OSCE media freedom representative welcomes Lithuanian court ruling, calls for decriminalization of defamation

ASTANA, 29 October 2012 – The OSCE Representative on Freedom of the Media, Dunja Mijatović, today welcomed a Vilnius appellate court’s ruling dismissing criminal libel claims against Dainius Radzevičius, the chair of the Lithuanian Journalists’ Union.

“I am pleased that Radzevičius has now been acquitted,” Mijatović said. “However his case has demonstrated that as long as criminal defamation laws exist in legislation, they represent a threat to freedom of the media.”

“I ask the Lithuanian authorities to use this momentum and decriminalize defamation altogether," she said.

Mijatović raised the matter with Lithuanian authorities a year ago, following a decision of a lower court to impose a fine of more than 3,500 Euro on Radzevičius in non-pecuniary damages for a blog post.

Mijatović is currently in Astana on an official visit.