Both Politicians and Journalists Shall Be in the Service of the People

Speranta STATE, Political Reporter, PRO TV Chisinau

The journalists should attend the meetings of Parliament to be able to provide truthful accurate information. Last year the Communist faction have left the meeting hall of Parliament at least once and we did not know about it and could not see it, as the screens in the press room were showing other images.

When Parliament held meetings at the Palace of the Republic, we all knew that Vladimir Voronin, for example, would leave the meeting early; so, it was easy to approach him and ask him questions. The same worked with other members of Parliament. Now it is different.

In the renovated building of Parliament, it is much more complicated to count or at least see the MPs who have voted or not for a particular bill, while a particular vote (for or against) of some MP may be relevant for the news we prepare. If we were allowed to the meeting hall, we would not have to ask the MPs whether the Communists, or the Socialists, or the Liberals voted for the bill.

It must be acknowledged that, no matter how talented the directors selecting the images shown on the screens in the press room, they cannot show us exactly what each of us wants to see. Besides, whoever does not want a public life may give up their MP mandate.

Ensuring the freedom of the press, a concept that has been promoted so far, is the moral duty of the country's leadership to the people who elected them. The journalists attending the meetings would hold them accountable, would make them more aware of and careful about what they say and do, and the public would be able to follow them more closely through the media. Ultimately, both politicians and journalists shall be in the service of the people.

NOTE: The Independent Journalism Center (IJC) holds awareness raising events under the slogan "We Want Access into Parliament!" on all days when Parliament holds plenary meetings. The Campaign aims to ensure free access of the media to Parliament meetings, so that the media can freely perform their duties.

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The "We Want into Parliament!" campaign is conducted within the Advocacy Campaigns Aimed at Improving Transparency of Media Ownership, Access to Information and Promotion of EU Values and Integration project, implemented by the IJC, which is, in its turn, part of the Moldova Partnerships for Sustainable Civil Society project, implemented by FHI 360.