OSCE trains state officials and journalists to improve public access to information in Armenia

YEREVAN, 19 September 2007 - Increasing public access to information held by the state through promoting ties between regional state administration bodies and journalists is the aim of a two-day OSCE training seminar that started today in Yerevan.

Press and public information officers from governors' offices in Armenia's ten regions and journalists participating in the course will learn about the legal and ethical principles of co-operation between state officials and journalists and global standards related to access to information. The course also includes discussions on obstacles to communication between state officials and journalists.

"We hope that this event will promote effective co-operation between state authorities and journalists as well as media coverage that will enable public participation in decision-making processes," said Marc Bojanic, Acting Head of the OSCE Office in Yerevan.

The OSCE Office in Yerevan and the Office of the OSCE Representative on Freedom of the Media are co-organizing the event.

"Stronger and more principled links between state bodies and journalists will help improve media coverage of government affairs and increase public trust in both the authorities and the media," said Alexander Boldyrev, Senior Advisor to the OSCE Representative on Freedom of the Media.

The event is part of a series of training programmes launched by the Office of the OSCE Representative on Freedom of the Media in 2005 to improve relations between state press officers and media.