Council of Europe asks UK to explain intimidation against the Guardian
Council of Europe Secretary General Thorbjørn Jagland has asked UK Home Secretary Theresa May to explain the pressure that Downing Street had put on the Guardian newspaper over the Snowden case, warning of the potentially "chilling effect" on media freedom.
In the letter sent yesterday (21 August), Jagland, a Norwegian politician, laid out his concerns over two recent events in the United Kingdom - the detention by police at the Heathrow airport of David Miranda, the partner of the Guardian journalist Glenn Greenwald, and the destruction of hard drives at the Guardian's headquarters, which he said was "apparently under instructions of government officials".
"These measures, if confirmed, may have a potentially chilling effect on journalists' freedom of expression as guaranteed by Article 10 of the European convention of Human Rights", Jagland wrote.
Article 10 of the convention lays out the right to freedom of expression but also refers to restrictions in the interest of national security and public safety and the prevention of disclosure of information received in confidence.
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http://www.euractiv.com/uk-europe/council-europe-asks-uk-explain-i-news-529915