World Press Freedom Day 2013 Theme: Safe to Speak: Securing Freedom of Expression in All Media

Contributing Ahsan Premee

Posted by: admin Posted date: April 28, 2013 In: World | comment : 0

About World Press Freedom Day

Every year, May 3rd is a date which celebrates the fundamental principles of press freedom; to evaluate press freedom around the world, to defend the media from attacks on their independence and to pay tribute to journalists who have lost their lives in the exercise of their profession.

3 May was proclaimed World Press Freedom Day the UN General Assembly in 1993 following a Recommendation adopted at the twenty-sixth session of UNESCO’s General Conference in 1991.

It serves as an occasion to inform citizens of violations of press freedom – a reminder that in dozens of countries around the world, publications are censored, fined, suspended and closed down, while journalists, editors and publishers are harassed, attacked, detained and even murdered.

It is a date to encourage and develop initiatives in favour of press freedom, and to assess the state of press freedom worldwide.

It serves as a reminder to governments of the need to respect their commitment to press freedom and is also a day of reflection among media professionals about issues of press freedom and professional ethics. Just as importantly, World Press Freedom Day is a day of support for media which are targets for the restraint, or abolition, of press freedom. It is also a day of remembrance for those journalists who lost their lives in the exercise of their profession.

“Freedom of expression is one of our most precious rights. It underpins every other freedom and provides a foundation for human dignity. Free, pluralistic and independent media is essential for its exercise.”

UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon
and UNESCO Director-General Irina Bokova

 

WORLD PRESS FREEDOM DAY 2013 Theme:
Safe to Speak: Securing Freedom of Expression in All Media

World Press Freedom Day celebrates its 20th anniversary in 2013. The Day was proclaimed by the UN General Assembly in December 1993, following the recommendation of UNESCO’s General Conference. Since then, 3 May, the anniversary of the Declaration of Windhoek  is celebrated worldwide as World Press Freedom Day. It is an opportunity to:

• celebrate the fundamental principles of press freedom;
• assess the state of press freedom throughout the world;
• defend the media from attacks on their independence;
• pay tribute to journalists who have lost their lives in the line of duty.

There is a growing awareness that ensuring freedom of expression must also necessarily extend to safety online. World Press Freedom Day 2013 focuses on the theme “Safe to Speak: Securing Freedom of Expression in All Media” and puts the spotlight, in particular, on the issues of safety of journalists,combating impunity for crime against freedom of expression,and securing a free and open Internet as the precondition for online safty.

 Ensuring the Safety of Journalists and Media Workers

A free, independent and pluralistic media environment, online and offline, must be one in which journalists, media workers, and social media producers can work safely and independently without the fear of being threatened or even killed. It needs to be an environment where attacks, intimidations, harassments, abductions, arbitrary imprisonments, and threats are the exceptions and not the norm. Journalists (as well as citizen journalists), editors, publishers and online intermediaries alike should not be subjected to political or financial coercion and manipulation. They should especially be protected from threats to the security of themselves and their families.

Securing the safety of journalists and media workers is an urgent matter. More than 600 journalists and media workers had been killed in the last ten years. In other words, every week a journalist loses his or her life for bringing news and information to the public.  These statistics highlight the relevance of the UN Plan of Action on the Safety of Journalists and the Issue of Impunity, and its specific goal of mobilizing the UN family of agencies as well as other stakeholders including UN Member States, regional human rights bodies, NGO and media houses to collaborate in creating a safer environment for journalists.  There is enormous potential in the UN Plan of Action in bringing the full weight of the UN to bear on the challenges, and in being a point of reference for others who share the concern to turn the tide.  Already we are seeing the various UN mechanisms moving in the direction that contributes to the UN Plan of Action. In addition to the aforementioned United Nations Human Rights Council resolution in 2012, the 2nd UN Inter-Agency Meeting in Vienna, Austria last year, adopted a concrete global, regional, and national level implementation strategy was adopted for the UN Plan of Action. Four countries (South Sudan, Iraq, Nepal and Pakistan) were identified to be amongst other interested countries where alignment of stakeholders could make a difference. Latin America was specifically acknowledged as a region where good work could be done under auspices of the UN Plan, and where lessons could be shared internationally.

As the UN Plan recognises, promoting the safety of journalists must not be constrained to after-the-fact action. Much more must be done for preventive mechanisms and for actions to address the root causes of violence against journalists and of impunity. This implies the need to deal with issues such as corruption, organized crime and an effective framework for the rule of law. In addition, the existence of laws that can criminalise legitimate journalism (e.g. overly restrictive defamation laws or overly broad national security laws) must be addressed. The challenge is to promote respect for international standards for freedom of expression as well as resolutions such as UN Security Council Resolution 1738 (2006).

Fundamental to the UN Plan is the insight that the experiences in one country or region can be useful for others trying to improve the safety of journalists. Compilation and sharing of up-to-date information and best practices and conducting international missions and investigations into particular cases can be highly beneficial. However, much work is still needed to achieve an optimum level of information exchange and joint learning, and in adapting good practices to different regional and national contexts.

Points for reflection:

• What are the biggest opportunities and threats to the UN Plan of Action?
• How do threats to press freedom differ from region to region?
• How can various strategies to improve safety be replicated in different regions?
• What are the preventive mechanisms to prevent journalists from being harmed in the first place?
• How do we ensure that international standards for safety of journalists and combating impunity are respected and adopted in the country context?
• How can public awareness be developed to ensure that press freedom is widely cherished and that public opinion at all levels will not tolerate attacks on journalists?

Combating Impunity of Crimes against Press Freedom

“Impunity means the impossibility, de jure or de facto, of bringing the perpetrators of violations to account – whether in criminal, civil, administrative or disciplinary proceedings – since they are not subject to any inquiry that might lead to their being accused, arrested, tried and, if found guilty, sentenced to appropriate penalties, and to making reparations to their victims”.

On average, in past years, only about one-in-ten cases of crimes against journalists, media workers, and social media producers has led to a conviction . This level of impunity is not just bad in principle in terms of flouting the rule of law, in terms of which every State has a duty to protect its citizens in general. Of even greater concern, because of the visibility involved, impunity for attacks on journalists in particular sends a signal to the wider public to keep quiet about corruption, environmental damage or human rights violations. The result is self-censorship across a society and an erosion of public faith in the judicial system. In this way, impunity also feeds a vicious cycle. Those who threaten or use violence against journalists are emboldened when they see that it is possible to disregard any prospect of punishment. “When impunity becomes pervasive, it activates a self-propelling, re-energizing cycle with every additional infringement that the low risk of punishment inspires”.

However, while recognizing that investigating crimes against journalists remains the responsibility of Member States, the acts of violence and intimidation (including murder, abduction, hostage taking, harassment, intimidation and illegal arrest and detention) are becoming ever more frequent in a variety of contexts. Notably, the threat posed by non-state actors such as extremist organizations and criminal enterprises is growing. This merits a careful, context-sensitive consideration of the differing needs of journalists in conflict and non-conflict zones, as well as of the different legal instruments available to ensure their protection. It also necessitates an investigation into how the dangers faced by journalists in situations that do not qualify as armed conflicts in the strictest sense (such as sustained confrontation between organized crime groups) may be dealt with. At the same time, the scourge of impunity needs to be analysed in terms of the chain of actors involved in judicial proceedings, ranging from political will of the executive and the legislature, through to the legal framework, the institutional design of protective, investigative and prosecution agencies, and the backlog of courts.

Various countries and organizations have been working on reducing impunity independently or in close cooperation.  The Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ) issues an annual index on impunity tracking some of the highest rates of impunity around the world. The International Federation of Journalists (IFJ) and Inter American Press Association (IAPA) have regular programmes and reports on impunity.  IFEX has led the process in the promotion of the International Day to End Impunity on 23 November as a global awareness raising campaign. What are some of the more effective measures taken globally to reduce impunity? And can they be replicated elsewhere? What are the lessons to be learnt?

Points for reflection:

• What is the extent of impunity in your country and how best to address it?
• What is the state of impunity globally?
• How to improve research into the extent, visibility and consequences of impunity?
• What are some of the good practices of to fight impunity that could be replicated elsewhere?
• Is the legal justice chain adequately designed and equipped to handle crimes against freedom of expression?
• What are the challenges of investigating crimes against press freedom when these are committed by non-state actors including extremist organizations or criminal enterprises?

Online Safety

© iStockphoto

The traditional concept of the term ‘journalist’ has evolved. According to the description of the UN Special Rapporteur on the protection and promotion of the right to freedom of expression and opinion, journalists are individuals who observe and describe events, document and analyse events, statements, policies, and any propositions that can affect society, with the purpose of systemizing such information and gathering of facts and analyses to inform sector of society or society as a whole. Such a definition of journalists, according to the same report, includes all media workers and support staff, as well as community media workers and so-called “citizen journalists” when they play that role. Furthermore, as affirmed by the resolution A/HRC/RES/20/8 adopted by the Human Rights Council on 16 July 2012 on the promotion, protection and enjoyment of human rights on the Internet, “the same rights that people have offline must also be protected online, in particular freedom of expression.”

The digitalization of the media landscape reinforces the global trend of freelancing by further expanding journalism beyond the ranks of employees in media institutions.  Included in the supply of news today are citizen reporters and individual bloggers. While they may lack established forms of institutional gate-keeping, it is in society’s interests that they receive the same protection as professional journalists.

Digitalization also means that more and more information is transmitted and stored online. In consequence, it is now necessary for journalists to be equipped to better protect their electronic information records, including the identities of their sources. Journalists have had their mobile phones and computer equipment confiscated, and their email accounts subjected to illegitimate surveillance and hacking. A number of media websites have been disabled by attacks or maliciously infected with “Trojan” viruses. Journalists increasingly need to know how to protect important and sensitive data.

The issue of safety online also concern more than just the individual blogger or professional journalist. With the rise of institutions playing a mediating role on the Internet between authors of content and audiences, they need to understand international standards and their implications. Any limitation to freedom of expression must be imposed as a truly exceptional measure, must be provided by law, and in the pursue of legitimate purpose and be proven as necessary and the least restrictive means possible .  Accordingly, awareness and sharing of best practice is needed to ensure that intermediaries can provide principled responses if they are to protect freedom of expression in the face of mounting pressures to disclose user identities, conduct surveillance operations or take down content when there is an objection.

All this resonates with the evolution of the Internet as a platform that to date has attracted less restriction than other media platforms. The free and open character of the Internet, which is a precondition for online safety, is underpinned by a multi-stakeholder model of governance as confirmed by the resolutions of the World Summit of the Information Society.

Points for reflection:

• How well do reporters understand the risks of using digital technology?
• How do these dangers or potential of digital technology differ from region to region?
• What emerging and possible new threats endanger the safety of journalists, bloggers, citizen journalists and others expressing themselves in the digital realm?
• How aware are journalists of these threats, and how do they respond?
• What are common misperceptions surrounding digital safety?
• What systems exist amongst intermediaries, and how prevalent are they across the world?
• What role can governments, international organizations, civil society, the media and other private sector actors play in ensuring journalists’ digital safety?
• How can Internet freedom and its multi-stakeholder basis be reinforced?

Press Freedom

Freedom of Expression, a Human Right

Freedom of expression is a fundamental human right as stated in Article 19 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights.

“Everyone has the right to freedom of opinion and expression; this right includes freedom to hold opinions without interference and to seek, receive and impart information and ideas through any media and regardless of frontiers.”

Media freedom and access to information feed into the wider development objective of empowering people. Empowerment is a multi-dimensional social and political process that helps people gain control over their own lives. This can only be achieved through access to accurate, fair and unbiased information, representing a plurality of opinions, and the means to actively communicate vertically and horizontally, thereby participating in the active life of the community.

2012 in figures

• 89 journalists killed (+33%)
• 38 journalists kidnapped
• 879 journalists arrested
• 1,993 journalists physically attacked or threatened
• 47 netizens and citizen-journalists killed
• 144 bloggers and netizens arrested

However, in order to make freedom of expression a reality, there must be:

• a legal and regulatory environment that allows for an open and pluralistic media sector to emerge;
• a political will to support the sector and rule of law to protect it;
• laws ensuring access to information, especially information in the public domain; and
• the necessary media literacy skills among news consumers to critically analyze and synthesize the information they receive to use it in their daily lives and to hold the media accountable for its actions.

These elements, along with media professionals adhering to the highest ethical and professional standards designed by practitioners, serve as the fundamental infrastructure on which freedom of expression can prevail. On this basis media serves as a watchdog, civil society engages with authorities and decision-makers, information flows through and between communities.

Freedom of Information

The fuel that drives this engine is information and therefore access to information is critical. Freedom of information laws, which permit access to public information are essential, but so are the means by which information is made available, be it through ICTs or the simple sharing of documents.

Information can change the way we see the world around us, our place in it, and how to adjust our lives in order to maximize the benefits available through our local resources. Fact driven decision-making can significantly alter our political, social and economic perspectives. Therefore, open and pluralistic media are, perhaps, most precious when they simply provide the mirror for society to see itself. These moments of reflection are instrumental in defining community objectives, making course corrections when society or its leaders have lost touch with each other or gone astray.

The right to access information can be interpreted within the legal frameworks that support freedom of information as it applies to information held by public bodies, or in a wider sense to encompass both access and circulation of information held by other actors, where it becomes intrinsically linked to freedom of expression.

Freedom of information and the transparency it promotes, has a direct consequence on fighting corruption, which in turn has a tangible impact on development. Former World Bank president James Wolfensohn often identified government corruption as the primary hindrance to development and an independent media sector as the number one tool to fight public corruption.

Press Freedom and Governance

Ensuring freedom for the media around the world is a priority. Independent, free and pluralistic media are central to good governance in democracies that are young and old. Free media:

• can ensure transparency, accountability and the rule of law;
• promote participation in public and political discourse, and
• contribute to the fight against poverty.

An independent media sector draws its power from the community it serves and in return empowers that community to be full a partner in the democratic process.

Freedom of information and freedom of expression are the founding principles for open and informed debate. New technology will continue to evolve and allow citizens to further shape their media environments as well as access a plurality of sources. The combination of access to information and citizen participation in media can only contribute to an increased sense of ownership and empowerment.

http://www.associatedpressservice.net/news/?p=2501