Right to protect sources upheld

A EUROPEAN Court of Human Rights decision which upheld the right of five British news organisations to protect an anonymous source by not disclosing a leaked document has been welcomed as a victory for press freedom.

Judges in Strasbourg ruled the bid to force the Financial Times, the Times, the Guardian, the Independent and Reuters news agency to hand over confidential reports they obtained about a possible brewery takeover breached their right to protect journalistic sources.

The court said freedom of expression was “one of the essential foundations of a democratic society” and that, in that context, “the safeguards guaranteed to the press are particularly important”.