Every year on 28 September, the world marks the International Day of Universal Access to Information. It’s a reminder that the right to seek and share information is not an abstract principle, it is a cornerstone of democracy, accountability, and justice. Without it, people cannot hold power to account, journalists cannot expose wrongdoing, and environmental defenders cannot warn the public about threats to our planet.
Yet across Europe and beyond, this right is increasingly under attack. The threat does not only come from censorship or secrecy, but also from a quieter, more insidious weapon: abusive lawsuits designed to intimidate and silence critics. These are known as SLAPPs – Strategic Lawsuits Against Public Participation.
Consider a simple example. Imagine a journalist uncovers evidence that a nearby factory is releasing illegal levels of pollution into the air and discharging toxic wastewater into a river. Their reporting helps local residents understand the risks to their health and demand stronger protections. But instead of addressing the problem, the company sues the journalist for defamation, hoping to drain their resources and silence further reporting. Without those investigations and warnings, communities remain in the dark – unable to challenge harmful practices, protect themselves, or participate meaningfully in decisions that affect their environment.
SLAPPs: lawsuits designed to silence
SLAPPs are not ordinary legal disputes. They are often filed by powerful actors – companies, politicians, or wealthy individuals – against people who speak out in the public interest. Most are framed as defamation claims, though some misuse privacy, competition, or other areas of law.
The real aim is not to win in court. Instead, SLAPPs are used to drain resources, create fear, and discourage others from speaking up. Even when the claims are weak or dismissed, the mere threat of years of costly litigation exerts a chilling effect on free speech and public participation.
This is why SLAPPs are a direct threat to access to information. They make people think twice before exposing corruption, questioning harmful projects, or reporting abuses or malpractices that affect us all.
A common obstacle for environmental defenders
SLAPPs can target anyone, but they disproportionately affect environmental defenders. Challenging polluting industries, exposing unsustainable logging, or raising concerns about real estate developments often means going up against the deep pockets and powerful connections of vested interests.
The right to information is the lifeblood of NGOs and communities. People need to know about pollution levels, logging in protected forests, or infrastructure plans that could affect their health, livelihoods, and environment. Journalists and activists must be able to investigate and share this information freely, without fear of reprisal. This right is also enshrined in law, as, for example, one of the three pillars of the Aarhus Convention.
When SLAPPs succeed in silencing critics, the impact goes far beyond the individual defendant. Entire communities lose the ability to challenge harmful projects. Public debates on climate and biodiversity are stifled. And destructive activities go unchecked – at the expense of both people and nature.
Whether it is big oil targeting NGOs like Greenpeace or a state-owned logging company attacking an individual defender in a small community, the purpose is the same: to shield powerful interests from scrutiny.
The EU’s anti-SLAPP law and the road ahead
In May 2024, the EU adopted its first ever anti-SLAPP directive. Governments now have until 7 May 2026 to transpose the directive into national law. How they do so will matter enormously. Loopholes or weak protections could leave defenders exposed. Strong rules, by contrast, could truly safeguard free speech and access to information across Europe.
The directive is a milestone, but it is not a cure-all. Its scope is limited, and loopholes remain. To be effective, governments will need to go beyond the minimum standards and design robust protections that truly work in practice. Here, the Council of Europe’s recommendations on countering SLAPPs may offer useful inspiration, setting out a broader set of safeguards to protect public participation.
The Coalition Against SLAPPs in Europe (CASE) – of which the EEB is a proud member – brings together NGOs, journalists’ groups and civil society organisations to fight SLAPPs. Together with the European Centre for Press and Media Freedom, CASE has launched an Anti-SLAPP Monitor to track transposition progress and press governments to act.
A call for strong protection
On this International Day of Universal Access to Information, we must be clear: a right that cannot be safely exercised is no right at all.
If we want journalists, NGOs, scientists, and environmental defenders to keep informing the public, they must be protected from abusive litigation. Europe has taken a historic step with its new directive. Now it falls to Member States to deliver robust national laws that truly defend those who speak out in the public interest. Our right to know depends on it.
