CCPR/C/79/Add.79 page 5 the Committee recommends that all necessary measures be adopted in order to amend the relevant legislation so as to bring it into conformity with articles 18 and 22 of the Covenant. 22. The Committee has a number of concerns with respect to freedom of expression under article 19 of the Covenant. First, article 98 of the Penal Code makes it an offence to “disseminate false information abroad which harms the interest” of Slovakia; this terminology, in the Code of 1996, is so broadly phrased as to lack any specificity and carries the risk of restricting freedom of expression beyond the limits allowable under article 19, paragraph 3, of the Covenant. Second the interference by the Government with the direction of its State-owned television also carries a danger of violating article 19 of the Covenant. Third, lawsuits for defamation resulting from expressed criticism of the Government pose a similar problem. Therefore: the Committee recommends that all these three aspects should be reviewed and any necessary legislation passed to eliminate any inconsistency with the Covenant. 23. The Committee is concerned by the absence of judicial guarantees with respect to telephone-tapping during the pre-trial investigation of crime. Therefore: the Committee recommends that interception of confidential communications be always subject to control by an independent judicial authority. 24. With respect to article 27 of the Covenant, the Committee notes with concern that no steps have yet been taken to adopt legislation to implement articles 6 (b) and 34, paragraph 2 (b), of the Constitution on the use of minority languages after the annulment of the 1990 Act on the Official Language, and that, as a consequence, the use of minority languages in official communications is not secure. Therefore: the Committee recommends that legislation be rapidly adopted to secure language rights for minorities, with due consideration being given to the provisions of the Covenant and to the Committee's general comment 23(50). The Committee is concerned that insufficient provision, in particular in relation to allocation of resources, is made in the field of educational and cultural rights for the benefit of the Hungarian minority. 25. The Committee expresses its regret that certain questions asked during the discussion with the delegation have not been answered, and requests that additional information be provided to the Committee on the implementation of constitutional provisions relating to human rights, mentioned in paragraph 12 above; institutions designed to protect human rights; the relationship between articles 11, 125 and 132 of the Constitution; the right to free legal assistance; the application of article 9 of the Covenant to all forms of

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