Today, on December 14, 2023, the General Assembly of the Alliance of Independent Press Councils of Europe (AIPCE) in Antwerp endorsed the return of Ukraine and 10 other countries that had temporarily suspended their membership in the organization due to the presence of Russia. The press councils of the following countries were involved in this decision: Armenia, Belgium, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, Georgia, Moldova, Ireland, Norway, and Sweden.
“A year ago, the ten councils felt solidarity and strongly agreed with the Ukrainian council that it was a travesty to have the Russian council as a member of AIPCE, since there is no possibility for the operation of independent media self-regulation in Russia, as the whole media sector is used in Putin’s war propaganda machinery and the Russian council has admitted they would not address any complaints about the coverage of the Russian aggression against Ukraine. It was with a heavy heart that the ten councils opted to suspend membership in an alliance that is an invaluable meeting place for the press councils of Europe. But we were forced to do so, as we felt that the important values of democracy and free journalism were being compromised beyond limit”, – addressed in a collective statement.
The organizations also expressed their gratitude for the effective and fruitful work that Adrien Collin of the European Federation of Journalists did as a mediator between AIPCE and the suspended members to overcome the split. They are also thankful for the mediating team of AIPCE – Roman Portack of the German council, Daphne Koene of the Dutch council and Balazs Weyer of the Hungarian council – for their constructive and fair-minded approach, which enabled them to reach the reunification.
“As an alliance, AIPCE should staunchly stand for ethical journalism and democratic values. In order to be more transparent and flexible, we hope the amendments to the AIPCE bylaws would help us achieve this. We are glad to declare we can rejoin the alliance today. We promise to further its goals of upholding the ethics of journalism and promoting the freedom of expression. We are delighted that we can welcome Ukraine back to the alliance”, – added.
“Thanks to joint efforts, changes have been made to the composition of the Alliance’s Coordination Committee, amendments have been introduced to the Alliance’s operating procedures, and representatives of the Russian Federation have been completely excluded from membership in this organization. Now, the Alliance has reunited, and this is undoubtedly a historic decision. Its significance lies in the fact that, thanks to Ukraine’s initiative and the support of 10 other countries, the Alliance becomes stronger in defending its own values and principles of democracy. For the Commission on Journalism Ethics, it is important to collaborate with European colleagues in developing self-regulation and ethical journalism. And, at the same time, to share our achievements because, on certain issues, Ukraine is ahead of our colleagues,” – emphasized Andriy Kulykov, Head of the Commission on Journalism Ethics.
Reminder, AIPCE is a network of independent press and media councils in Europe aimed at strengthening cooperation and information exchange.
In addition to Ukraine, the organization includes 26 countries: Austria, Belgium, the United Kingdom, Germany, Armenia, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Cyprus, Bulgaria, Estonia, Finland, France, Georgia, Hungary, Kosovo, Ireland, Montenegro, Luxembourg, Moldova, the Netherlands, North Macedonia, Norway, Serbia, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, and Turkey.