Event Summary
Event Title: Seminar on Freedom of Expression & Access to Information for Mongolian Media
Date: Wednesday, May 29, 2024, 09:00-16:00 (Mongolian time)
Participants: Mongolian media representatives from about 30 companies, representatives from UNDP Mongolia, IDLO, Embassy of Japan in Mongolia, Anti-Corruption Agency, Supreme Court, Council of Judges, Public Prosecutor’s Office, Institute of Law, National University, Mongolian Bar Association, Mongolian Lawyers Association, Communications Agency, etc.
Background and Objectives
On May 29, JICA Mongolia, in cooperation with the Mongolian Media Council and UNDP Mongolia, held a seminar on Freedom of Expression & Access to Information mainly for Mongolian media and other stakeholders.
The Japanese speaker, Mr. Toshiyuki Sato, is an expert with 40 years of experience working for NHK, and the Mongolian officials listened attentively to the presentation by an NHK official with a 100-year history.
It has been 30 years since Mongolia’s post-democratization 1992 constitution established freedom of expression, but the current Media Freedom Index index is still regressing compared to 2015.
JICA has been cooperating with the Mongolian Anti-Corruption Agency in subject-specific training, long-term training, etc. from the viewpoint of strengthening the capacity of administrative officials. Even now, however, there is a need to foster healthier journalism, not only to promote transparency in administrative organizations but also to form public opinion to monitor corrupt practices by politicians and government officials. The need to foster journalistic integrity is also increasing.
JICA held this seminar to strengthen cooperation with related organizations and to provide a forum for exchanging views for the future. JICA held this seminar in the hope of strengthening cooperation with related organizations and providing a forum for exchanging views on the future.
In the seminar, the National Commission for Ensuring Human Rights under the Cabinet Secretariat introduced the National Program for Ensuring Human Rights, which has been implemented since 2003, the media policy framework, the Media Council, which is developing as a good model for self-regulatory organizations within the Asian region, and the challenges faced by journalists, and Dr. Bat-Orshikh from Mongolia’s Dr. Bat-Orshikh of the National University of Mongolia gave a presentation on the challenges of the legal environment surrounding the media in Mongolia and specific examples.
Mr. Toshiyuki Sato, former NHK and Mr. Keiichi Hashimoto, JICA Specialist, explained that the issues of freedom of expression and access to information are occurring in many countries around the world, including democratic countries, and that UNDP has been providing support for mass media in Mongolia, including Information Pollution. UNDP explained about the mass media support provided to Mongolia so far, including Information Pollution. In the afternoon, a panel discussion was held on the current situation of freedom of expression and access to information in Mongolia, trends in former socialist countries, experiences in other countries including Japan, the legal environment, and the importance of the media constantly challenging itself to gain the trust of the public and improve the soundness of governance. The importance of the media to be trusted by the public and to take on challenges to improve the soundness of governance.
Panel Discussion
In organizing the seminar, we worked with the Mongolian Media Council* and UNDP as local resource persons.
The Mongolian Media Council was established in early 2015 in cooperation with the Mongolian Journalists Association and professional media organizations and trade associations as a self-regulatory body, with the objective of supporting high standards in journalism by internally monitoring and maintaining the standards set forth in the Mongolian Media Ethical Principles. It is also responsible for handling complaints from the public against the media.
From left to right: Mr. Shigeru Kikuma, Counsellor, Embassy of Japan in Mongolia; Ms. Matilda Dimovska-UNDP Resident Representative in Mongolia; Ms. Gunjidmaa Gongor, Media Council of Mongolia; Mr. Shinichi Tanaka, Director, JICA Mongolia Office
Materials
© Source JICA
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