Journalists and rights defenders must be better protected against abusive lawsuits aka SLAPPs. Here's why Liberties and a coalition of human rights organisations think the Swedish EU Presidency could do a better job against SLAPPs.
Liberties, alongside The Coalition Against SLAPPs in Europe, expresses solidarity with Italian writer Roberto Saviano who risks imprisonment for criticizing Prime Minister Meloni. The criminal defamation suit is unacceptable and hinders free speech.
From addressing festering rule of law issues to curbing frivolous lawsuits, here are actions the Czech Republic should take during its EU Presidency to shore up European democracy.
Baseless libel lawsuits are used by powerful actors to silence their critics. Whether or not they win the case is less important: exorbitant legal fees and psychological trauma does enough damage. But who uses this tactic, who do they target, and why?
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In their new policy paper, Liberties and other rights and press freedom groups explain why abusive lawsuits (SLAPPs) against watchdogs and journalists threaten democracies in Europe and what governments and the EU should do tackle it.
What are SLAPP lawsuits and why are they such an important issue? We take a look at a tool increasingly used to silence watchdogs and stifle democratic participation.
Matthew Caruana Galizia, the son of the murdered Maltese journalist Daphne Caruana Galizia, goes in depth on the toll abusive lawsuits called SLAPPs have on journalists like his mother.
SLAPPs are a weapon in the hands of those that want to prevent us from having a say on matters that affect our lives and the society we live in. Liberties joins other NGOs from across the EU to urge policymakers to end these gag lawsuits.
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