Parliament failed to debate moratorium on controls at mass media during pre-election period

On 18th of December the Verkhovna Rada (Parliament) failed to debate the project of Resolution on uninterruptible activity of mass media outlets during the pre-election period 2019. This resolution was backed by the Committee on press freedom issues and informational politics. The project was included to the agenda on the 16th and 17th of January, but MPs failed to debate it, as to Detektor Media. By this document it is expected to appeal to the Cabinet of Ministers, to State fiscal service and National council on TV and radio broadcasting to set a moratorium on controls at mass media outlets by inspecting bodies, because such inspections during election period could result in breaches to the constitutional guarantees of press freedom in Ukraine, have negative effect onto impartial and unfailing coverage of the course of election process. As to the document: “1. The Cabinet of Ministers of Ukraine should undertake measures to suspend revisions by respective services of executive authorities and state institutions at the mass media outlets for the period of pre-election presidential campaign, until post-election time. *To recommend to the National council on TV and radio broadcasting to put forward any planned inspection at TV and radio companies, supposed to be held at pre-election period, to post-election time. *this resolution is to come into effect from the date of its adoption”. Previously, the parliament had adopted such a resolution before presidential and parliament election campaigns and elections in 2010 and 2014.