IX. Media access provisions

Articles 80-85 that regulate access to media during the campaign give an undue advantage to parliamentary parties without a proportional legitimate aim, even if Article 84, paragraph 9 obliges private radio and television broadcasters to make airtime available for the benefit of candidates proposed by voters. The issue has been discussed at length in the 2009 Joint Opinion. In particular, “Article 84(2) discriminates in favour of specific political parties and raises questions of compatibility with the principle that a state should not itself determine media content or exercise political authority or influence to determine media content”. This goes against Articles 10 to 14 of the European Convention of Human Rights (ECHR). It is difficult to see that the restrictions which Article 84 imposes upon these private persons and institutions are necessary in a democratic society for the protection of any of the interests listed in Article 10.2 ECHR. The advantage of major parliamentary parties is even more unjustified in the context of local elections. The Code could also benefit from some clarifications as to what constitutes a political advertisement in broadcast media, for instance what elements (such as the identification of the electoral subject) should be visible.