European Mass Media Forum to Be Held in Ukraine In Spring

Last Thursday Kyiv saw the inauguration of the press center of the 7th European Ministerial Conference on Mass Media Policy. The first stage of preparations has thus been completed for the forum to be held in Ukraine’s capital on March 10-11, 2005.

Ukraine is expected to host officials from fifty-one countries. For two days ministers from Europe, the US, Canada, China, and other countries will hold roundtable discussions of urgent problems affecting the mass media. Christophe Poirel, head of the media division of the General Directorate of Human Rights at the Council of Europe, has proposed three main topics of discussion. The conference will deal with freedom of expression and information in crisis situations (with specific reference to the global terrorism threat), culture and media diversity in the age of globalization, as well as human rights and rule of law in the mass media.

Ivan Chyzh, chairman of Ukraine’s State Committee for Television and Radio, noted that it is a great honor for Ukraine to be Eastern Europe’s first country to host this conference. He told The Day that four countries had competed for the right to host forum participants during the first stage, with Ukraine and Georgia standing the greatest chance of hosting the conference. The Council of Europe’s Steering Committee on the Mass Media opted for Ukraine — and rightly so: Mr. Poirel gave Ukraine top marks for its preparedness for holding the 7th Conference.

In Mr. Chyzh’s opinion, the forum will help to eliminate many prejudices against the Ukrainian media that have been stirred up by “attempts to obtain certain benefits during the election campaign,” The Day’s Olha VASYLEVSKA reports.