Media freedom debated as state police seek journalist

6-7 2001 Aktuality English

By James Pitkin

Tomas Pecina knows that practicing journalism in the Czech Republic can be a risky business.
"My position is very precarious," he says. Coke-bottle glasses magnify the apprehension in his eyes. "I could go into custody tomorrow."
Suspected of libeling the city police under a 1961 law while working as a reporter for the online daily Britske listy, Pecina faces lengthy custody if charged.
He could be banned from journalism and sentenced to two years in prison if eventually convicted.
The case is the latest in a series of legal efforts against reporters by state officials that are raising concerns over the willingness of the nation to tolerate a critical press more than 10 years after the fall of communism.
State police have summoned Pecina three times for questioning about articles he wrote last fall accusing Prague city police of unlawful conduct in a November raid on a squat in Prague 6.
Pecina alleged that the raid was illegal because city police, who do not have investigative power, appeared at the squat with unauthorized riot gear.
Pecina has received three summonses, refusing each. He has already been slapped with a 10,000 Kc ($250) fine for refusing interrogation, which he has appealed.
"I argued [to the police] that a journalist has a right to freedom of speech," he says. "I'm under no obligation to explain anything to them."
Requested an explanation from state police chief Jiri Kolar, and the London headquarters of Amnesty International is monitoring the case.
Police declined to comment on the ongoing investigation. Jan Jirak, professor of mass media studies at Prague's University of Social Sciences, is troubled by what he sees as a heavy- handed approach by government officials toward reporters.
"Journalists in this country are not very secure," he says. "In many cases, the authorities are able to apply pressure, to make them feel uncertain."
Jirak notes the recent trial of Tomas Smrcek, a former reporter for the private network TV Nova who was accused of divulging state secrets after he showed classified documents on the air in 1999. The story was about a cover-up in the state military intelligence service.
Smrcek faced up to eight years in prison until a Prague court acquitted him on June 15. He was eager to draw attention to his cause.
"All journalists will actually be tried here," he said. "The level of democracy and position of journalists will be determined, as well as what reporters can write about and what they cannot."

Legal tangles
The two cases highlight the existence of laws that some observers say can be used to punish journalists for taking state officials to task.
"Classified-data protection should not be abused to the detriment of a journalist, who is obliged to inform the public," says Senator Jan Ruml, who attended Smrcek's trial.
Pecina is suspected of criminal libel --- an anachronistic charge that still exists in the United States and Canada but is rarely used. It has come under fire from media rights organizations because it allows police to press charges even in cases where no civil action has been taken.
"The libel law should be removed as a criminal offense, and relegated purely to civil law," says Czech Human Rights Commissioner Jan Jarab. "It's far too easy to abuse or misuse, and unfortunately there are officials who are willing to do so."
Czech journalists first earned the right to protect their sources in January 2000, when the country passed its first comprehensive post-communist press law.
The law was put to the test earlier this year when two reporters for the daily Mlada fronta Dnes were cleared of charges that they harbored a criminal by refusing to reveal their source in a story about a high-level political smear campaign.
"That was a victory," says Milan Smid, director of the journalism program at Prague's Charles University. "But I will still cry if Mr. Pecina is taken into custody."
Tears, however, are not Pecina's style. Asked if he'll think twice before criticizing the police in future reports, he shakes his head defiantly.
"I ame not a coward," he says.

The Prague Post June 27
Police declined to comment on the ongoing investigation. Jan Jirak, professor of mass media studies at Prague's University of Social Sciences, is troubled by what he sees as a heavy- handed approach by government officials toward reporters.