Lisbon, Oct. 8, 2024 (Lusa) - The president of Portugal said on Tuesday that it was essential to reach a consensus on media measures, saying that they should not be the government's alone, and to permanently monitor their results.
These positions were contained in a recorded message for the conference "The future of the media", which took place today in Lisbon, organised by the members of the Private Media Platform (PMP) Media Capital, Medialivre, Impresa, Público and Renascença.
Marcelo Rebelo de Sousa said "it is essential that the consensus on the measures is as broad as possible".
"They can't just be measures from the government, or just from one party, or from a coalition of parties, or from one political or ideological area. There has to be a consensus, which is why I referred to the fundamental role of the parliament," he said.
On the other hand, the president hoped for "equal treatment" and that the "contribution of each level of the media," national, regional, and local, would be considered.
"Finally, it is very important that there is permanent monitoring of the results of the implementation of the measures that may be proposed, to ensure that they are proposed and implemented, to guarantee speed in implementation, to ensure that there are no deviations or distortions," he said.
According to the head of state, this is about an "objective that is essentially democratic" and that "brings everyone together, brings together the Private Media Platform (PMP), brings together other media organisations, brings together professionals in the sector".
"I congratulate the platform for the initiative, I congratulate the government for having followed through on what is the product of the work of the mission structure, and I hope that the objectives are not frustrated because that is not what we want. We want a more independent media, and therefore a stronger media, for a stronger democracy in Portugal," he added.
In this video message, recorded from the Palácio de Belém in Lisbon while he was away on a state visit to Estonia - which he has since decided to postpone given the ongoing budget negotiations - Marcelo Rebelo de Sousa began by "expressing solidarity" with the media sector's difficulties.
The president stated that this is "a cause" to which he has drawn attention throughout his term of office and which "has concerned the prime minister [Luís Montenegro] and the government in general since the beginning of his term of office".
He said that "there have been occasional interventions by previous governments, particularly during the pandemic", but they "remained limited".
He then shares a series of reflections that, in his opinion, "should be borne in mind at a time when the results of the work of a Mission Structure set up in August" by the current PSD/CDS-PP government are being announced and which "in a very short space of time has managed to put a set of solutions in place".
His "first reflection" was that democracy was not jeopardised because "there is, on the part of public power, namely state political power, support that is impartial, independent, egalitarian, controlled and monitored" by the courts and the parliament.
"If the aim is to strengthen the media to strengthen democracy, it can be democratic, and it is expected to be democratic," he added.
Secondly, he said that there must be consensus on the measures.
Marcelo Rebelo de Sousa is also concerned about ensuring equality, "lest it be said that this is a way of favouring some over others" and that the media and local media are not excluded from "the forms of intervention designed".
On this occasion, he reiterated that "there is no strong democracy without a strong media", which is "economically and financially capable of asserting its independence".
"Precariousness, uncertainty and unpredictability about the future mean, in objective terms, weaker media and, therefore, weaker journalism and a more fragile democracy," he warned.
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