"We defend journalism as a social function." A conversation with Pavol Szalai, Head of the EU and Balkans desk at Reporters Without Borders, about Luxembourg’s position in the World Press Freedom Index, LuxLeaks, and the European Media Freedom Act.
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Whistleblowing, surveillance and press freedom violations – Pavol Szalai is no stranger to these issues. As the head of the European Union and Balkans desk for Reporters Without Borders, an international nonprofit dedicated to defending press freedom worldwide, he campaigns for media independence and the safety of journalists in Europe. Previously, he was a reporter at Euractiv Slovakia and a whistleblower for the Slovak Ministry of Foreign Affairs. Lëtzebuerger Journal spoke with him about Luxembourg’s position in the World Press Freedom Index, whistleblower protection and LuxLeaks, how to better understand the European Media Freedom Act in light of the recent EU parliamentary elections, and what a free press could look like.
Lëtzebuerger Journal: I'm curious to know more about your background – how did you come to join Reporters Without Borders?
Pavol Szalai: I'm currently the head of the European Union and Balkans desk. It covers all EU member states, plus the candidate countries in the Western Balkans. I've been in this position for four years. Before that, I worked for two years at RSF as our correspondent in Slovakia. At the same time, I worked as a journalist and was previously a whistleblower as a former employee of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs in Slovakia.
Would you say your experiences have shaped your perspective on media freedom?
I think that the assassination of the Slovak journalist, Ján Kuciak, had a big impact on my country and myself. I then realised that it's really important to take action to defend press freedom. I've always cared a lot about the state of democracy in Slovakia and Europe, as someone from a country which was under a totalitarian regime for 40 years. But unfortunately, in 2018, when Ján Kuciak was killed, many of us realised that democracy is not something permanent and needs to be defended. Now Slovakia, as well as Luxembourg are in the same political entity and space, which is the European Union. We consider it very important to advocate to the European institutions about stronger guarantees for press freedom beyond all, in addition to all the other actions we take to support journalists or advocate to the national government.
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