In the article published in the biggest Swedish newspaper Dagens Nyheter, three of the most powerful media leaders in Sweden, Cilla Benkö, Hanna Stjärne and Christel Tholse Willers urge Swedish politicians to act against the Polish government who they accuse of dismantling media freedom in Europe.

Translation of the article:

The Government of Poland must tear up the new media legislation

We cannot stand still and watch as one of the EU’s biggest member states dismantles democratic institutions and undermines the role of the media. There is a boundary and this has been crossed by a wide margin, write Hanna Stjärne, Cilla Benkö and Christel Tholse Willers. They ask themselves why Swedish politicians, in a Sweden with a 250-year-old press law, remain so silent while basic democratic principles are being eliminated in one of our closest neighbouring countries.

During recent weeks, we have witnessed with growing unease how the Polish government, with extreme speed and without elaborated documentation or open processes, has driven through a law which among other things gives the mandate to appoint and dismiss key figures in public service companies.

These changes have been met with sharp criticism both nationally and by a long list of international organizations such as the European Broadcasting Union (EBU), European Federation of Journalists (EFJ), Association of European Journalists (AEJ), Reporters Sans Frontières and the Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ). Several leading media heads in Polish public service companies have resigned in protest.

The EU Commission is fiercely critical and warns of the consequences. The Commission will raise the case of Poland on Wednesday (13th January). Even if the country could ultimately lose its right to vote in the Union, the EU’s opportunity to intervene is limited, despite the fact that the changes stand in contradiction to basic democratic values.

The European Council challenged the Polish president at the last minute not to pass the law, without first examining it against international standards. But the president and the government chose to completely ignore the international protests.

It is clear that the Polish constitution has not provided the media with sufficient protection. Of course, appointments to leading positions in the media must be made on a professional, not a political, basis. Changes to the governance and monitoring of public service companies must not be rushed but worked through by way of open, democratic processes. Changes should ensure the companies’ independence and impartiality, not lead to political governance and influence. If a media landscape is politicized, the possibility of holding a democratic, critical dialogue is discontinued and risks taking a very long time to recreate.

It is now a quarter of a century since Poland began a process of democratization, which now risks being broken down. Previously, Poland has been the leading Eastern European country in matters of protecting media freedom. So it is particularly regrettable that the clock is turning back in a way in which few people, if anyone, could predict only a year ago.

In the light of this development, we believe that:

1. The Polish government should see reason and reverse the decisions, which breech basic principles of the independence of the media. This should happen immediately.

2. The Swedish government and parliament should, not least within EU framework, increase their focus on this area and make the freedom of the press one of their top priorities. At the same time as this dramatic development is taking place in Poland, Sweden is entering an anniversary year for the freedom of the Swedish press, which is soon 250 years old. Even if we cannot export our constitution for the freedom of the media and expression, the Swedish government can and should work to spread its basic concepts as far as possible. These days the media world is international and we are dependent on journalistic freedom in other countries in order to maintain our own. We are also dependent on the freedom of the media being emphasized in the legislative processes affecting it on a European level. Poland’s cause is therefore our own.

3. Media politics, which are closely connected to the cultural diversity within and between European countries, should continue to be governed nationally. But it is not more than reasonable that requirements for democracy and media pluralism which apply when a country is admitted to the Union shall also apply after this. These requirements should be binding and non-negotiable. Because where is the boundary otherwise? Can an EU member state take away the freedom of their media and remain a full member in the group?

4. Swedish political parties should take Poland as a warning example and, in connection with the ongoing and upcoming investigations in the area of the media, do whatever is required to further reinforce and protect the freedom of both public services and commercial media.

We would like to emphasize that the situation is just as bad when commercial media is put under pressure. Within the EU this has happened, for example, in Hungary and is now expected to happen in Poland.

Sweden has a deeply anchored democracy. But there is always a risk that in the future, less democratically inclined governments and parliaments take advantage of the possibility to affect the media. For this reason, we are challenging Swedish politicians, in a Sweden with 250 years of freedom of the press, to see Poland as a warning example of how quickly fundamental democratic forces can be put out of play. We, in Sweden, should therefore develop our constitution and other laws and regulations in order to reinforce the power of the media against possible pressures. It’s a matter of vaccinating our democracy against the future.

Cilla Benkö, CEO of the Swedish Broadcasting Corporation
Hanna Stjärne, CEO of the Swedish Television
Christel Tholse Willers, CEO of the Swedish Educational Broadcasting Company