By Sokol Mici

In November, Article 19, The International Centre Against Censorship, plans a one-week seminar for young democratic leaders from Albania, Macedonia and Serbia, including Kosovo, as part of its Democratic Leadership Programme. The seminar is co-financed by the Council of Europe and the European Commission, and its agenda will include the right to freedom of expression and media freedom.

The seminar will involve 15 leaders from the southern Balkans. Albania, Macedonia and Serbia are experiencing the double challenge of being in transition from communism while facing ongoing and potential further conflict, possibly at a regional level.

Seminar participants will learn the importance of the fundamental right to the freedom of expression and information, which includes the right to political expression and media freedom. They will also be sensitized to the importance of open government, access to information, transparency in lawmaking, and the limited legitimate restrictions that international law allows on the free flow of information on grounds of national security.

Article 19 has a wide-ranging program in Europe, particularly in Central and Eastern Europe and the Newly Independent States. The program includes strengthening NGOs, organizing seminars and training on international legal standards, trial observation, litigation support, research, analysis of media freedom, translation of materials on international law into local languages and supporting the development of free and independent media.

"We do not have programs specifically for journalists, at least for the time being," said Federica Prina, who is Europe programme officer for Article 19. "In our workshops we usually gather both journalists and lawyers to discuss matters such as European standards of freedom of expression, access to information, national security, media legislation, etc. We usually ask both international and local experts to give a lecture on three or more of these subjects, which are followed by discussion. The seminars last two to three days."

Major projects of Article 19 are under way in Albania, Belarus, Bulgaria, Croatia, Macedonia, Moldova, Romania, Slovakia, Turkey and Yugoslavia.

"This year we held seminars on freedom of expression in Montenegro and Kaliningrad" in Russia, Prina said. "By the beginning of 1999 we have planned to hold training seminars for young political leaders from Slovakia," as well as a workshop on freedom of expression and the role of the media during election campaigns, in Turkey, in October or November of this year.

For more information contact Federica Prina, Europe Programme Officer, Article 19, Lancaster House, 33 Islington High Street, London N1 9LH, United Kingdom. Tel: (44-171) 278-9292. Fax: (44-171) 713-1356. E-mail: article19@gn.apc.org. Web site:http://www.gn.apc.org/article19/