COPENHAGEN, 7 February 2014 – OSCE Parliamentary Assembly Vice President Ilkka Kanerva (MP, Finland) today expressed concern over the exclusion of the independent "Dozhd" television channel from major cable and satellite operators in Russia and called on authorities to prioritize media plurality.

"The 'Dozhd' television channel has attracted a large following in Russia, where most of what is available to viewers is state-controlled. I am concerned by reports of government pressure on the channel and fear that its exclusion from major providers will further erode the country's media landscape," Kanerva said.

"Russia must commit itself to prioritizing and safeguarding media plurality, as its parliamentarians have endorsed in OSCE PA Declarations. No democratic state should fear critical media, but rather, recognize its value among a range of voices and as a potential driver of reform," Kanerva added.

The Russian President's Civil Society and Human Rights Council, the Union of Journalists of Russia, and other civil society and media organizations have also expressed concern over the exclusion of "Dozhd."

In the OSCE PA's 2013 Istanbul Declaration, parliamentarians from across the OSCE region reaffirmed their demand for "the right to freely establish independent media, for guarantees that media professionals can exercise that right without fearing for their jobs or their lives, and for measures to facilitate their activities."