The groups, representing and working with hundreds of thousands of journalists and media workers, said new pledges will only be credible if States immediately:
- Release all imprisoned journalists;
- Stop killing, attacking and denigrating journalists;
- Investigate and prosecute all murders of journalists.
They put forth 11 recommended commitments for States attending the Global Media Freedom Conference, hosted by the governments of the United Kingdom and Canada:
- Publicly condemn acts of violence against journalists and media freedom violations whenever they occur online or offline and ensure impartial, thorough, independent, effective and transparent investigations into all such incidents;
- Immediately and unconditionally release all journalists imprisoned for their work. Set up national multi-stakeholder expert panels to review all legislation that can be used to harass, imprison, or otherwise target journalists, and bring legislation in line with international freedom of expression standards, including by providing effective safeguards against abuse;
- Investigate all murders of journalists and media workers. Ensure that investigations are sufficiently and effectively resourced, timely, and re-opened if necessary. The aim should be to substantially increase the percentage of prosecution of all those responsible for the murders of journalists and media workers;
- Refrain from targeting and denigrating the media, online or offline;
- Adopt and fund the proposal made by the U.N. Special Rapporteur on Extrajudicial Killings to reinforce the capacity of the U.N. to investigate violence against journalists by establishing a standing instrument for the investigation of violent crimes against journalists and media workers targeted for their work;
- Ensure that all media workers, including newsgatherers, freelance reporters, citizen journalists, fixers, field producers, translators, and drivers, are included in any initiatives for the protection of journalists;
- Provide visas to journalists at risk to enable them to participate in safety training, and provide asylum when appropriate;
- Ban the export, sale, transfer, use, or servicing of privately developed surveillance tools, often used to target journalists, and facilitate the export and import of personal protective equipment (PPE) without military authorization;
- Expedite the implementation of effective access to information laws and practices, as agreed in target 16.10 of the Sustainable Development Goals, including by providing adequate funding and technological support and resourcing independent oversight;
- Commit to transparently expediting implementation of the U.N. Plan of Action on the Safety of Journalists and the Issue of Impunity, including through the establishment of effective national safety mechanisms and a stronger, more robust, accountable, and accessible political coordination of focal points in relevant U.N. agencies and programs;
- Support and sustain the work of the media community, civil society, and academia in the promotion and protection of media freedom, the safety of journalists, the financial and economic sustainability of media, an enabling and pluralistic media environment, and access to information, especially in time of digital disruptions.
On May 4, Israeli warplanes struck the building in Gaza where the office was located with at least five rockets following warning shots. No injuries or deaths were reported, but the building was destroyed.
“Israel’s attack on the office of Anadolu Agency in Gaza was a serious violation of international law. It is one of Israel’s many criminal attacks on journalists which aim to prevent documentation and reporting on Israel’s systematic policies of occupation, settler-colonialism, and apartheid against the Palestinian people,” she continued.
In an interview marking the BDS’ 14th anniversary, Awwad said it has always called for an extensive military embargo against Israel because of its denial of Palestinians’ rights and attacks especially on journalists in Gaza.
“We appeal to Turkey to take the lead in ending all military trade with Israel,” she said.
