Oświadczenie reporterów bez granic

Two newspaper editors to be held for 48 hours prior to libel trial : print
       Poland | 6.11.2007
      Two newspaper editors to be held for 48 hours prior to libel trial
       Reporters Without Borders today condemned legislation that enabled a
      Warsaw court on 30 October to order that the editor of national weekly
      Gazeta Polska, Tomasz Sakiewicz, and his deputy, Katarzyna Hejke, should
      be held in police custody for two days prior to the start of a libel trial
      on 14 December in order, the court said, to ensure they attend.
      “We condemn article 212.2 of the Polish criminal code because it has a
      disciplinary character and likens journalists to criminals liable to
      become fugitives from justice,” the press freedom organisation said. “This
      is unworthy of a European Union country and we call on the next government
      to repeal this article.”
      The privately-owned television station TVN is suing Sakiewicz and Hejke
      for libel over an October 2006 story claiming that one of TVN’s directors,
      Milan Subotic, cooperated with the communist-era Military Information
      Services. Subotic was dismissed soon afterwards. Gazeta Polska, which
      supports the outgoing government, was accused by the opposition of trying
      to smear TVN by giving the impression it was run by former communists.
      Article 212.2 provides for sentences of up to two years in prison for
      defamation. Poland was ranked 56th out of 169 countries in the 2007
      Reporters Without Borders world press freedom index. Its low position was
      due largely to its refusal to amend its legislation governing press
      offences.
       
       Reporters Without Borders defends imprisoned journalists and press
      freedom throughout the world. It has nine national sections (Austria,
      Belgium, Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Spain, Sweden and Switzerland).
      It has representatives in Bangkok, London, New York, Tokyo and Washington.
      And it has more than 120 correspondents worldwide.