Gîrleanu v. Romania: Freedom in Europe for Investigative Disclosure by Journalists

Abstract

The paper discusses the European Court of Human Rights' judgement Girleanu v. Romania, no. 50376/09. The ECtHR balanced “the interests of a democratic society in ensuring and maintaining freedom of the press” against the legal framework on protection of “national security” in the defending State. I argue that it is significant that this case – which became final on 29 September – provided an impactful ruling on the freedom to handle classified material. In the article, I discuss the rights covered by this judgement on European Human Rights law. The Court reiterated that the European Convention on Human Rights (ECHR or the Convention) should apply to cases which concern news gathering and disclosure of classified information related to (military) national security. I specifically argue that the Court effectively asserted that investigative disclosure of classified information by journalists is covered by Article 10 (- Freedom of Expression) of the Convention. The judgement strikes out against several measures that interfered with the work of Girleanu (including a search and seizure of his computer hard drive, arrest, detention and an order to pay an administrative fine). In the field of media freedom, this is a clear signal towards all 47 Member States of the Council of Europe (CoE), concerning each country’s internal justice system. For journalists, this judgement is an international landmark.