland, Slovenia and Ukraine.
The discussions centred on topics such as: the role of the national judiciaries in the protection of freedom of expression, defamation cases, the limits of permissible criticism of public officials, and judicial protection against SLAPPs (strategic lawsuits against public participation), as well as the role of the judiciary in ensuring access to information countering disinformation and protecting freedom of expression in times of war and public emergency.
Freedom of expression and the media are fundamental principles of democracy and serve as key indicators of the condition of democracy in Council of Europe member states. These factors are especially vital in the current context of democratic backsliding, where disinformation and attacks on journalists represent a serious threat to democracy, human rights and the rule of law.
The importance of freedom of expression was emphasised in the declaration adopted at the 4th Summit of Heads of State and Government of the Council of Europe (May 2023, Reykjavík) that welcomed "the Council of Europe's prominent role in international standard-setting on freedom of expression and related issues such as media freedom, access to information and combatting hate speech and disinformation, including the instrumentalisation of history".
