The International Federation of Journalists (IFJ) today accused Albanian authorities of violating press freedom rights after a court in Tirana awarded damages of 400.000 EUR over a case of investigative journalism in which a senior government official was exposed for promising jobs in exchange for sexual favours.

Ylli Pango, former minister of Culture, Tourism , Youth and Sport, was exposed by the network Top Channel in a video which showed a secret film of him promising jobs to a young woman in exchange for sexual favours. He resigned from his position after the broadcast.

"This decision is almost as scandalous as the practices the programme sought to expose and should not stand," said Aidan White, IFJ General Secretary. "This is a case where public interest outweighed the privacy of a senior public figure who was acting quite unethically."

According to reports, the court case arose from Top Channel's broadcast on 4 March of its investigation into the conduct of Pango following allegations that he was soliciting sexual intercourse with young women to whom he promised jobs. The channel's female journalist had posed as potential employee and secretly recorded her conversation with the former minister to confirm the allegations.

The court found that the investigation violated Pango's personal privacy and ordered Top Channel to pay him record damages.

The IFJ says the ruling is likely to undermine the kind of investigative journalism which renders a public service in a democracy by ensuring that the powerful are not shielded from the scrutiny and accountability to the public.

"The impact of this decision goes beyond the issue of press freedom in Albania and appears to contravene European human rights protection for press freedom," added White. "It is also a blow to open government which commands public trust. It must be set aside by a higher court."

For more information contact the IFJ at     +32 2 235 22 07

The IFJ represents over 600,000 journalists in 125 countries worldwide