The International Federation of Journalists (IFJ) criticises the Chinese Central Authorities for its heavy-handed suppression of news relating to political reform.
Coverage of a “dialogue” between representatives of the Hong Kong Federation of Students and Hong Kong Government officials, as well as news of the death of a prominent activist, have been censored. The censorship occurred while the fourth plenary session of the 18th Central Committee of Communist Party in China was being held in Beijing.
On October 21, the Hong Kong Government Chief Secretary, Carrie Lam, and four other senior government officials conducted a public dialogue with Alex Chow, secretary of Hong Kong Federation…
Macedonian authorities must ensure that all the “absurd” charges against the journalist Tomislav Kezarovski are dropped so that justice and freedom of expression can prevail.
This is the stance issued by the International Federation of Journalists (IFJ) and the European Federation of Journalists (EFJ) ahead of Kezarovski’s case hearing at the Macedonian court of appeal this Friday, 24 October.
“Tomislav Kezarovski is being unfairly unpunished,” said IFJ President Jim Boumelha, who visited Tomislav and his family back in March to convey solidarity from IFJ unions worldwide. “We demand that justice is upheld and Tomislav can walk away from this nightmare as a free man.”
In…
The International Federation of Journalists (IFJ) joins the National Union of Journalists of the Philippines (NUJP) in bringing into question the reported promotion of an Army Colonel to Brigadier General after his questionable role in the Ampatuan Massacre – the single largest massacre of journalists in history. Global media will mark the fifth anniversary of the slaughter next month on November 23.
Army Colonel Medardo Geslani who is said to be promoted to Brigadier General was, along with then-Major General Alfredo Cayton, among those whose help was sought to provide security to Maguindanao Governor Esmael Mangudadatu and his convoy before it was attacked and 57 people, including 31…
The International Federation of Journalists (IFJ) joins their Australian affiliate the Media, Entertainment & Arts Alliance (MEAA) in condemning and expressing strong outrage over the Australian Federal Police (AFP abandoning their war crimes investigation into the murder of five Australian journalists in Balibo, East Timor in 1975.
Last week, following the 39th anniversary of the killings, MEAA and the IFJ expressed their concerns over the slow progression of the AFP investigation following reports that the AFP were yet to ask Indonesian authorities to help pursue the people responsible for the murders of the Balibo Five.
In 2009, the AFP launched a war crimes investigation into…
According to reports, Medina (53), a regional correspondent for Paraguay's largest independent newspaper, ABC Color, was returning from a reporting trip outside the eastern city of Curuguaty, when his vehicle was stopped by two gunmen on a motorcycle. He was shot four times and died at the scene. His assistant Antonia Maribel Almada, 19, was also killed in the attack. Four suspects are said to have been detained.
IFJ joins its regional group FEPALC (Federation of Journalists from Latin America and The Caribbean) to express its deep dismay about the murder of the Paraguayan journalist, Pablo Medina Velásquez.
Read the whole statement in Spanish.
For more information, please contact IFJ on + 32 2 235 22 17
The IFJ represents more than 600 000 journalists in 134 countries
The International Federation has joined its regional group, the Federation of Journalists in Latin America and the Caribbean (FEPALC), to express its deep shock at the murder of Paraguayan journalist, Pablo Medina Velasquez.
According to reports, Medina, 53, a regional correspondent for Paraguay's largest independent newspaper, ABC Color, was returning from a reporting trip outside the eastern city of Curuguaty last Thursday, 16 October, when his vehicle was stopped by two gunmen on a motorcycle. He was shot four times and died at the scene. His assistant Antonia Maribel Almada, 19, was also killed in the attack. Four suspects are said to have been detained.
FEPALC says Medina’s…
La Federación de Periodistas de América Latina y el Caribe (FEPALC) se encuentra profundamente consternada por el asesinato del periodista Pablo Medina Velásquez, corresponsal del diario ABC Color en la localidad paraguaya de Curuguaty, quien había recibido numerosas amenazas por su trabajo como reportero.
Con Pablo Medina, son tres los periodistas asesinados en Paraguay. Los crímenes que terminaron con la vida de los comunicadores sociales Edgar Fernández Fleitas y Fausto Gabriel Alcaraz permanecen en completa impunidad.
La FEPALC demanda al Estado paraguayo a cumplir con su responsabilidad de investigar con celeridad y a profundidad este crimen, identificar de manera fehaciente a…
The International Federation of Journalists (IFJ) joins its affiliates the Federation of Nepali Journalists (FNJ) and the Nepal Press Union (NPU) in expressing concern over an attack on journalist and FNJ office staff on October 19, 2014 in Jhapa, eastern Nepal.
About dozen people attacked journalist Rejina Gautam Rodan, a correspondent of local Arjundhara daily and executive editor of Jana Andolan weekly along with Khemraj Gautam, office staff of FNJ’s local chapter. They were returning home from office at round 9pm when the attackers intercepted them at Sanishchare Road in Birtamod and attacked them with sharp weapons.
They have sustained serious injuries to the head and are…
The International Federation of Journalists (IFJ) joins its affiliates the Free Media Movement (FMM) and the Sri Lanka Working Journalists Association (SLWJA) in condemning death threats issued to some of the journalists who participated in the concluding ceremony of journalism training on October 15, 2014 in the capital Colombo.
The training was organized by Transparency International Sri Lanka and a number of participants including Jayasiri Jayasekara, Janoor Kichilan and Amadoru Amarajeewa, training organizers Shan Wijethunga and Ravaya consultant editor Victor Ivan all received threatening text messages. The message, sent by so-called Rata Rakagath Deshapremee Balakyaa (literally the…
The International Federation of Journalists (IFJ) joins the Pakistan Federal Union of Journalists (PFUJ) in strongly critcising the decision by the Pakistan Electronic Media Regulatory Authority (PERMA) to suspend the broadcasting license of ARY News TV channel on October 20, 2014.
The PERMA said the 15-day suspension of license was effective immediately and also imposed a fine of Rs.10 million (approximately USD 97,000).
The decision by PERMA came after the Lahore High Court’s directive on October 17 to stop broadcasting the talk show Khara Sach hosted by anchor Mubashar Lucman. The program is suspended until the final verdict is handed down, on theindictment against ARY…
Serena Shim
The female correspondent for Press TV in Turkey was killed in a car accident on the Turkish- Syrian border. She was returning from an assignment in Suruç, a rural district of Şanlıurfa Province of Turkey when her car collided with a truck.
Ms Shim, a US national of Lebanese origin and mother of two who covered conflicts for Press TV in Lebanon, Iraq and Ukraine, was covering the fighting in Kobane, a city near the Turkish border. In a statement, Press TV said that Serena Shim had told the channel that the "Turkish intelligence agency had accused her of spying probably due to some of the stories she had covered about Turkey’s stance on the ISIL terrorists in…
The International Federation of Journalists (IFJ) joins its affiliate the Aliansi Jurnalis Independen (AJI) in welcoming the Indonesia’s new President, Joko Widodo, and requesting his earliest attention to the case of two French journalists who have been in detention in Indonesia for the past two months. The trial of the French journalists begins today, following their arrest in in West Papua for “abusive use of entry visas”.
Today, the IFJ again called on the Indonesian government to dismiss the charges against Thomas Dandois and Valentine Bourrat as a matter of urgency as it issued a letter to the new president calling for clemency in the case. AJI also requested a more open and…
The International Federation of Journalists (IFJ) joins the Bangladesh Manobadhikar Sangbadik Forum (BMSF) in condemning the assault on journalist Abdullah Al Noman in the capital Dhaka on Thursday, October 16, 2014.
According to reports, the cadres of the Bangladesh Chhatra League (BCL), a wing of the ruling party the Bangladesh Awami League, attacked Noman in front of MC College auditorium. Normal is the Sylhet correspondent of Banglanews24.com. It is alleged that approximately ten BCL cadres beat the journalist indiscriminately with sticks and belts, leaving him injured. Students from the MC College took him to MAG Osmani Medical College Hospital for medical treatment.
Noman had…
The International Federation of Journalists (IFJ) opposes the decision by the Chinese authorities to temporarily shut down a Xian-focused website without explanation.
On October 19, the Tencent Xian website was ordered to shut down for seven days. The local Internet Information Service Office gave no reason for the decision, but many Mainland media outlets suggested the website may have allowed “malignant or harmful” messages. Such content would breach the Provisions for the Administration of Internet News Information Services. However, none of the media articles reported the details of any particular content, or said which provisions had been breached.
The IFJ Asia-Pacific Office said:…
The International Federation of Journalists (IFJ) has joined its Korean affiliate, the Journalists Association of Korea (JAK) to express its continued anger at the case of the reporters who have been dismissed from YTN and MBC - a case which has remained unresolved for many years.
The JAK has stated that it is "painful" to watch these highly respected Korean journalists suffer unfair dismissal from the organisations to which they showed so much dedication and commitment.
The IFJ strongly demands that Korea's Park Geun-hye government, which has been expressing its determination to “normalise the abnormal” and “bring national unity,” acts…
The Federation of African Journalists (FAJ), the Africa regional group of the International Federation of Journalists (IFJ), has today called on the Ethiopia Government to free all journalists jailed and to allow the exiled journalists to come back and work for the mother country, Ethiopia.
The FAJ made this call while mourning the untimely death of exiled Ethiopian journalist, Million Shurube, who passed away at the Kenyatta National Hospital in Nairobi (Kenya), on Monday, 13 October, 2014 after a brief illness.
“We offer our heartfelt sympathies to the family of Shurube and the entire journalists’ fraternity in Ethiopia”, said the President of the Federation of African Journalists…
The Federation of African Journalists (FAJ) the Africa regional group of the International Federation of Journalists (IFJ) has today called on the Ethiopia Government to free all journalists jailed and to allow the exiled journalists to come back and work for the mother country, Ethiopia. The FAJ made this call while mourning the untimely death of exiled Ethiopian journalist, Million Shurube, who passed away at the Kenyatta National Hospital in Nairobi (Kenya), on Monday, 13 October, 2014 after a brief illness.
“We offer our heartfelt sympathies to the family of Shurube and the entire journalists’ fraternity in Ethiopia”, said the President of the Federation of African Journalists…
El despido de 35 trabajadores del área de Operaciones (Prensa y talleres) del GrupoCopesa profundizó la situación de inestabilidad laboral que afronta el personal de los distintos medios de comunicación y empresas relacionadas que forman parte del consorcio periodístico de propiedad del empresario Alvaro Saieh, y que en la suma global significa que 479 personas han sido desvinculadas del holding entre el 10 de septiembre de 2013 y el 1 de octubre de este año.
Y esto, sin considerar el centenar de trabajadores exonerados a raíz del fallido proyecto 3TV, con una millonaria pérdida económica para el grupo periodístico.
La pérdida de su fuente de sustento de los trabajadores pertenecientes…
Nuevamente es atacado el periodismo paraguayo con mensajes de terror y muerte. El colega Pablo Medina, corresponsal del diario ABC Color en Curuguaty, fue víctima de un atentado que le costó la vida hoy, jueves, a unos 45 kilómetros de Curuguaty, departamento de Canindeyú, al noreste de Asunción.
El compañero Medina fue el nuevo blanco del asesinato por encargo y otra vez la frontera se tiñe de sangre de un trabajador de la comunicación. Recibió varios impactos de bala de calibre 9 milímetro cuando fue emboscado por dos personas vestidas de camuflaje. La mayoría de los balazos los recibió en la cara y en el pecho, y los disparos se hicieron a corta distancia, según el informe…
The European Federation of Journalists (EFJ) together with the International Partnership Group on Azerbaijan (IPGA) has called on the Azerbaijani authorities to lift the travel ban imposed on investigative journalist, Khadija Ismayilova and cease all legal proceedings against her.
Against the backdrop of the unprecedented crackdown on civil society, Khadija Ismayilova’s arrest on criminal defamation charges seems imminent and would confirm the authorities’ intent to silence all critical voices in the country.
The EFJ, as part of the International Partnership Group on Azerbaijan (IPGA), including APC, ARTICLE 19, the Committee to Protect Journalists, Index on Censorship,…
The International Federation of Journalists (IFJ) and its affiliates the Indian Union of Journalists (IJU) urge the Jagaran Prakashan Limited, the publisher of Dainik Jagaran, and state government of Jammu and Kashmir of India to provide compensation to family of late photojournalist Shafat Sidiq.
Well-known photojournalist of Kashmir Sidiq, 40, was on assignment for Dainik Jagran, a Hindi daily when he went missing in the floods on September 7. His body, with his cameras still hanging around his neck, was found five days later.
He is survived by wife Yasmeen, 18-month-old son Mohammad, ailing father Mohammad Sidiq, mother Saleema and two sisters. His family was dependent on his earning.…
The International Federation of Journalists (IFJ) joins the Pakistan Federal Union of Journalists (PFUJ) in expressing deep concern over the legal course against ARY News channel’s CEO and its anchor over a broadcasting of a program that challenged Pakistan’s judiciary.
The Supreme Court of Pakistan on October 13 decided to prosecute the chief executive of the private television network, Salman Iqbal, and the program anchor, Mubashir Lucman, indicting them for airing ‘scandalous and defamatory programs against the judiciary’.
According to reports, a three-judge bench headed by Justice Ejaz Afzal observed that a talk on ARY ‘Khara Such’ aired on May 29, 2014 and the reply submitted by the…
The International Federation of Journalists (IFJ) is deeply concerned that Hong Kong police beat up a journalist and brutally attacked a pro-democracy protester while breaking up a demonstration. With pressure mounting on media in its coverage of the Occupy protests, the IFJ has expressed reservations on press freedoms with reports that Hong Kong’s largest free-to-air television station, TVB, is suspected of self-censoring its report on the treatment of the protestor.
In the early hours of October 15, hundreds of Hong Kong police used pepper spray and batons to evict democracy protesters from Lung Wo Road, Admiralty. The protestors occupied the road after police cleared them out of other…
The International Federation of Journalists (IFJ) joins its affiliate the Media, Entertainment & Arts Alliance (MEAA) expressing strong concern that the Australian Federal Police (AFP) hasn’t yet asked Indonesian authorities to help prosecute the people responsible for the murder of the Balibo Five. Yesterday marked the 39th anniversary of the murder of Australian journalists Brian Peters, Malcolm Rennie, Tony Stewart, Gary Cunningham and Greg Shackleton in Balibo, East Timor.
In 2009, the AFP announced that it would conduct a war crimes investigation into the deaths of the Balibo Five. This came after the NSW Deputy Coroner Dorelle Pinch’s 2007 inquest into Brian Peter’s death had…
Welcome to the e-bulletin of the South Asia Media Solidarity Network (SAMSN). The next bulletin will be sent on November 17, 2014, and your inputs are most welcome.
We encourage contributions to let others know what you are doing; to seek solidarity and support from other SAMSN members on your campaigns and activities. To contribute, email Ujjwal Acharya at: [email protected]
Please feel free to distribute this bulletin widely among colleagues in the media.
In this bulletin:
1. Jailed Pakistani journalist freed in Afghanistan
2. Two journalists assassinated in separate incidents in Punjab, Pakistan
3. UNESCO gender research…
Surveillance in the UK is having a hugely negative effect on the ability of journalists to work in the public interest and protect their sources, the International Federation of Journalists (IFJ) has stated.
Recent reports show that the UK’s Met Police obtained a journalist's phone records to identify confidential sources directly. The IFJ believes this action is a clear attack on freedom of expression as defined by international humanitarian law.
The Federation says the climate of secrecy around mass surveillance activities means that sources will be less likely to contact journalists as they cannot know when they might be monitored or how intercepted information might be used against…
The EFJ has sent a joint letter to the European Commission along with twelves other authors’ organisations representing the creative workforce demanding the Commission to create a special private copying levy on cloud computing services. The call came after the Directorate General of the Commission responsible for Digital Agenda (DG CONNECT) in Europe launched a public consultation regarding cloud computing.
The group explained that copies made via cloud computing services have the same purpose (private use) as the copies made by private individuals on their phones, tablets, USB sticks. Therefore, they should be subject to the same levy system applied to copying devices.…
The Journalists’ Union of Finland has concluded a new collective agreement for around 4500 journalists and media workers in the print media and news agencies in the country. ‘‘I congratulate our affiliate on the successful negotiation of the new collective agreement under the challenging environment,’’ said Ricardo Gutierrez, EFJ General Secretary.The new agreement will cover journalists working for online news website and media which was challenged by the employers. Although the union has made a small victory for the salary of journalists by achieving a moderate increase of 1.34% after 26 months, the union has successfully rejected the proposal to reduce the number of holidays for…
Every worker is entitled to the right to strike which is guaranteed by the EU Charter on Fundamental Rights and the constitutions in many EU countries. However, Germany will challenge this right by proposing a new law to limit the right to strike. According to the proposal, only the union with the most members in a company should have the right to negotiate with the employers and carry out strike actions. This would mean that larger unions will have a monopoly of power, making the smaller unions practically superfluous.The EFJ affiliates in Germany, DJV and DJU. Verdi, are joining forces to oppose such a proposal. Michael Konken, Chairman of the Journalists’ Union of German (DJV) said,…
The International Federation of Journalists (IFJ) has joined its affiliate the EPMU New Zealand in criticising the police harassment of an investigative journalist Nicky Hager and has called on police to abandon their harassment and investigation of the journalist.
On Thursday, October 2, six police officers raided Hager’s home to search and seize property. The aim of the search was to identify the person who provided information used in his recent book Dirty Politics. Hager’s book was released in August 2014 and describes the dirty tricks campaign run by the New Zealand National Party to attack and smear its political opponents. The book shows how senior politicians used apparent…
The International Federation of Journalists (IFJ) is deeply outraged by the abduction of three female journalists in the capital of Papua New Guinea (PNG), Port Moresby, on Monday night. While one woman escaped, the two remaining women were raped in the shocking attack on October 13. The IFJ condemns this attack and joins the Pacific Freedom Forum (PFF) in calling for swift and decisive action by the PNG Police and Government and demands PNG media companies act to immediately ensure the safety and security of female staff.
According to reports, a bus doing evening drop-offs for staff from the National Broadcasting Corporation (NBC) was taken over by a group of armed-men near a settlement…
The International Federation of Journalists (IFJ) has joined its affiliate, the National Union of Somali Journalists (NUSOJ), to strongly condemn the attempted murder of senior Somali journalist and TV personality, Abdirisak Jama Elmi (Black), on Sunday, October 12.
According to reports, Elmi, director of Somali Channel TV office in Mogadishu, was attacked when he was leaving his house in Howl-Wadag district. The TV journalist was hit by three bullets at the back and stomach, and is receiving treatment at Mogadishu’s Madina hospital.
“This is the latest example of the continued abuse of journalists and media workers in Somalia and the ongoing attempts to undermine press freedom and…
The International Federation of Journalists (IFJ) has condemned hacking attacks against Hong Kong media outlets computer systems and the series of harassing phone calls received by journalists in some of Hong Kong’s major media. The IFJ said these attacks constituted an attempt to intimidate and silence journalists and should not be tolerated by a government that claims its endorses press freedom.
Since the beginning of the Occupy Movement in Hong Kong on September 28, Hong Kong media have been receiving a variety of harassments, including physical, verbal and, more recently, technological assaults. As the IFJ reported yesterday, Apple Daily a pro-democracy Chinese language…
The International Federation of Journalists (IFJ) has called on the Chief Executive of Hong Kong, Leung Chun-ying, to be more open and transparent in his dealings with the media in light of the current Occupy Movement protests and a scandal involving his personal financial dealings. With the protests now entering their third week, the IFJ reminds Leung, that as Chief Executive, he has a responsibility to uphold Article 27 of Chapter 3 of Hong Kong’s Basic Law, which guarantees freedom of speech, press and publication.
On October 10, Leung Chun-ying approached free-to-air television service, the Hong Kong Television Broadcaster (TVB), to appear in an interview on the night of October 11.…
The International Federation of Journalists (IFJ) has reiterated its deep fear for the safety of journalists reporting in Syria and Iraq following the brutal murder of Iraqi journalist Raad al-Azzawi by the so called IS group.
According to reports, IS terrorists publicly executed news cameraman al-Azzawi, along with his brother and two other civilians in the city of Samra, east of Tikrit, on Friday, 10 October. Azzawi, 37, worked for the local news channel Sama Salaheddin. Reports say he was executed because he refused to work for IS.
The Iraqi Journalists Syndicate (IJS) has joined the IFJ to condemn the murder and has called for action to find those responsible and bring them…
The European Federation of Journalists (EFJ) urges Slovenian prosecutors to immediately drop the criminal charges against Anuška Delić, an investigative reporter for Delo, a leading Slovenian daily. She is accused of publishing classified state intelligence. She faces up to three years in prison just for having done her job. The trial against her is expected to begin on Wednesday 15 October, in Slovenia.
In 2011, Anuška Delić wrote a series of articles, just before the Slovenian parliamentary elections, in which she uncovered alleged connections between the Slovenian neo-Nazi group Blood & Honour and members of the Slovenian Democratic Party (SDS).
The Slovenian Intelligence and…
The cameraman for Sama Salaheddin, a local TV channel based in Samra, east of the city of Tikrit, was killed by the militants of the so-called Islamic State( IS). The Iraq Union of Journalists ( IJS), an IFJ affiliate, condemned the murder of Raad who was kidnapped by the group in September 2014.
AFP quoted local sources as saying that Raad was targeted because he worked for a government media and the ‘jihadists’ had been tipped off by local people. He was killed along with his brother and two other civilians, the sources added.
Skopje Conclusions
Campaigning for Journalists Rights in Eastern Europe: Union Recruitment, Legal protection and Social Rights
6-7 October 2014 Skopje, MACEDONIA
Journalists unions from across the former Soviet Union and South East Europe gathered to debate the status of journalism, union organising and violations and safety of journalists rights across the region.
The meeting was the third joint IFJ / EFJ meeting in the region to build greater collaboration and support for journalists unions across Europe. Discussions focused on labour rights, new forms of organising and recruitment, union campaigning, legal defense and new digital tools.
The meeting started by…
The International Federation of Journalists (IFJ) criticizes the actions of protestors, illegally blocking the entrances of the Next Media building and harassing journalists over two days. With Occupy Movement demonstrations continuing in Hong Kong, the IFJ has again called on protesters to respect media rights and the free flow of information.
On October 11, more than a dozen protestors assembled outside the offices of Next Media, a pro-democracy media group, at Tseung Kwan O in Hong Kong. Three cars, including a goods trunk, were parked at the front entrance, preventing vehicles from leaving to deliver newspapers.
The following day, on October 12, dozens of protestors continued to…
The International Federation of Journalists (IFJ) joins its affiliate the Cambodian Association for the Protection of Journalists (CAPJ) in expressing outrage over the shooting murder of a Cambodian journalist in Ksiem Krao village, in the Snoul district of Kratie province in northeastern Cambodia on Sunday. Two police and one armed forces soldier have been arrested for the murder and the IFJ has called on the Cambodian government to put all efforts to securing justice for the killed journalist and his family.
Early on Sunday, October 13, Traing Try, a 49-year-old journalist who specialized in covering the illegal timber trade industry was shot dead in his vehicle. According to reports,…
The International Federation of Journalists (IFJ) and the European Federation of Journalists (EFJ) have joined international calls for the 20 Syrian-Kurdish journalists and media workers detained by Turkish military forces to be released with immediate effect.
The journalists were forced to leave the city of Kobani, northern Syria, after fighting intensified between Kurdish forces protecting the city and IS forces. They were among 265 Kurds who crossed the border to seek refuge in Turkey where they were taken into custody by Turkish authorities. They have now been detained in Turkey for five days.
The journalists and media workers are known to work for media outlets that are active in…
The International Federation of Journalists (IFJ) and the National Union of Journalists (NUJ) are holding an international conference, hosted by Guardian News & Media, to discuss key concerns for press freedom and to explore practical steps for safeguarding journalists and their sources.
The conference takes place on Thursday 16 October 2014 at Kings Place in London from 09.00 – 17.00 and will bring together journalists and media workers from around the world, politicians, trade unionists, lawyers, civil rights and privacy campaigners.
Some of the themes that will be explored on the day include:
Big Brother is watching you: Mass surveillance of…
The International Federation of Journalists (IFJ) has strongly criticised the indictment this week of a Japanese journalist on charges that he defamed South Korea’s President, Park Geun-hye. The decision has received widespread criticism globally and the IFJ said the extreme response by Korean prosecutors casts a pall on the country’s press freedom record.
Tatsuya Kato, a 48-year-old journalist and the former Seoul bureau chief of Japanese newspaper Sankei Shimbun, was charged with defamation on Wednesday, October 8 after the Seoul Central District Prosecutors’ Office concluded an article written by the journalist was based on ‘false information’. The article, published on August 3,…
The International Federation of Journalists (IFJ) joins its affiliate the Cambodian Association for the Protection of Journalists (CAPJ) in welcoming the commencement of the trial into the brutal slaying of a journalist in January this year. However, with the trial is being conducted with the alleged killers in absentia, the IFJ has called on the Cambodian government to put all efforts to locating the those on trial to bring them forward to face justice.
On January 31, 2014, journalist Suon Chan was set upon by a mob of fishermen in Cholkiri district’s Peam Chhkork commune. The 44-year-old reporter for Khmer language newspaper Meakea Kampuchea was on his way home when he was attacked by…
La Federación Argentina de Trabajadores de Prensa (FATPREN) repudia enérgicamente la brutal represión policial de la que fueran víctimas en la ciudad de La Plata, este miércoles 8 de octubre por la tarde, Trabajadores de Prensa entre los que se encontraban un grupo de despedidos del Diario HOY, frente a las instalaciones de ese matutino y también el dirigente de nuestra organización Flavio Frangolini -Prosecretario de Interior-, que fuera detenido y golpeado junto a otros cuatro manifestantes.La FATPREN denuncia públicamente este hecho, teniendo en cuenta que es la primera vez en la historia del sindicalismo de prensa que una protesta pacífica de Trabajadores del sector es reprimida…
The European Federation of Journalists (EFJ) has called for authorities in Macedonia to drop all charges against the journalist Tomislav Kezarovski – who has now been held under house arrest for over a year.
In 2013, Kezarovski was sentenced to 4.5 years in prison by a tribunal in Skopje for writing investigative articles for the magazine Reporter 92. He is currently under house arrest, unemployed and living in very difficult conditions.
The EFJ has sent a letter to Andrej Lepavcov, the Ambassador of the Republic of Macedonia to the European Union, calling for Macedonian authorities to bring an end to all the “absurd” judicial prosecutions against Kezarovski, stating that he is…
The International Federation of Journalists (IFJ) joins its affiliate the National Union of Journalists, of the Philippines (NUJP) in declaring support and solidarity for Radio Mindanao Network (RMN) colleagues who have taken industrial action against management.
Members of the Davao Employee’s Union-National Federation of Labor Unions- Kilusang Mayo launched strike action on Thursday, October 2, temporarily suspending operations of the network’s AM and FM stations. The strike followed 15 ‘grueling’ conciliation conferences between management and staff to resolve negotiations for their Collection Bargaining Agreement (CBA).
According to reports, the union has accused RNM…
The International Federation of Journalists (IFJ) joins its affiliate the Cambodian Association for the Protection of Journalists (CAPJ) in welcoming the commencement of the trial into the brutal slaying of a journalist in January this year.
On January 31, 2014, Suon Chan was set upon by a mob of fishermen after he left his house in Cholkiri district’s Peam Chhkork commune. Chan, a 44-year-old reporter for the Khmer language Meakea Kampuchea newspaperwas on his way home when he was set upon by the mob of six men. He was attacked by stones and bamboo sticks in the violent onslaught that was witnessed by his son. Initially treated at a provincial hospital, Suan Chan later died from his…
Welcome to IFJ Asia-Pacific’s monthly Press Freedom in China Campaign e-bulletin. The next bulletin will be sent on November 8.
To contribute news or information, email [email protected]. To visit the IFJ’s China Campaign page, go to www.ifj.org.
Click here to read in Traditional Chinese
Click here to read in Simplified Chinese
In this bulletin:
1. Hong Kong Occupy Movement suffers crackdown
2. Armed man attacks three staff at Hong Kong Cable Television
3. Xinjiang Government delays reporting on another brutal attack
4. Two more senior managers of 21st Century Business Herald arrested
5. …
The International Federation of Journalists (IFJ) is calling on its affiliates across the world to support the fundamental ‘Right to Strike’ of workers which is coming under attack from employers' representatives at the International Labour Organisation (ILO).
The IFJ is urging its affiliates to lobby the governments of their countries to support the workers' campaign to protect the right to strike under international law.
In particular, the IFJ calls on affiliates from countries whose governments are represented on the ILO Governing Body, either as a titular or deputy member, to back the proposal of referring the dispute on the right to strike to the International Court of Justice.…
The International Federation of Journalists (IFJ) joins its affiliate the Hong Kong Journalists Association (HKJA) in strongly condemning the brutal attacks by thugs and anti-Occupy Movement protesters against several journalists in Mong Kok, Kowloon, Hong Kong on October 3 and 4.
On Friday, October 3, a number of anti-Occupy Movement protesters, including the leader of the Anti-Occupy civil group entered the area at the juncture of Nathan Road and Argyle Street in Kowloon and Causeway Bay, where a number of Occupy Movement protesters remained since the beginning of the protests a week earlier. The Anti-Occupy protesters were there to attempt to force the eviction of the protesters. A…
The International Federation of Journalists (IFJ) joins the National Union of Journalists of the Philippines (NUJP) in calling for security protection for a journalist who has received death threats following a misunderstanding with the Vice Governor of Bulacan, on the island of Luzon, in the Philippines.
Rommel Ramos, a news stringer with GMA 7, requested for security detail from the Philippine National Police on Tuesday, October 7 following a number of death threats he received over a six day period.
The threats followed a meeting last week, on Wednesday October 1, when Ramos met with the Vice Governor of Bulacan, Daniel Fernando, in a restaurant following a misunderstanding a few…
The Federation of African Journalists (FAJ) says it is outraged and deeply concerned about the serious deterioration of press freedom in Congo - Brazzaville.
In the space of a week two journalists have been expelled, an act that is a blow to the free exercise of the profession of journalism.
Read the full article in French
Media workers across the world continue to bear the heavy burden of instability and poor working conditions, the International Federation of Journalists (IFJ) has stated today as it marks the World Day for Decent Work.
Amid the deepening crisis in the journalism profession, employment conditions continue to worsen as media owners cut into labour rights and employment security in order to protect profit margins in a changing market, says the IFJ.
Basic rights to union representation and collective bargaining are under threat in many countries and under direct attack in others. Employers are even trying to undermine the right to strike, by challenging decades of legal recognition…
The International Federation of Journalists (IFJ) has joined Iranian journalists in a renewed call for the President of Iran, Hassan Rouhani, to show courage and follow up on his election promises by proving his respect for media freedom and freedom of association.
The IFJ has joined its affiliate, the Association of Iranian Journalists (AoIJ) and journalists from across Iran in a united appeal to President Rouhani to stop interfering in the way journalists organise themselves and to allow the Tehran offices of the AoIJ – closed since August 2009 – to be reopened.
The IFJ has also urged the President to scrap government plans to establish a new guild for Iranian journalists, a move…
Unknown gunmen shot dead Yaqoob Shehzad while he visited the office of a friend in the city’s busiest neighbourhood of Sagar Road. Shehzad, a correspondent of TV channelExpress News, was shot in the head three times and was pronounced dead upon arrival at a hospital. According to eyewitnesses, the gunmen arrived at the office and opened indiscriminate fire, which injured an office assistant. The assailants fled from the scene immediately.
Shehzad, a father of four, had been working with Express News since the channel was launched in 2008. He was also the chairperson of the Hafizabad Press Club.
Journalists Unions attending the IFJ/EFJ meeting for affiliates in Eastern Europe held in Macedonia expressed concern about the fate of up to eight Ukrainian journalists who went missing, believed to be detained against their will in the territory of the self-proclaimed Donetsk and Lugansk People's Republic.
Participants condemned the detention of media workers as unacceptable and called for those responsible to ensure their immediate release. Such actions violate basic human rights and have a negative impact on the state of freedom of speech.
While participants welcomed the recent release of blogger Dmitry Potekhina and Yegor Vorobyov, they also call for Ukraine and Russian…
Journalists Unions attending the IFJ/EFJ meeting for affiliates in Eastern Europe held in Macedonia lent their support to the Trade union of Macedonian Media Workers and Association of Journalists of Macedonia’s demand for urgent media reform.
Primarily they called for the immediate release of Tomislav Kazarovski, the investigative journalist who was handed a 4.5 year jail term in 2013 for allegedly publishing the name of a protected witness. He was arrested and charged after publishing investigations into the mysterious death of the editor of Fokus magazine in a car crash. The charges however relate to an article he had written 5 years earlier citing a ‘protective witness’ who had gone…
To mark the Wold Day for Decent Work, we condemn all attempts to intimidate journalists for their union activity.
Participants at the meeting participants heard reports from union leaders in Macedonia, Turkey and Montenegro who had all been fired from their jobs as a result of their union activity.
Tamara Chausidis, President of the Trade Union of Macedonia Journalists and Media Workers (SSNM) lost her job four years ago shortly after becoming union President after being tricked into signing a blank document on her contract. A few days later, the employers filled the blank space with a termination of contract clause and informed her that her employment was now terminated. Despite the…
‘‘Journalists’ and their organisations must be the driving force for the future of journalism’’ – this is the notion highlighted in the study published by the European Federation of Journalists (EFJ) today about finding ways to sustain quality journalism.
Authored by Andreas K. Bittner, the study on Confronting Austerity: Financial and Employment Models in Journalism was the result of a one-year project carried out by the EFJ to find out how journalists and their organisations can confront the crisis and respond to / take advantage of the rapidly changing media landscape.
Responses collected from 42 EFJ affiliates across Europe show that some organisations have developed measures…
The International Federation of Journalists (IFJ) joins its affiliate the Pakistan Federal Union of Journalists (PFUJ) in strongly deploring the murders of two journalists in two separate incidents in Hafizabad, Punjab province, in recent days. With the tally of journalists killed in Pakistan now reaching 13 this year, the IFJ has demanded that the Pakistan government must take serious action on protecting the country’s media workers and heed global calls to tackle the country’s shocking impunity problem before more lives are lost.
Pakistan grimly leads the world in the killing of journalists in 2014, according to IFJ figures. The IFJ Killed list now places Pakistan as the most deadly…
Reports say that the BBC team was filming protests by local and Syrian Kurds on the Turkish-Syrian border, near the city of Kobane, came under attack from Turkish police. As the team was leaving the area, Turkish police fired two canisters towards them from close range. One of the canisters smashed into the team’s car, correspondents said.
The van filled with tear gas and the curtains and upholstery started to catch fire, the BBC team was quoted as saying. The team’s driver and safety adviser reportedly put the fire out.
The International Federation of Journalists (IFJ) has condemned the attack.
Read more on : www.ifj.org
En año electoral periodistas son atacados por denunciar hechos de corrupciónUn total de 70 atentados se han cometido contra los periodistas peruanos en lo que va del 2014, alerta el informe preparado por la Oficina de Derechos Humanos del Periodista (OFIP), de la Asociación Nacional de Periodistas del Perú (ANP).Se reporta un asesinato, 37 casos de agresiones físicas y verbales. También 16 amenazas/hostigamientos, cuatro presiones jurídicas, seis trabas al ejercicio periodístico, dos a la circulación de la información, dos secuestros, un robo y una presión administrativa. La OFIP informa que los atentados fueron perpetrados por civiles (29), seguido por policía/ militar/ serenazgo…
The International Federation of Journalists (IFJ) and the European Federation of Journalists (EFJ) have condemned a violent tear gas attack on a BBC team by Turkish police yesterday.
According to media reports, the BBC team was filming protests by local and Syrian Kurds on the Turkish-Syrian border, near Kobane. As the team were leaving the protests Turkish police fired two canisters towards them from close range. One of the canisters smashed into the team’s car, filling it was gas.
The van filled with tear gas and the BBC team says the curtains and upholstery started to catch fire. The team’s driver and safety adviser put the fire out and no one was hurt.
“We strongly condemn this…
Today, the International Federation of Journalists (IFJ), and the European Federation of Journalists (EFJ), together with their affiliates, the Association of Journalists of Macedonia (ZNM) and the Trade Union of Macedonian Journalists (SSNM) issued a set of urgent demands necessary to set free Macedonian journalism and enable a culture of independence and quality journalism to flourish.
Central to the demands was a call for an end to the prosecution of our colleague Tomislav Kezarovski, jailed in 2013 for 4,5 years for allegedly revealing the identity of a protected witness.
At a press conference held in Skopje this morning Tamara Causidis, President of SSNM, Naser Selmani,…
The International Federation of Journalists has called on the Pakistani government to take every step necessary to bring the murderers of journalist Nadeem Hyder to swift justice.
According to reports, Nadeem, a correspondent for Dunya News, was shot dead by two unknown assailants who in the town of Hafizabad last Friday, 3 October. The killers fled the scene. Local police are said to have registered the case and begun an investigation.
President of the Pakistan Federal Union of Journalists (PFUJ), Rana Azeem, has condemned the killing of yet another journalist in the country and reiterated the plea for increased protection for media personnel.
Threats and attacks against…
