The new rules concerning the work of journalists in Parliament will enter into force as of April 15, Soňa Pötheová-Bullová from the Parliamentary Chairman’s office told the TASR news agency on Tuesday. According to the new rules, journalists will only be allowed access to specified places in Parliament, and will be banned from taking pictures of the personal items of MPs in the House.
Any violation of the rules may result in their accreditation being taken away and being banned completely from entering Parliament. Under the new rules, journalists will need permission and full-time guardians when entering sessions of parliamentary committees. The number of journalists with accreditation in Parliament will also be restricted. “Not everybody who has a little TV consul and a small camera at home should pretend to be a big journalist and hang around Parliament”, said Prime Minister Robert Fico, defending the ban. The Opposition however has described the initiative as a Communist-like attempt to put muzzles on journalists in order to prevent the public from having proper access to information from Parliament. Parliamentary Chancellor Daniel Guspan defended the new rules, stating that they won’t limit journalists’ movement, providing they are accompanied by an authorised person, and providing they do not try to access the parliamentary snack bar, which will also become a strict journalist-free zone.
