In the era of democracy, the public get information from the free press. The information becomes a means to control the government policy, Baar said in a discussion titled "Journalist safety and tackling impunity: How can crimes against media workers be effectively investigated, prosecuted and mitigated?" on the sidelines of the World Press Freedom Day (WPFD) 2017 here on Wednesday.
Baar added that the free press in a democratic country could occur only if there was no pressure against journalists in seeking information.
"We not only talk about the murder of journalists but also the pressures that may be directed against them, he pointed out.
According to him, all participants of WPFD must think about the steps to be taken to realize and maintain press freedom.
He viewed the issue as necessary to continue to be presented at various occasions in order to maintain the press freedom.
"The point is what we can do for press freedom. I personally raise the issue of press freedom when visit various countries," he explained. (*)
Editor: Heru Purwanto
Copyright © ANTARA 2017
