Thorn in the side of the predators of press freedom

"A story with a happy ending," was how UNESCO Director-General Irina Bokova described the Award Ceremony at the 2010 World Press Freedom Day conference in Brisbane on Monday when she presented Chilean journalist Gonzales Mujica with the UNESCO/Guillermo Cano World Press Freedom prize.

For, unlike so many journalists working in difficult areas, Gonzales Mujica survived to be present to receive the award.

“Throughout her professional life, Mónica González Mujica has shown courage in shining the light on the dark side of Chile,” said the jury president, Joe Thloloe, Press Ombudsman of the Press Council of South Africa. She had embodied the very spirit of the award. She had been jailed, tortured and hauled before the courts but remained steadfast. Ms Bokova described her as “a heroine of the struggle against dictatorship in her country”.

Delegates at the conference observed a minute's silence in memory of journalists and other media professionals who lost their lives while doing their job. The theme of the conference was “Freedom of information: the right to know”.

While the scrutiny of the press was not always welcome, it is a fundamental and necessary part of any society whose government and institutions purport to be accountable. Is it not the press’s role to be a thorn in the side of the authorities, at every level of society? UNESCO Director-General Irina Bokova asked. 

Co-operating with the media by giving them the facts – in other words, “freedom of information” - is essential to press freedom, she said. “It is not enough for governments and organisations to provide access to information. Journalists are essential to our enjoyment of the “right to know”, and they must therefore be able to work in an environment conducive to free and independent reporting”, she said.

“Once again, this year, a shadow is cast over our celebration of World Press Freedom Day. I am of course referring to the ill-treatment of journalists. Last year, UNESCO condemned the killing of 77 journalists. Most of these were not war casualties – they were local reporters going about their everyday business of covering the news.

“Countless other journalists all over the world continue to endure harassment, intimidation or physical assault in the course of defending our right to know. We cannot help but be overcome with indignation and concern that serious violations against press freedom persist - despite repeated international calls to end impunity for those who harm journalists. In the past decade, in eight out of ten cases, those responsible for murdering journalists were not brought to justice. This is simply unacceptable.

“I cannot emphasise strongly enough that national authorities have the primary obligation to prevent and punish crimes against journalists. Today, I call upon governments everywhere to assume this responsibility as a matter of urgency.

“The journalists who take the gravest of risks to keep us informed are truly remarkable people. In recognition of this, in 1997 our organisation established the UNESCO/Guillermo Cano World Press Freedom prize,” she said.

Freedom of expression is a fundamental human right but around the world, there were governments and those wielding power who find many ways to obstruct it, UN Secretary General Ban K-moon said in New York to mark the day.

“They impose high taxes on newsprint, making newspapers so expensive that people can’t afford to buy them. Independent radio and TV stations are forced off the air if they criticise government policy. The censors are also active in cyberspace, restricting the use of the Internet and new media.

“Some journalists risk intimidation, detention and even their lives, simply for exercising their right to seek, receive and impart information and ideas, through any media, and regardless of frontiers.”

He condemned the 77 murders last year and said the perpetrators must be brought to justice. All governments had a duty to protect those who work in the media.

“This protection must include investigating and prosecuting those who commit crimes against journalists. Impunity gives the green light to criminals and murderers, and empowers those who have something to hide. Over the long term, it has a corrosive and corrupting effect on society as a whole.”

He welcomed the global trend towards new laws which recognised the universal right to publicly held information. Unfortunately, these new laws did not always translate into action, he said. Requests for official information were often refused, or delayed, sometimes for years. At times, poor information management was to blame, but all too often, it happened because of a culture of secrecy and a lack of accountability.

“We must work to change attitudes and to raise awareness. People have a right to information that affects their lives, and states have a duty to provide this information. Such transparency is essential to good government,” he said

Reporters Without Borders reports that to date, in 2010 so far, nine journalists have been killed, 168 journalists imprisoned, nine media assistants imprisoned, as well as 120 Internet users, probably bloggers.

The RWB list of ”Predators of Press Freedom” was released on May 3, backed by a campaign advertisement produced by Saatchi & Saatchi agency, and on this year’s list are 40 names of predators, 40 politicians, government officials, religious leaders, militias and criminal organisations that cannot stand the press, treat it as an enemy, and directly attack journalists. They are powerful, dangerous, violent and above the law, says RWB.

RWB is launching a monthly video report in partnership with France’s Institut National de l’Audiovisuel. Using photos and video, each month’s report will examine the press freedom situation in one country or a particular aspect of press freedom. These are important means to fight predators of press freedom. There is need for more of them.

Asked in what ways the media could join with UNESCO to try to stop the numbers of journalists being killed for doing their job, Dr Abdul Waheed Khan, Assistant Director-General for Communication and Information, UNESCO at the conference, said UNESCO worked with NGOs and journalists’ organisations – and through events such as the Brisbane conference – to create wider awareness of the problem.

UNESCO had condemned the killing of 77 journalists in 2009 and was monitoring such crimes, he said. The monitoring included investigation of what outcomes there had been after a judicial process was instituted. In a March 25 media release, UNESCO described 2009 as one of the most dangerous years for media workers, stating governments needed to do more to protect journalists and to bring their killers to justice.

Dr Khan said in about 10 per cent of cases governments did not like it when UNESCO’s IPDC poked its nose in. But as member states of UNESCO’s International Programme for the Development of Communication (IPDC) they had voted for its establishment themselves.

On a separate tack, Dr Khan asked why did not the media report on the media itself? The media should be at the centre of the debate on freedom of information and freedom of expression, he said, but there appeared to be some taboo.

If the media was so important, why should it not be a very important part of the debate, he asked. The media reported very little of what was happening within the media itself, yet the media was not free of problems.

Dr Khan said there was corruption within the media in some places. It was not unknown for reporters to accept money to report an event or a story. For example, when in one country, he asked why there had not been more publicity about a vibrant training establishment in agriculture, he was told that the media in that area practiced ”envelopmentalism” journalism; (ie, payment was required). 

Some media organisations supported a particular political party and in some case political personalities owned media houses.  If media concentration resulted in few owners, even very professional journalists could be influenced by the culture of the house, knowing what you can and cannot do and how a story should be presented, he said.

Media monopolies could include newspapers, TV channel, radio stations and websites which meant monopolies take up more space, which in turn was subject to the influence of vested interests.

“Don’t we see media quality diminished for entertainment?” he asked. If it is the media that holds up a mirror to reflect the image of society, was that image not distorted?

A thought which suggests, that in addition to the physical violence which reporters face, other challenges, less obvious but invidious, are at work.  Personalities who control media monopolies are able to use entertainment and selective information in a variety of media formats to dumb down the wits, judgment and awareness of endless audiences. Especially through television programs, they can encourage lethargy of thinking and persuade people to see things in a particular perspective. The cynical phrase, ‘Bread and circuses’, continues to have considerable currency.

Declarations and resolutions are always welcome for they remind people of the gravity of the situations journalists can face to report the news. But UNESCO is armed only with a set of moral values, defined standards and the power of persuasion with which to confront dictators, criminals and wilful suppressors of information.  It is an unequal task. When the number of journalists killed mount up – 77 in 2009; 42 in 2008; 67 in 2007 - it can only be a source of appalling frustration for both UNESCO and media organisations trying to do something about it. 

Vivre the “Predators of Press Freedom” list and ilk activities, may they internationally flourish and blossom and spawn many others - to help bring the bastards to book.