20 July 2000 – Those of us who have long argued for greater press freedom – allied with responsibility – will have been greatly encouraged by this week’s report by the United Nations on the UK’s human rights record. As reported by The Guardian (20 July), the UN’s special rapporteur, Abid Hussein, is highly critical of the Freedom of Information Bill, the D notice system, the gagging of newspapers over the Shayler affair, and the attempted prosecution of journalist Tony Geraghty for revealing a top secret surveillance system in Northern lreland. He also condemns attempts to use laws to force journalists in Northern Ireland to hand over their notes or disclose the identity of informants to the police or investigating authorities.

Mr Hussein was charged with examining the UK’s record on freedom of expression and civil and political rights as part of regular monitoring by the UN Commission on Human Rights. The picture he paints reads more like an account of conditions in pre-perestroika Russia than those in a parliamentary democracy.

The most critical part of the report is on the gagging measures used against the press. “If media organisations are ordered to hand over confidential information, serious damage would be done to public interest journalism in the UK,” says Mr Hussein. “As provided by the European Convention of Human Rights, a journalist should not be used as a source for investigative authorities…Undertakings of confidentiality have to be absolute, since otherwise the information would never have reached the public domain.”

The government is accused of using the Official Secrets Act to stifle legitimate debate and to penalise writers and journalists who refuse to reveal their sources. And its claims that the D-notice system is used to promote self-censorship in the media on matters of national security are summarily dismissed. “At times,” says Mr Hussein, “its objective appears to be to stifle debate about politically sensitive matters rather than protect national security as such. Journalists, he adds, must be allowed a “public interest” defence if they are accused of leaking information from the security services.

“Security matters”, says the report, “are often of the highest public interest,” and it calls on the government to relax the present blanket ban on disclosing security matters in the Freedom of Information Bill. It opposes the Home Secretary’s proposal for a ministerial veto to stop any document being published, suggests that there should be many fewer restrictions on the release of information surrounding criminal investigations, and advocates the release of policy background papers.

“In order for journalists to be able to carry out their role as ‘watchdogs’ in a democratic society it is indispensable that they have access, granted on an equitable and impartial basis, to information held by public authorities,” writes Mr Hussein. He also calls for a reform of the defamation laws, including the abolition of criminal libel proceedings, and for the repeal of the Prevention of Terrorism Act.

While compiling his report, which will be debated at the next meeting of the UN Commission on Human Rights in New York, Mr Hussein talked to a wide range of organisations, government ministers, academics and civil servants. He did not, unfortunately, talk to PressWise. Had he done so we would have been delighted to endorse every word.

Bill Norris
Associate Director

(Bulletin No 22)