The International and European Federations of Journalists (IFJ-EFJ) join their Norwegian affiliate Norsk Journalistlag in condemning the US government’s decision to prosecute WikiLeaks co-founder Julian Assange under the Espionage Act. “Uncovering secret or classified information relevant to the debate in society is at the heart of media’s public mission. By publishing information that powerful stakeholders want to keep undisclosed, media can contribute to keep those in power accountable. It is therefore crucial that the publication of such material lies within the freedom of the media, even when authorities wish to keep the information undisclosed,” says a statement issued today by…

The failure of Maltese authorities to identify the masterminds behind the murder of investigative journalist Daphne Caruana Galizia raises questions about the rule of law in Malta, according to a report adopted today in Paris by the Legal Affairs and Human Rights Committee of the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe (PACE). PACE appointed a Special Rapporteur on this matter, Pieter Omtzigt (EPP), who has compiled a report titled “Daphne Caruana Galizia’s assassination and the rule of law, in Malta and beyond: ensuring that the whole truth emerges”. The European Federation of Journalists (EFJ) welcomes the adoption of this…

The European Federation of Journalists (EFJ) has welcomed the creation of a new fund for journalists who became victims of persecution or threats. It is a joint project of the Union of Journalists in Finland (UJF), five top Finnish media companies and several other representative organisations working in the media sector. The fund will be launched after midsummer and it is open to staff journalists as well as freelancers. It aims to help journalists facing legal threats such as cases of defamation as well as harassments. The foundation follows a spate of such cases in Finland in recent years, only…

The European Federation of Journalists (EFJ) together with a group of media freedom NGOs have published an open letter to the representatives of the Maltese Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe (PACE) members. The letter was published ahead of a meeting of the PACE Legal Affairs and Human Rights Committee in Paris which was attended by national representatives of the Council of Europe members. It called on the Maltese government to support the findings of an investigation led by Mr. Pieter Omtzigt, the Special rapporteur appointed by PACE to investigate the assassination of Daphne Caruana Galizia. The letter reads,…

On May 23, Stefano Origone, an Italian journalist was beaten up by riot police officers while covering clashes among demonstrators in a rally of the far-right party CasaPound in Genoa. A video published by Origone’s employer, the Italian daily newspaper La Repubblica, shows that he was being kicked at and beaten up with batons even though he identified himself as a journalist. The European Federation of Journalists (EFJ) was shocked by the attack of the Italian police on Origone and called for an investigation of the attack. According to Origone, he had huddled on the ground in a foetal position without defending…

The European Federation of Journalists (EFJ) joins its affiliate, the Croatian Journalists’ Association (CJA) in condemning the physical and verbal attacks on the German newspaper The Frankfurter Rundschau journalist Danijel Majić on 18 May 2019 at the Bleiburg memorial in Austria. Majić was attacked by Velimir Bujanec, a Croatian extreme right-wing TV-presenter and a group of other people attending the memorial.  According to The Frankfurter Rundschau, Majić was reporting from the memorial service when he was recognised by Bujanec’s supporters. When Majić was leaving, Bujanec spit at him and the crowd attending the service began to insult him and kick at him.…

On May 14, 2019, in Šijače, Bosnia and Herzegovina, a private security guard damaged the camera of Ademir Mešanović, a cameraman working for local public broadcaster RTV TK, while he was covering the eviction of families from their properties near the state-owned Kreka coal mine. The European Federation of Journalists (EFJ) joins its affiliate the Bosnian Herzegovinan Journalists Association (BHJA) in calling for urgent prosecution of the attack against Mesanovic. The guard of the private security service “Cobra” grabbed Mešanović’s camera and threw it in the mud, damaging the camera and preventing Mešanović from continuing his reporting, RTV TK reported.…

Ahead of the European elections taking place from 23 to 26 May, the European Federation of Journalists (EFJ), has launched a Manifesto for the revival of a free and pluralistic media in Europe. Up to now, 118 candidates from ten countries showed their support for EFJ’s demands concerning the following eight topics: Media pluralism Financial sustainability & the future of journalism Investigative journalism Collective bargaining and social protection for all workers Trust and accountability through ethical journalism Authors’ rights – Fair contracts for all Strong independent public service media Safety at work: no to impunity Some parties endorsed the Manifesto…

The European Federation of Journalists (EFJ) published on 8 May 2019 a magazine focusing on journalists’ working conditions in the Western Balkans and Turkey. The contributors are six students in journalism from the region, winner of the 2019 Journalism Students Award. The first edition was organised by the journalists’ unions and associations in Bosnia and Herzegovina (BH Journalists), Kosovo (AGK), Montenegro (TUMM), North Macedonia (SSNM), Serbia (SINOS) and Turkey (TGS), in partnership with the EFJ. The objective was to involve the young generation in the debate on working conditions in countries where journalists often face precariousness, insecurity and lack of…

The European Federation of Journalists joins its affiliate in Austria, the Journalists’ Union in the GPA-djp, to urge politicians – not only in Austria but throughout Europe – to keep hands off from the media. On 17 May, the German publications Der Spiegel and Süddeutsche Zeitung published a video that shows by now former Vice-Chancellor of the Republic of Austria, Heinz-Christian Strache, the FPÖ leader, and his parliamentary leader, Johann Gudenus, talking to a woman – purporting to be the niece of a Russian oligarch – about how she could invest in Austria. During the  meeting  in Ibiza, the woman…

The European Federation of Journalists (EFJ) along with other 19 press freedom and freedom of expression organizations sent a joint letter on 16 May to Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan, calling for justice following the recent physical attacks against two journalists, Yavuz Selim Demirağ and İdris Özyol. The letter urges the government to publicly denounce these acts of violence and ensure journalist safety in the run-up to the mayoral elections in Istanbul set for 23 June 2019. May 16, 2019 Your Excellency, President Erdoğan We are writing to you to express our serious concern over the brutal attacks on journalists…

The European Federation of Journalists (EFJ) and the International Federation of Journalists (IFJ) joined their affiliate, the Journalists’ Union of Athens Daily Newspapers (JUADN), in condemning the arson attack on Greek investigative journalist Mina Karamitrou’s car. The car, parked in the Athens suburb Papagou outside Karamitrou’s home, was set on fire on 14 May 2019 at about 2:30 a.m. by a flammable liquid. According to local news reports nobody was injured. Karamitrou is a well known police reporter for CNN’s Greek edition. According to the Greek news website Skai, the police has opened an investigation on the case. Up to…

Turkish Journalist Yavuz Selim Demirag was violently attacked by a group of unidentified men armed with baseball bats on May 10 in Ankara. The International Federation of Journalists (IFJ) and the European Federation of Journalists (EFJ) strongly condemn the aggression and urge the authorities to protect press freedom. Yavuz, a critic of President Recep Tayyip Erdogan and supporter of an opposition party, was attacked after appearing on a TV Show on Friday night. He was immediately sent to the hospital, his newspaper The Yenicag said. His life is not in danger, however. The assault happened in a context of growing…

The European Federation of Journalists (EFJ) elected its new Steering Committee on Friday 10 May 2019, during its General Meeting taking place in Tallinn, Estonia. More than 90 participants including delegates and observers from 49 EFJ member organisations in 36 countries attended the General Meeting to elect the next Steering Committee members and to adopt the EFJ working programme for the next three years (2020-2022). The EFJ Steering Committee is now composed of 4 women and 5 men: Mogens BLICHER BJERREGÅRD, DJ, Denmark (President) Marta BARCENILLA, FSC-CCOO, Spain (Vice-President) Marijana CAMOVIC, TUMM, Montenegro Anna DEL FREO, FNSI, Italy Yannis KOTSIFOS,…

The European Federation of Journalists has expressed concerns over the state of media freedom and independence in Hungary following the publication of a study showing that the majority of media in the country are pro-government. It was published on 2 May by the media monitor Mérték and investigates the level of independence of the Hungarian media, stating almost 78% of the media are pro-government. The study, commissioned by a Member of the European Parliament (MEP), Sven Giegold (the Greens), shows the far-reaching media power of the ruling Fidez-party. In November 2018 the creation of the government-related media foundation KESMA uniting…

Creative Skills Europe, the European Platform on Employment and Training in the Audiovisual and Live Performance sectors, is a project which aims at collecting information and at developing tools to help the cultural and creative sectors adjust their skills to the realities of the field. Ran by a partnership of European trade unions of (including the European Federation of Jounalists), employers’ organisations, and national skills bodies, Creative Skills Europe looks at creating national and European synergies, and at inspiring new types of actions, both at company level and in a collective way at sector level. After four thematic workshops in…