Press freedom stifled in Greece, reforms needed, says Human Rights Watch

Source: The Straits Times
Published on: 2025-05-08 11:07

ATHENS - Press freedom has been stifled in Greece since Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis' conservative government came to power in 2019, with phone malware and aggressive lawsuits used against journalists, Human Rights Watch said in a report on Thursday. At least 15 journalists said they had at some point faced a lawsuit or legal threat for their reporting, the global rights group said in a 101-page report based on interviews with 34 journalists, academics, legal and media experts. It cited an annual index from Reporters without Borders giving Greece the lowest score in Europe. HRW said it is too easy under Greek law to restrict journalists through lawsuits know as SLAPPs (Strategic Lawsuits Against Public Participation), which are filed against reporters based on claims of defamation or breach of EU data protection. "The pervasive and deliberate constraints on journalism in Greece...

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