Greek media will strike will hold a 24-hour strike starting from 6:00 am on Thursday until 6:00 am on Friday, following the general strike that has been scheduled by the country’s public and private sector unions, including the Panhellenic Federation of Journalists’ Unions (an EFJ affiliate), for Thursday 12 November. The strike for journalists covers all print media (newspapers and magazines), public broadcaster ERT and all private TV, radio and internet media, Athens-Macedonian News Agency, Secretariat General of Information and Communication and all Press Offices. The Journalists’ Union of the Athens Daily Newspapers (JUADN-ESIEA), also member of the EFJ, has called on its…

The European and International Federations of Journalists (EFJ-IFJ) and their affiliate the Journalists Union of Turkey (TGS) reviewed the implications for journalists and trade union rights following the victory of the Justice and Development Party (AKP) in the re-run of Turkey’s national elections this weekend, during a Press briefing at the Brussels Press Club, 5 November 2015. Anthony Bellanger IFJ General Secretary said that : “Before Sunday’s elections, to be a journalist in Turkey wasn’t easy but now it will be even more difficult. Turkey was the biggest prison for journalists in Europe with around 20 journalists still held in prisons…

The European Federation of Journalists (EFJ) has expressed extreme concerns over recent ”witch hunt” and attacks on journalists who cover the refugees and migrants crisis. Since last Friday 30 October, two journalists were attacked during the anti-migrants protest called “Pegida demonstrations” launched by the German far-right groups in Berlin. Mogens Blicher Bjerregård, the EFJ President said, “the witch hunt on journalists covering the crisis is worrying. Journalists shall not become the target for telling the truth.” Helmut Schümann, a journalist working for the daily Tagesspiegel in Berlin was one of the journalists who were attacked. According to Schümann, he was tracked down by far-right…

The European Federations of Journalists (EFJ) and its members from Bosnia-Herzegovina, Macedonia, Montenegro, Serbia and Turkey (in picture) spoke out against media violations in their countries and call for more actions in a conference held on 4 November in Brussels by the European Commission (DG NEAR) to highlight the media freedom situation and progress made in Western Balkans and Turkey. A high-level meeting, the “Speak Up conference on Freedom of Expression and Media in the Western Balkans and Turkey” was kicked off by the European Commissioner in charge of European Neighbourhood Policy & Enlargement Negotiations, Mr Johannes Hahn. Unfortunately, hardly any progress is echoed by…

Turkish journalists Cevheri Güven and Murat Çapan, working for the weekly magazine Nokta, have been charged and jailed by a court in Istanbul last Tuesday 3 November. Güven is the editor-in-chief of the publication and Çapan, the managing editor in charge. Their pretrial incarceration is officially justified by particularly severe charges: “incitement to armed uprising against the government”. The cover title of the latest issue of Nokta was: “Monday, 2nd November: the beginning of a civil war in Turkey”. The last remaining copies of the newspaper have been seized by the police and the Nokta website has been blocked. Murat Çapan…

The European Federation of Journalists, represented by its President Mogens Blicher Bjerregård and Director Renate Schroeder will participate in an international conference on freedom of expression in the Western Balkans and Turkey held today at the European Commission. The Speak Up! 3 conference will bring together journalists, media analysts, decision-makers from the enlargement countries, experts from international, regional and national organizations to discuss achievements and challenges to media freedom. The EFJ affiliates from Western Balkans and Turkey will also participate in the conference. The conference will be broadcast live. To follow the debate, you can also follow the Twitter hashtag #SpeakUp3. Here is the…

The Council of Europe (CoE) Commissioner for Human rights Nils Muižnieks visited the International and European Federations of Journalists (IFJ and EFJ) on 3 November in Brussels to exchange on the threat of surveillance laws to press freedom in Europe. Commissioner Muižnieks , accompanied by Deputy Director Giancarlo Cardinale and Stefano Montanari , met with the EFJ Secretary General Ricardo Gutiérrez , IFJ press officer Pamela Morinière together with human rights and safety head Ernest Sagaga. The Commissioner said he has been assessing the impact of surveillance laws on journalism in Europe and wanted to consult the two journalists’ organisations…

What kind of conditions, such as contracts or salaries are online journalists working under? Are they satisfied with their jobs? What needs to be improved and what role can the union play to enhance the working conditions of journalists in digital media? The European Federation of Journalists (EFJ) has launched a survey aiming to get a better overview of their working conditions and ways to protect their interests through unions/associations.The survey reveals a dangerous trend where many online journalists face precarious working conditions. Among the 231 respondents, 62% said they worked overtime and over 50% of them do not have a full-time employment…

Within the framework of  the #seemediapartnership, the Center for Independent Journalism, Romania in cooperation with the Albanian Media Institute organised a regional conference on journalists’ employment conditions in South Eastern Europe in Tirana last week. Together with EFJ affiliates from Bosnia, Bulgaria, Montenegro and future members from Albania and Kosovo, participants discussed an action plan on how to improve the situation of journalists in the Balkan including capacity building of journalists’ organisations, Social dialogue, improved legal and labour protection for all journalists independent of their employment relation. Independent judiciary, rules on media concentration but also media education/media literacy and funding…

The European Federation of Journalists (EFJ) has joined its affiliate, the Journalists’ Union of Italy (FNSI) and a coalition of civil society organisations in Italy protesting against the new gag law that will hamper the rights of citizens to freedom of information. A press conference will be organised at the FNSI office tomorrow at 11 am, 3 November to launch the online petition ”No Bavaglio 3” (”No to Gag Law” in English). #nobavaglio The new law containing provisions that will impose sanctions and penalities on journalists and media organisations who published wiretapping materials for investigative journalism. Raffaele Lorusso, the General…

It is always easy to report on migration and asylum issues as it requires journalists to be unbiased while still reflecting the human side of the story. If you are a journalist looking for inspiration for passionate journalism on the issue of migration, this online course will be useful for you to further your reporting on the issue. This online course is organised by the Germany based institution, torial academy. It aims to connect migration experts, researchers and journalists from Europe and Africa providing them information and pathways to quality resources. The course will consist of five live web-video-conference discussions. These will…

Today only one out of 10 killings in the media is investigated. Get involved in the IFJ #endimpunity campaign 2015, from 2 to 23 November 2015. Many thanks to contributors! #EndImpunity Remember the UN End of Impunity Day today @coe @Europarl_da @IFJGlobal https://t.co/BRjagQBYtw #journosafety #PressFreedom — Mogens B. Bjerregård (@mogensbb) November 2, 2015 IFJ launches 2015 global campaign to end impunity for crimes against journalists https://t.co/5PagHlA2ni pic.twitter.com/1ElMaSfN50 — Anthony Bellanger (@abellanger49) October 21, 2015 More than 700 journalists have been killed in the last 10 years. #EndImpunity https://t.co/tyLFaw1G0r pic.twitter.com/HuX8xrf5xq — UNESCO (@UNESCO) November 2, 2015 President @PutinRF_Eng, on @UN Day…

The European Federation of Journalists (EFJ) has joined the IFJ #endimpunity campaign. We call on the European journalists and the EFJ partners to participate in the ceremony organised by the IFJ today, from 16:00 to 16:30, at the Residence Palace’s patio, in Brussels, in partnership with the Association Générale des Journalistes Professionnels de Belgique (AGJPB) and the United Nations. 2 November 2015 will mark the second commemoration of the killing in Kidal, Mali, of Ghislaine Dupont and Claude Verlon, RFI reporters. To date, the criminal investigation launched by French and Malian authorities has yet to identify the killers and bring them to…

Joachim Legatis, member of the national board of the German journalists union dju in Verdi and EFJ-IFJ expert travelled to Van (South East Turkey) as observer to monitor the November 1, 2015 national elections. He is sharing his mission report with us :  “We are in times of war. I can tell you it’s no fun to be a political opponent to the Turkish government, especially when you are working as a journalist”, says Ferhat Celik, head of Van office for the Kurdish news agency DIHA. Van (called Wan in Kurdish) is a city with 500.000 inhabitants not far from the border with Iran in…