Tajik media develop self-regulation mechanism with support of OSCE Office

DUSHANBE, 24 July 2009 - Tajik media associations and representatives of Tajik media companies developed and presented the first draft of a complaint mechanism at an OSCE-supported workshop on media self-regulation that concluded in Dushanbe today.

The workshop, facilitated by the OSCE Office in Tajikistan and organized by the National Association of Independent Media in Tajikistan and the Union of Journalists brought together 50 major media stakeholders, including heads of media associations, leading publishers and top media managers in Dushanbe.

Participants in the five-day workshop discussed a proposal on establishing a press council and mechanisms to process complaints about media coverage. The proposal is based on an ethical code for journalists adopted by 22 media organizations in May 2009 following a separate OSCE-supported workshop.

"I am convinced that this process where the media community gives itself rules and standards will do much good to Tajik journalism and its credibility among its audiences," said Ambassador Vladimir Pryakhin, the Head of the OSCE Office in Tajikistan.

The Head of the National Association of Independent Media in Tajikistan, Nuriddin Karshibaev, said: "Establishing a press council is an important step towards self-regulation of the media in Tajikistan."

"These steps will give weight to the ethical professional standards that have been formulated in the Tajik ethical code," he added.