The final month of 2024 was marked by significant parliamentary activity in the spheres of freedom of expression and media regulation. The MPs adopted the amendments to the Law on Media in the first reading, bringing it closer to European standards. They have also approved the text of the draft law decriminalising pornography for passing in the first reading. Answering the call of media and CSOs, Verkhovna Rada (at least for the time being) dropped Draft Law #10242, potentially liable for imprisoning journalists for publishing leaked data from the public registries. Lastly, the final co-regulatory body envisioned in the Law on Media was registered before Christmas.
The most notable events happening in this period were:
- the first reading voting on the amendments to the Law on Media (Draft Law #12111), enhancing its compliance with the EU and CoE standards;
- the discussion surrounding the criminalisation of publishing leaks from public registries and the Draft Law #10242;
- the registration in the Verkhovna Rada of the Draft Law on Cyber Forces;
- the formation of the co-regulatory body for print media.
This series of digests provides an overview of the proposed and adopted legislation in the spheres of freedom of expression, media regulation, privacy and data protection, Internet regulation in general, and the activities of the National Broadcasting Council in the area of Media Law implementation.
As usual, the digest contains references to the documents discussed in the previous issues of the digest and provides a follow-up to the acts and events described therein.
You can access the December 2024 digest here.