The Council of Europe Commissioner for Human Rights, Thomas Hammarberg, is organising a series of public events on Media Freedom during 2011 to highlight the importance of freedom of expression and of the media for the protection of all other human rights.
The outcome of the lectures will be collected in a book, which will be released in the autumn and mark the fifth anniversary of the murder of Russian journalist and human rights activist Anna Politkovskaya.
ARTICLE 19 and London Metropolitan University will be presenting two Issue Papers on Friday 10th June in London. This 
event will be co-chaired by the Commissioner.
Agenda
The Role of Public Service Media for Human Rights
11:00 am – 12:30 pm
Barbora Bukovská, Senior Director for Law and Director for Europe from the freedom of expression organisation “Article 19”, will make a presentation about the role of public service media for human rights.
Social Media and Human Rights – 13:30 – 15:00 pm
Douwe Korff, Professor of International Law at the London Metropolitan University, and Ian 
Brown, Senior Researcher at the Oxford Internet Institute, will speak about social media and human rights.
12.30 – 13.30 pm
(A light lunch will be served)
ADDRESS:
Free Word Centre
60 Farringdon Road London EC1R 3GA
ARTICLE 19
Participants will include key representatives from leading media organisations, academics, and national and inter-governmental officials.
Those interested in attending need to contact Judy Taing by 8 June 2011. First come, First served!
As with all these kinds of events there are always one or two people in the audience who just love the sound of their own voice and try to take over the discussion. Mr “Orange Trousers” from a certain “rights” charity droned on and on and was completely uninteresting and unintelligible and a strange woman who described herself as a journalist but who came across as slightly deranged and definitely on some kind of a soap box about Chinese human rights abuses which was totally off topic. Her shouting ( I assume this is supposed to denote passion?) and illogical interjections all in a heavy, incomprehensible, unrecognisable accent were quite irritating.
On a more positive note the organisers, Article 19, were very hospitable and welcoming. The speakers and chairs were all incredibly friendly and approachable and the audience were (apart from those two already mentioned) really informed and knowledgeable. I learnt as much from their points raised in discussion as I did from the panelists. All in all, a worthwhile event and I would definitely attend another!