Slovak party wants nudity ban for print media

BRATISLAVA - Agence France-Presse

Nudists hold hands as they take part in the North East Skinny Dip at Druridge Bay in Northumberland, at sunrise on September 22, 2012. AFP photo

A Slovak opposition party said Thursday it wanted to ban nudity in newspapers and magazines in a bid to protect children from exposure to images they insist degrade women.

"We're being flooded with a harmful and distorted depiction of nudity, which degrades women," Branislav Skripek, a lawmaker from the Common People's party, told journalists.
 
The Common People movement, which unites independent candidates with different agendas and is a newcomer to parliament after March elections, said it would propose an amendment to a child protection law at the upcoming parliamentary session that would ban nudity in the print media.
 
There are two daily tabloids in Slovakia that feature pictures of topless women in their gossip sections every day.
 
Media analysts however noted the move could potentially curb freedom of expression.
 
"There are already laws preventing pornographic content in the Slovak media and this law, if abused, could represent a potential threat to the freedom of press," Branislav Ondrasik, media analyst at the Bratislava-based Pan-European University, told AFP.
 
The measure is however unlikely to win broad support in the Slovak parliament, dominated by Prime Minister Robert Fico's party.