Assessments are pouring in on Slovakia’s recent presidential election – one that saw a pro-European candidate lose out to an ally of controversial PM Robert Fico, who now has a free hand to roll out his illiberal agenda.

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Šarūnas Černiauskas, Investigative Journalist (in Lithuanian)

Merle Pajula, Estonian Ambassador To Slovakia (in Estonian)

Łukasz Ogrodnik, Polish Institute of International Affairs (in Polish)

Eugen Tomac, Member Of The European Parliament – EPP, Romania (in Romanian)

Elise Bernard, Head Of Studies At The Robert Schuman Foundation (in French).MP3

Dragoș Pîslaru, Member Of The European Parliament – Renew Europe, Romania (in Romanian)

Dimitris Kairides, Greece’s Minister Of Immigration And Asylum (in Greek)

Didier Reynders, European Commissioner For Justice (in French)

Birgit Sippel, Member Of The European Parliament – S&D, Germany (in German)

[Audio Overview - Generate by NotebookLM]

Original Sinhala Article: https://www.vikalpa.org/article/44977

The source(vikalpa.org - Sinhala Article by Sampath Samarakoon) expresses significant concern regarding the abrupt cancellation of a purchase order for the 'Anidda' newspaper by a state-affiliated company in Sri Lanka, Lanka Mineral Sands Company. This action is presented not as a simple economic decision, but as a political signal indicating the National People's Power (NPP) government's intolerance for critical media content. The text suggests that this move reflects a lack of courage within the government to intellectually address criticism. Furthermore, the source draws a parallel between this event and China's media model, which ranks 172nd out of 178 countries in press freedom, raising fears that Sri Lanka's close ties with China could lead to a suppression of media independence and pluralism. The author, Sampath Samarakoon, emphasizes that economic pressure on independent media like 'Anidda' is a direct threat to media freedom and democratic values in Sri Lanka.

Sri Lanka Media Freedom, Democracy, and Chinese Influence [Audio Overview - Generate by NotebookLM]

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