OSCE Mission supports award for journalists to promote independent, free media in Moldova

Deputy Head of the OSCE Mission to Moldova Jan Plešinger addressed the participants of the OSCE-supported Annual Press Club Gala event on 19 December 2013 in Chisinau, and reconfirmed the Mission’s support for the development of independent and free media in Moldova and reiterated the essential role media plays in the development of a democratic society.

The OSCE-supported event included an award ceremony for ten journalists who have excelled in their profession in 2013. It was organized by the Independent Journalism Center and the Press Freedom Committee. 

In 2013, the OSCE Mission to Moldova was invited to award the prize for promoting freedom of expression in Transdniestria.

“I have the honour of awarding the prize today to a dedicated and enthusiastic journalist who fights for the freedom of expression in this complex environment - Nikolai Buchatskiy, Editor-in-Chief of the newspaper ‘Chelovek I ego prava’ (The Person and the Person’s Rights),” said Plešinger.

The event brought together more than 400 journalists from local and international press, including journalists from Transdniestria and the autonomous territorial unit Gagauzia, representatives of diplomatic corps and international organizations, as well as civil society.  The initiative aims to encourage journalists to meet high standards of professional journalism, and to promote their experiences and best practices in national and local media organizations.

The Ten Best Journalists of the Year event has been organized annually since 1995 by the Independent Journalism Center (IJC) and is now among the most popular mass media events in Moldova. The OSCE Mission has supported this initiative since 2006 as part of its efforts to promote freedom of expression and the development of an independent and free media environment in Moldova.