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- Ελληνικά
No responsibility to the Legal Service of the Republic and the Police for the leakage of information to both domestic and foreign media, is attributed by the Nicosia District Court, in relation to the course and progress of a criminal investigation and/or interrogation under investigation against natural and legal persons for a case of land division in the Municipality of Paphos, in 2014. The decision of the Nicosia District Court was delivered on Friday, 24 May 2024.
The plaintiffs claimed from the Republic of Cyprus damages of €10 million Euros as well as punitive and/or exemplary damages, for violation of their individual rights as protected by the Constitution of the Republic of Cyprus and the Convention for the Protection of Human Rights and Fundamental Freedoms (ECHR).
These violations, according to the applicants, consisted in the systematic and/or selective leakage and disclosure of data and/or information of a confidential and/or personal nature and/or sensitive data to the media by members of the Police and/or the Legal Service in the exercise of their duties and/or illegally, and/or improperly, and/or for another purpose. As a consequence of these acts, as was the claim of the plaintiffs, the obligation of the Attorney General of the Republic to ensure the guarantees of a fair trial and the proper administration of justice in the criminal case in question was violated, and their constitutional right to equal treatment, and protection and respect for their private and family life was further violated.
From the Republic's point of view, no involvement in the leak of confidential information was accepted by the Attorney General, who, inter alia, indicated that the judicial proceedings were open and attended by a number of listeners and media representatives because of their public interest.
In conclusion, the Court, rejecting the applicants' position, states in its judgment:
"Bearing in mind the totality of the circumstances surrounding it, in particular the fact that the spotlight of publicity was focused daily on the case investigated by the Police up to the conclusion of the proceedings because of the public interest it had, considered in conjunction with the evidence and information that the plaintiffs claim was channelled to the press, in such a way that they subsequently became part of the relevant publications, always on the basis of the well-established principles of proportionality and the balancing of the relevant rights, it appears that in the case under discussion, too, the primacy of the right to information and freedom of the press could be considered justified."
Interesting is also the Court's position on the issue of freedom of expression and press coverage of matters of serious public interest. As the Court notes:
"Both the Cypriot case-law and the case-law of the ECtHR do not hesitate, in the context of a balanced application of the principles governing a democratic society and always respecting the principle of proportionality, to restrict various rights, including the right to a person's reputation, in favour of the right to freedom of expression, to which they attribute a unique and high value, indicating that the right to freedom of the press, in appropriate cases, particularly where matters of public interest are concerned, no matter how harsh, severe or even offensive the content of publications may be, takes precedence over the right to protection of one's reputation.
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[HOWEVER,] Freedom of expression is certainly not unrestricted, even in relation to press coverage of matters of serious public interest. In exercising the fundamental right of freedom of expression, the limits placed on the protection of constitutional or otherwise guaranteed human rights, such as those relating to the protection of one's reputation and respect for private and family life, must not be disregarded. However, exceptions to the right to freedom of expression must be interpreted strictly and the necessity for any restrictions must be convincingly substantiated. In particular, in relation to the operation of the press, they must be formulated with particular care and economy."
The Court awarded costs in favour of the Republic."
The Court awarded costs in favour of the Republic.
(MΛ)
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