7)establish the procedure for implementation of the requirements laid down by the laws and the European Union concerning the structure and content of programmes, the broadcasting of advertising and sponsorship of programmes (broadcasts);
\n
8)maintain control over compliance by broadcasters with the provisions of this Law concerning the proportion of European works and works by independent producers in the programmes broadcast, the right to broadcast events of major importance to the public as well as the requirements laid down in paragraphs 3, 5, 10, 11 and 12 of Article 39 of this Law concerning advertising and provisions on the sponsorship of programmes;
\n
9)maintain control over compliance by re-broadcasters with the provisions of this and other laws concerning the broadcasting, re-broadcasting of programmes and requirements for public information laid down by laws;
\n
10)monitor broadcasters’ and re-broadcasters’ programmes to maintain control over compliance with the laws and decisions of the Commission regulating the activities of broadcasters and re-broadcasters as well as with licence conditions;
\n
11)impose, in accordance with the procedure established by the law, the following penalties on broadcasters and re-broadcasters as well as other persons broadcasting, re-broadcasting or otherwise disseminating programmes or parts thereof through electronic communications networks, whose main purpose is not broadcasting and/or re-broadcasting of programmes, as well as producers and/or disseminators of programmes publicly distributed through data transmission networks, who have violated the requirements of the Law on the Protection of Minors against the Detrimental Effect of Public Information, this Law and licence conditions or who do not comply with the decisions or obligations adopted by the Commission: warnings, pecuniary penalties prescribed by the Code of Administrative Offences of the Republic of Lithuania, suspension of a licence for a period of up to three months, revocation of a licence, appeal to the court regarding the suspension or termination of activities of the information society media in accordance with the procedure laid down by this Law;
\n
12)submit proposals concerning the drafting of laws governing the activities of broadcasters and re-broadcasters as well as other legal acts related to these activities;
\n
13)initiate the termination of illegal broadcasting or re-broadcasting activities;
\n
14)suspend, in the manner prescribed by this Law, the re-broadcasting within the territory of the Republic of Lithuania of programmes produced abroad;
\n
15)collect information about broadcasters, re-broadcasters and common-use reception networks, analyse their activities, publish information about the participants therein and prepare information and methodical materials on these issues;
\n
16)every two years prepare and submit to the Seimas an analytical survey on the implementation of Lithuania’s audiovisual policy, the development of the market of audiovisual services, the prospects for the expansion of national audiovisual sector, including the statistical data on the progress necessary for all broadcasters falling under the jurisdiction of the Republic of Lithuania to comply with the provisions of paragraphs 3 and 4 of Article 38, also stating the reasons that impede the implementation of the said provisions and remedial measures taken or to be taken;
\n
17)cooperate with the institutions of the European Union and other foreign countries which perform equivalent functions, also represent, within the sphere of its competence, the Republic of Lithuania in international organisations;
\n
18)establish the procedure for encoding the programmes broadcast and/or re-broadcast;
\n
19)perform other functions laid down by the laws and other legal acts.
\n
2.While carrying out the functions referred to in subparagraph 6 of paragraph 1 of this Article, the Commission may apply to the Inspector of Journalist Ethics regarding the conclusions pertaining to the assigning of public information to the category of information which has a detrimental effect on the development of minors, if members of the Commission have doubts when assessing the damage done to the physical, mental or moral development of minors or assessment of such public information requires special knowledge. Upon the receipt of such inquiry, the Inspector of Journalist Ethics must, in the manner and within the time limits prescribed by this Law, submit to the Commission his own conclusions or the conclusions of experts of the Office of Inspector of Journalist Ethics with respect to that matter.
\n
3.While carrying out the functions established for it by legal acts, the Commission shall have the right:
\n
1)to obtain free of charge from broadcasters and re-broadcasters, managers of the information society media, state and municipal institutions and agencies as well as other legal persons information, including the information which constitutes a commercial secret;
\n
2)to obtain from broadcasters and re-broadcasters, managers of the information society media, state and municipal institutions, as well as agencies, other persons the documents and other information necessary to investigate violations of the relevant laws which are assigned to the competence of the Commission;
\n
3)upon receiving court authorization, to carry out on-the-spot checks;
\n
4)to set up commissions, working groups for drafting legal acts or dealing with other issues falling within the competence of the Commission, to include specialists from other institutions (upon co-ordination with their heads) in the said commissions, groups;
\n
5)within the limits of its competence as a competent authority, in compliance with Regulation (EC) No 2006/2004 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 27 October 2004 on cooperation between national authorities responsible for the enforcement of consumer protection laws, to participate in the development and implementation of a framework for cooperation established by this Regulation;
\n
6)to organise meetings, conferences and other events;
\n
7)to conclude agreements, assume obligations, enjoy other civil rights and duties, provided that this is in compliance with laws of the Republic of Lithuania;
\n
8)to enjoy other rights established by this Law, directly applicable legal acts of the European Union, regulating broadcasting and re-broadcasting activities and Regulation (EC) No 2006/2004 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 27 October 2004 on cooperation between national authorities responsible for the enforcement of consumer protection laws as well as other legal acts.
\n
Article 49Inspector of Journalist Ethics
\n
1.The Inspector of Journalist Ethics (hereinafter referred to as the “Inspector”) shall be a state official who supervises the implementation of the provisions of this Law.
\n
2.The Inspector shall be appointed for a five-year term of office by the Seimas on the recommendation of the Ethics Commission of Journalists and Publishers. The same person may not be appointed the Inspector for more than two successive terms of office. A person appointed the Inspector shall hold office until the appointment of a new Inspector.
\n
3.A citizen of the Republic of Lithuania of a sufficiently good repute with a university degree in law and the competence necessary to perform his duties shall be appointed the Inspector.
\n
4.Members of the Seimas and the Government as well as civil servants of political (personal) confidence may not be appointed the Inspector. The Inspector and members of his family may not be linked with producers and/or disseminators of public information by employment relations and may not hold the shares of the producers and/or disseminators of public information. During his term of office, the Inspector may not participate in political activities.
\n
5.The Inspector shall act in accordance with the Constitution of the Republic of Lithuania, this and other laws, international treaties ratified by the Republic of Lithuania, EU legal acts, the Code of Ethics of Lithuanian Journalists and Publishers and other legal acts.
\n
6.The activities of the Inspector shall be based on the principles of legality, objectivity, justice and openness.
\n
7.The Inspector may not hold any other elective or appointed position, receive any other remuneration, except remuneration in accordance with Law on the Remuneration of State Politicians, Judges and State Officials and payments for creative and pedagogical activities.
\n
8.The Inspector shall be dismissed from office if:
\n
1)the term of his powers expires and he is not appointed for another term of office;
\n
2)he resigns;
\n
3)he is absent from work due to temporary incapacity for work for more than 120 calendar days in succession or more than 140 days during the last 12 months, unless the laws provide that in the case of certain illnesses the position is retained for a longer period, or when the Inspector is unable to perform his duties pursuant to the conclusions of the Disability and Capacity for Work Establishment Office under the Ministry of Social Security and Labour;
\n
4)a court judgement concerning him becomes effective;
\n
5)more than half of the total number of members of the Seimas have expressed no confidence in him;
\n
6)he loses the citizenship of the Republic of Lithuania.
\n
9.When taking a decision, the Inspector may enlist the assistance of experts (groups of experts) which submit their conclusions regarding the assigning of press publications, audiovisual works, radio and television programmes or broadcasts, Internet websites or other media and/or their content to the categories of information of erotic, pornographic and/or violent nature, as well as their conclusions on whether public information incites discord on grounds of sex, sexual orientation, race, nationality, language, descent, social status, religion, convictions or views. The composition and number of experts (groups of experts) shall be approved by the Inspector. Experts (groups of experts) shall be liable under the law for the correctness of their conclusions. Experts (groups of experts) shall operate in accordance with the rules of procedure approved by the Inspector. The description of assigning of the media to the categories of information of erotic and/or violent nature and the procedure for setting the amount of fees for assigning of the media to the categories of information of erotic, pornographic and/or violent nature shall be established by the Government on the recommendation of the Inspector.
\n
10.Activities of the Inspector shall be ensured by the Office of the Inspector of Journalist Ethics. The Office of the Inspector of Journalist Ethics shall be a state budgetary institution headed by the Inspector.
\n
11.The Office of the Inspector of Journalist Ethics shall be a public legal entity and have a seal with the Lithuanian state emblem and the name “Office of the Inspector of Journalist Ethics” inscribed therein. The Inspector shall be held liable for the use and safekeeping of the seal. The seat of the Office of the Inspector of Journalist Ethics shall be in Vilnius, with the premises provided by the Government.
\n
12.The activities of the Inspector, Office of the Inspector of Journalist Ethics and experts (expert groups) operating under it shall be financed from the State budget. The funds allocated for this purpose shall be specified under a separate line.
\n
13.The tasks, functions, rights and duties as well as the structure, organisation of work and financing of the Office of the Inspector of Journalist Ethics shall be laid down in the Regulations of the Office of the Inspector of Journalist Ethics approved by the Seimas.
\n
14.The Inspector shall once a year report to the Seimas on his own activities and activities of the Office of the Inspector of Journalist Ethics and, by 1st April each year, shall present an annual activity report. The report shall be announced on the website of the Office of the Inspector of Journalist Ethics.
\n
Article 50Competence of the Inspector of Journalist Ethics
\n
1.The Inspector shall perform the following functions:
\n
1)examine the complaints (applications) of interested persons regarding violation of their honour and dignity in the media;
\n
2)examine the complaints (applications) of interested persons regarding violation of their right to protection of privacy in the media;
\n
3)examine the complaints (applications) of interested persons regarding violation of management of their personal data in the media;
\n
4)maintain, within the limits of his competence, supervision over the implementation of the provisions of the Law on the Protection of Minors against the Detrimental Effect of Public Information;
\n
5)assess compliance with the principles of provision of information to the public set forth in this and other laws and legal acts regulating the provision of information to the public;
\n
6)submit proposals to the Seimas and other state institutions for improving this and other laws and legal acts regulating the provision of information to the public and implementation thereof;
\n
7)on the basis of the conclusions of experts (groups of experts), ascribe press publications, audiovisual works, radio and television programmes or broadcasts, the information society media or other media and/or their content to the categories of information of erotic, pornographic and/or violent nature, and inform the State Tax Inspectorate under the Ministry of Finance about press publications of erotic and/or violent nature;
\n
Version of subparagraph 8 of paragraph 1 before 1 January 2010:
\n
8)draw up and publish every two years an analytical survey intended to establish the guidelines for the development of a democratic culture in the field of provision of information to the public;
\n
Version of subparagraph 8 of paragraph 1 as of 1 January 2010:
\n
8)on the basis of the conclusions of experts (groups of experts), establish whether public information announced in the media incites discord on grounds of sex, sexual orientation, race, nationality, language, descent, social status, religion, convictions or views;
\n
9)cooperate with counterpart institutions of the European Union and other countries as well as represent, within the sphere of his competence, the Republic of Lithuania in international organisations;
\n
10)draw up and publish every two years an analytical survey – the guidelines for the development of a democratic culture in the field of provision of information to the public;
\n
11)carry out monitoring of public information in the media, with the exception of radio and television programmes.
\n
2.In performing the functions specified in paragraph 1 of this Article, the Inspector shall have the right to:
\n
1)having information about violations that were not specified in the complaints (applications), start, on his own initiative, an investigation in accordance with the procedure set forth by this Law or transfer the collected material to other competent state institutions for investigation;
\n
2)in accordance with the procedure established by this Law, obtain information from producers, disseminators of public information free of charge, including information announced in the media managed by them (tapes of video and audio broadcasts, specimen of publications and copies thereof) necessary to perform his functions;
\n
3)obtain information, documents and other materials necessary to perform his functions from state and municipal institutions and agencies free of charge;
\n
4)in accordance with the procedure set forth by this Law, however only to the extend it is necessary to perform his functions, get access to documents constituting a state, official, commercial or bank secret or documents containing information about personal data protected by laws;
\n
5)without violating the rights and legitimate interests of persons, film, make photographs, sound and video recordings and use any other technical means during the investigations in accordance with the procedure prescribed by laws;
\n
6)attend the sittings and meetings organised by the Seimas, the Government and other state institutions, take part in the activities of commissions and working groups set up by them, attend the meetings of regulatory institutions governing the activities of producers and disseminators of public information and self-regulatory institutions when issues related to the implementation of the provisions of this Law, the activities of the Inspector or an investigation carried out by him are considered and express his opinion on the issues;
\n
7)set up working groups and commissions for drafting legal acts and proposals, organising events and considering other relevant issues;
\n
8)for the purpose of exercising the functions laid down in this and other laws, enlist the assistance of experts (groups of experts), establish their rules of procedure as well as payment procedure.
\n
3.In performing the functions specified in paragraph 1 of this Article, the Inspector may take the following decisions:
\n
1)issue a warning to producers and disseminators of public information, (natural) persons responsible for the content of the media about the noticed violations of this Law and other legal acts governing the provision of information to the public and request that they be eliminated;
\n
2)request that a producer or disseminator of public information refute, in accordance with the established procedure, published false information degrading the honour and dignity of a person or damaging his professional reputation or legitimate interests, or provide the person with a possibility to reply and deny such information himself;
\n
3)apply to competent state institutions and the Ethics Commission of Journalists and Publishers regarding the noticed violations of this Law and other legal acts governing the provision of information to the public;
\n
4)draw up reports of administrative offences in the cases set out in the Code of Administrative Offences;
\n
5)hear cases of administrative offences and impose administrative penalties in the cases set out in the Code of Administrative Offences;
\n
6)recognise the complaint (application) as unjustified;
\n
7)terminate the investigation started on own initiative if violations or circumstances due to which the investigation was started have not been corroborated;
\n
8)refuse to investigate the complaint (application);
\n
9)terminate the investigation of the complaint (application).
\n
4.A complaint (application) submitted to the Inspector must specify:
\n
1)the name, surname and address of the person (applicant) who has lodged the complaint (application);
\n
2)the specific medium and publication or broadcast which disseminated information degrading the honour and dignity of a person (applicant) who has lodged the complaint (application), violating the person’s right to protection of privacy or interests of minors;
\n
3)which disseminated information contradicts reality, in what way the right to privacy has been violated and the interests of minors have been affected;
\n
4)the content of the application to the Inspector;
\n
5)the date of writing of the complaint (application) and the signature of the person (applicant) who has lodged the complaint (application).
\n
5.The complaint (application) which does not contain at least one of the requirements specified in paragraph 4 of this Article shall not be examined unless the Inspector decides otherwise. In the event that the Inspector refuses to examine the complaint (application) due to the shortcomings in the content requirements, the person (applicant) shall be informed thereof within five working days specifying the shortcomings. Upon elimination of the shortcomings, the person’s (applicant’s) complaint (application) shall be accepted for consideration with the date of lodgement thereof considered to be the date when the complaint (application) meeting all the requirements was received.
\n
6.In the cases referred to in subparagraphs 1-3 of paragraph 1 of this Article, the Inspector shall only examine the complaints (applications) of persons whose rights are violated in the media or legal representatives as well as appointed representatives of such persons. In these cases, anonymous complaints (applications) shall not be investigated.
\n
7.In the case referred to in subparagraph 4 of paragraph 1 of this Article, the Inspector shall examine complaints (applications) of not only those persons whose rights have been violated in the media or their legal representatives but also complaints (applications) lodged by other persons, including anonymous complaints (applications). In this case, the Inspector may start an investigation on his own initiative.
\n
8.Written or oral appeals, applications and notifications by the interested persons (applicants) which do not contain complaints against the actions of producers and/or disseminators of public information but which only request explanations, information or required documents, express an opinion or submit a conclusion regarding the implementation of this Law shall not be considered complaints (applications).
\n
9.The Inspector shall refuse to examine a complaint (application) and shall return it to the person (applicant) who has lodged the complaint (application) where:
\n
1)investigation of the circumstances specified in the complaint (application) falls outside the scope of competence of the Inspector. In this case, the complaint (application) shall, within five working days, be forwarded to an entity of public administration which has the required powers and the person (applicant) who has lodged the complaint (application) shall be informed thereof. Where an institution competent to examine the complaint (application) is a court, the complaint (application) shall be returned to the person (applicant) who has lodged the complaint (application) and the necessary information shall be provided;
\n
2)upon commencing examination of the complaint (application), it transpires that the complaint (application) in relation to the same issue is also being examined by the court; In this case, the examination of the complaint (application) shall be suspended until the court investigates the complaint (application). The person who has lodged the complaint (application) shall be informed of the suspension of the examination of the complaint (application). In that case, the investigation of the complaint (application) shall be renewed only upon request of the person who has lodged the complaint (application) and upon notifying the Inspector thereof in writing;
\n
3)the court or the Inspector have already taken a decision on the same issue and the person (applicant) has not provided any new factual data allowing to appeal against the decision. In that case, the person shall be informed of the decision not to examine the complaint (application) within 5 working days from the date of receipt of the complaint (application);
\n
4)it is impossible to commence the investigation of the complaint (application) due to the shortage of data and when requested, the person who has lodged the complaint (application) does not provide data necessary for the investigation of the complaint (application) or is unable to provide the data for objective reasons;
\n
5)a procedural decision has been adopted to start a pre-trial investigation relating to the subject matter of the complaint (application);
\n
6)the person (applicant) withdraws the complaint (application) and informs the Inspector thereof in writing;
\n
10.In the case specified in subparagraph 6 of paragraph 9 of this Article, where a person (applicant) withdraws some of the claims from his complaint (application), only the part of the complaint (application) whereof no claims have been withdrawn shall be examined.
\n
11.In the event that a decision to refuse to examine the complaint (application) is taken, the person (applicant) who has lodged the complaint (application) must be notified of the reasons for such refusal.
\n
12.The investigation of a complaint (application) shall be terminated if circumstances specified in paragraph 9 of this Article transpire in the course of the investigation.
\n
13.The Inspector shall examine the complaint (application) received within three months from the date of receipt thereof.
\n
14.If a complaint (application) is justified, the Inspector may take one of the decisions specified in paragraph 2 of this Article. The Inspector shall present the decision to the person (applicant) who has lodged the complaint (application), producers and/or disseminators of public information, persons responsible for the content of the media.
\n
15.In cases where a complaint (application) is considered unjustified, the Inspector must give a reasoned response in writing to the person (applicant) who has lodged the complaint (application).
\n
16.The decisions of the Inspector, except for the cases specified in paragraph 17 of this Article, shall be published free of charge in the supplement Informaciniai pranešimai to the official gazette Valstybės žinios and on the website of the Office of the Inspector of Journalist Ethics. In such cases, the operative part of the Inspector’s decision must be forthwith announced in the same medium wherein the Inspector established violations.
\n
17.In cases where announcement of the Inspector’s decision may violate a person’s rights and/or legitimate interests or where the person who has lodged the complaint (application) does not request to announce the decision, the Inspector’s decision shall not be announced publicly. In such cases, the Inspector’s decision shall only be presented to the person who has lodged the complaint (application) and the producer and/or disseminator of public information who manages the medium wherein the violation was established.
\n
18.The decisions of the Inspector may be appealed against in court within 30 days of the announcement thereof or, where the decision is not announced publicly, of the receipt of the notification of adoption thereof.
\n
19.Failure to comply with lawful requirements and adopted decisions or any other hindrance to the Inspector to exercise the rights granted to him by this Law shall incur administrative liability.
\n
CHAPTER VI
\n
LIABILITY FOR VIOLATIONS OF LEGAL ACTS REGULATING PROVISION OF INFORMATION TO THE PUBLIC AND PROCEDURE FOR ITS IMPLEMENTATION
\n
Article 51Liability of Producers and Disseminators of Public Information and Officials
\n
1.Producers or disseminators of public information shall, in accordance with the procedure established by this and other laws, be liable for violating this and other laws and international treaties of the Republic of Lithuania regulating the production of public information, also for violating the procedure of dissemination of public information established by laws.
\n
2.The manager of the information society medium shall be liable for the content thereof in the manner prescribed by this and other laws.
\n
3.Providers of intermediate information society services shall be liable for the content of the Information Society media in accordance with the procedure and conditions set out in the Law on Information Society Services.
\n
Article 52Suspension or Termination of Activities of Producers and/or Disseminators of Public Information
\n
1.The activities of a producer and/or disseminator of public information, except for broadcasters and/or re-broadcasters, may be temporarily suspended or terminated by the court if the producer and/or disseminator of public information violate the provisions of paragraphs 1 and 2 of Article 19 of this Law.
\n
2.When making a decision on the suspension of the activities of a producer and/or disseminator of public information, the suspension term set by the court may not exceed one month with respect to newspaper editorial offices and three months with respect to magazine editorial offices.
\n
3.The activities of producers and/or disseminators of public information may be terminated by the court in the event that the court had suspended its activities at least once during the previous 12 months.
\n
Article 53Compensation for Damage
\n
Damage incurred due to violations of this Law shall be compensated in accordance with the procedure laid down in the Civil Code.
\n
Article 54Release from Compensation for Damage
\n
1.A producer and/or disseminator of public information shall not be liable for the publication of false information if he indicates the source of information and the information was:
\n
1)provided in official or publicly announced documents of state and municipal institutions and agencies, political parties, trade unions and associations or other persons;
\n
2)publicly stated in open meetings, sessions, press conferences, demonstrations and other events, and if the producer of public information has not distorted the statements made. In this case, all responsibility shall fall on the organisers of the aforementioned events and the persons who made the information public;
\n
3)published earlier in other media if the information has not been refuted in the media wherein it was published;
\n
4)announced by participants of live radio and television broadcasts who are not subordinate to the producer of public information;
\n
5)announced in a special election campaign broadcast which was not produced by the producer of public information;
\n
6)presented in non-anonymous advertising announcements;
\n
7)presented in the form of an opinion, commentary or evaluation.
\n
2.In the cases specified in paragraph 1 of this Article, liability for the publication of false information shall fall upon the person who was the first to publish such information.
\n
I promulgate this Law passed by the Seimas of the Republic of Lithuania.
\n
PRESIDENT OF THE REPUBLIC Annex to Republic of Lithuania Law on Provision of Information to the Public EU LEGAL ACTS IMPLEMENTED BY THIS LAW 1. Council Directive 89/552/EEC of 3 October 1989 on the coordination of certain provisions laid down by law, regulation or administrative action in Member States concerning the pursuit of television broadcasting activities (OJ 2004 special edition, Chapter 6, Volume 1, p. 224).
\n
2.Directive 97/36/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council of 30 June 1997 amending Council Directive 89/552/EEC on the coordination of certain provisions laid down by law, regulation or administrative action in Member States concerning the pursuit of television broadcasting activities (OJ 2004 special edition, Chapter 6, Volume 2, p. 321).
\n
3.Directive 98/48/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council of 20 July 1998 amending Directive 98/34/EC laying down a procedure for the provision of information in the field of technical standards and regulations (OJ 2004 special edition, Chapter 13, Volume 21, p. 8).
\n
4.Regulation (EC) No 2006/2004 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 2006/2004 27 October 2004 on cooperation between national authorities responsible for the enforcement of consumer protection laws (2004 OJ L 364, p. 1). ________________