The European Parliament adopted by a large majority a report on the use of SLAPPs (Strategic Lawsuits Against Public Participation) against journalists in the European Union at the plenary session on 11 November 2021. The European Federation of Journalists (EFJ) welcomed an ambitious text which recognises the magnitude of the problem, its detrimental impact on democracy and proposes a comprehensive set of measures to address it. With 444 votes in favour, 48 against, and 75 abstentions, MEPs took a step forward towards better protection of journalists by adopting a report on the increasing use of abusive lawsuits whose aim is…

In September, Poland’s president Andrzej Duda, at the request of the government and with the approval of the Polish parliament, introduced a state of emergency along the country’s border with Belarus, amid a surge in crossings by migrants, refugees and asylum seekers. That included a ban on non-resident civilians, including journalists, from entering the area. The measures, which were initially in place for a month, were later extended until December. As a consequence, the public opinion has been left relying on information provided by the Belarusian dictatorship, which is orchestrating the crisis, and the Polish authorities. The European Federation of…

Kyiv Post, Ukraine’s oldest English-language newspaper and largest independent newspaper, has abruptly been shut down, a decision that was announced on 8 November 2021 on the newspaper’s website. The European Federation of Journalists (EFJ) joined its Ukrainian affiliate, the National Union of Journalists of Ukraine (NUJU), in expressing solidarity for the terminated employees and denouncing an attack on independent journalism. The decision of owner and real-estate businessman Adnan Kivan to close down the Kyiv Post allegedly follows a disagreement between the editorial staff and the owner about future planned changes. Kivan had plans to expand the Kyiv Post and launch…

After its liquidation by the Supreme Court in August 2021, the Belarusian Association of Journalists‘ (BAJ) website is now blocked for users in Belarus. The Belarusian authorities further labelled the TV channel Belsat, its social media accounts as well as its subscribers as “extremist”. The European and International Federation of Journalists (EFJ/IFJ) condemn once again the continued crackdown on its affiliate and critical media outlets in Belarus. As BAJ reported on 4 November, the Ministry of Information of Belarus decided to block the access of Belarusian users to the BAJ website: “BAJ considers the liquidation of the organisation and the…

On the occasion of the World Decent Work Day on 7 October, the European Federation of Journalists (EFJ) has launched a report “Journalists working from home? a labour rights perspective for a hybrid future“ authored by Marc Gruber, showing the impact of the pandemic on the working conditions of journalists and the trend of the hybrid working model is becoming the norm. The report shows that while the working from home policies implemented by media companies are far from perfect, most journalists would still want to work from home but in a hybrid working model which allows them to work…

The Belarusian government has blocked access to Deutsche Welle’s website as well as other foreign news portals. The European Federation of Journalists (EFJ) joins its German affiliates, the German Journalists Association (DJV) and the German Journalists Union (dju in ver.di), in condemning this censorship and calling for the website to be immediately re-enabled. Since 28 October, Deutsche Welle’s website is blocked in Belarus, the German public state-owned international broadcaster informed. The online offers in all 32 broadcast languages are no longer available. #Belarus sperrt Internetseite der Deutschen Welle – völlig inakzeptabel! https://t.co/V4QRqpuK03 #journalismus #deutschewelle — dju in ver.di (@djuverdi) October 29, 2021 The Ministry…

On 25 and 26 October, the European Federation of Journalists (EFJ) hosted a two-day webinar session called “Trust in the Media: Photojournalism in the Digital Age”, the last in the series of five as part of the “Trust and Quality in Journalism” project, in partnership with the European Commission. For the day 1 takeaways, click here. Day 2 of the webinar was hosted by Yuklan Wong and Oddrun Midtbø. The four panelists were Markus Pentikäinen, photojournalist from Helsinki, Finland, Sitara Thalia Ambrosio, photographer and visual storyteller based in Germany, Boris Pejovic, photojournalist and board member of TUMM, Montenegro, and Michael Trammer, (photo-)journalist based in Berlin,…

Three journalists from Finland’s largest national daily Helsingin Sanomat were charged on 29 October 2021 with “attempted disclosure of a security secret” and face jail term. The European Federation of Journalists (EFJ) joined its affiliates in Finland, the Finnish Journalists’ Union (UJF), in expressing solidarity with the journalists and condemning Finland’s deputy prosecutor general’s decision to prosecute them. Laura Halminen, Tuomo Pietiläinen and Kalle Silfverberg face four months to four years in prison for publishing in December 2017 an article about the Finnish Defence Intelligence Agency (VKoeL), at a time when a constitutional change gave the Finnish security services increased surveillance…