Dutch to step up fight for press freedom

The government will propose additional measures to better protect press freedom in the country, two ministers announced in a letter to the House of Representatives on Wednesday.

State Secretary Gunay Uslu and Justice and Security Minister Dilan Yeşilgöz-Zegerius wrote a letter to the House of Representatives explaining the additional measures they will be implementing to protect press freedom.

“Press freedom and press security are essential for our democracy. Journalists are increasingly faced with threats, aggression and intimidation. That is unacceptable. From recent reports and conversations I have had with journalists, I conclude that this is a structural, social problem that is not easy to solve. That is why we are going to tackle the problem thoroughly with this plan,” Uslu wrote in the letter.

The measures include extending the PersVeilig initiative, which protects journalists by letting them report any incidents until 2024, and the Flexible Protection Package Freelancers, which is a similar initiative that protects freelance journalists.

The ministers also plan to team up with the Media Literacy Network to educate the Dutch public on the responsibilities of journalists and the media and how democracy needs an independent press to function.

“Within the free society, we cannot tolerate that some people think they have to intimidate others by spreading their private information. At home, you and your family should be safe. As a journalist, you must be able to do your work freely and unimpeded at all times,” wrote Yesilgöz-Zegerius.

“That is why we draw the line here and, for example, also lay down in the law with the doxing bill that we do not accept this. And whoever crosses that border deserves punishment,” he added.

The final measure they plan to include is commissioning research into specific groups that target and intimidate journalists online.

Press freedom in the Netherlands dropped significantly compared to last year due to attacks on the press, according to Reporters Without Borders’ Press Freedom Index’s publication in May, which lowered the country’s ranking from sixth to 28th.

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The ministers plan to look into countries with higher press freedom scores to gain insight into what they could do to improve Dutch press freedom.