Six journalists killed in Europe in 2021, 95 more in prison

The International Federation of Journalists (IFJ) has published the lists of imprisoned and killed journalists in 2021. Since 1 January 2021, 45 journalists have been killed and 365 are still behind bars. The figures for Europe are still very worrying: according to the statistics of the European Federation of Journalists (EFJ), 6 journalists have been killed this year and 95 others are in prison in Europe. In Europe, the number of murders of journalists has tripled this year compared to the previous two years. In 2021, the International and European Federations of Journalists have recorded six murders of journalists on…

Belarus: 32 journalists will spend New Year’s Eve in prison

32 journalists will spend New Year’s Eve in prison in Belarus. This is one of the figures in the annual review of repression that the Belarusian Association of Journalists (BAJ) drew today. The European Federation of Journalists (EFJ) calls on the international community, including the Council of Europe, to take action. In 2021, 113 journalists were arrested in Belarus just for doing their job. 32 are still in detention. In the same year, 146 journalists’ homes and editorial offices were searched, 13 media outlets were officially labelled as extremist, and the only independent organisation representing journalists, BAJ, was dissolved by…

Turkey: TGS union victory in Hürriyet case

Today, the Journalists’ Union of Turkey (TGS) has reached a union victory in the Hürriyet newspaper case, where 45 journalists were dismissed in 2019 for being members of the TGS. The employer will have to pay for union compensation as well as idle time compensation. The European Federation of Journalists (EFJ) as part of the Media Freedom Rapid Response (MFRR) joined its Turkish affiliate in welcoming the court decision. On 30 October 2019, 45 media staff members received dismissal notices from the management of Hürriyet, one of the major Turkish daily newspapers. This followed the pro-government conglomerate Demirören Group’s purchase…

Serbia: Wave of lawsuits against investigative portal KRIK chills media freedom

We, the undersigned partners of the Media Freedom Rapid Response (MFRR), express our concerns over the recent wave of vexatious lawsuits against the investigative portal Network for Investigation of Crime and Corruption (KRIK) in Serbia. We believe that these lawsuits are a form of strategic lawsuit against public participation (SLAPPs) that aim to stifle scrutiny and critical issues of public importance and demand urgent action from the Government and judiciary to impartially and swiftly address the growing phenomenon of SLAPPs in the country. In recent months, KRIK’s newsroom has been targeted by ten different procedures filed, in most cases, by…

Poland: Media freedom groups urge President Duda to veto ‘Lex-TVN’

Update: On 27 December 2021, President Andrzej Duda vetoed the bill. The European Federation of Journalists (EFJ) joined 17 media freedom and journalists’ organisations in writing the following letter to the Polish president, urging to apply a presidential veto to the lex TVN. Dear Andrzej Duda, President of the Republic of Poland, The undersigned international media freedom and journalists groups are writing to urge you to apply a presidential veto to the so-called “Lex-TVN” amendment passed by the Sejm on December 17, which we believe poses a fundamental threat to media freedom and pluralism in Poland. This bill represents a…

Germany: MFRR expresses concern over rising attacks against journalists covering protests

The undersigned partners of the Media Freedom Rapid Response (MFRR) today express their concern about the increasing number of attacks against journalists across Germany, particularly in the context of anti-vaccine demonstrations. We call for better safety measures and protection as well as thorough investigations of attacks against journalists covering such demonstrations. Moreover, preventative measures are needed to stop such attacks from happening. Finally, we encourage media workers to report press and media freedom violations.  Already in 2020, reported attacks against journalists had more than doubled compared to the previous year. This dramatic increase to 255 aggressions can be attributed to…

Croatia: fact-checking portal Faktograf.hr threatened with death and lawsuits

The European Federation of Journalists (EFJ) joined its affiliates in Croatia and the SafeJournalists Network in condemning the threats received by the fact-checking portal Faktograf.hr and its employees, targeted by intimidations attempts since 10 December 2021. The threats and lynching were prompted by entrepreneur Nenad Bakic, a businessman known for his inclination to sue the media. Bakic used his Facebook profile, which has over 40.000 followers, to threaten to launch a criminal lawsuit against the portal for allegedly censoring his post and comments of Faktograf’s social media pages. He then wrote that he would be interested in  “whether it would be legal to…

Denmark: Intelligence services warn media against publishing classified information

Danish intelligence services warned the Danish media companies JP/Politikens Hus, Berlingske Media and DR Nyheder not to publish any classified information. This happened after the recent arrest of four intelligence officers accused of leaking information. The European Federation of Journalists (EFJ) and the Danish Union of Journalists (DJ) strongly condemned this disturbing “warning” to Denmark’s leading media outlets and called on the concerned services to stay away from the press. On 13 December, the Danish Police Intelligence Service, PET, and the Defence Intelligence Service, FE, warned Stig Ørskov, JP/Politikens Hus’ CEO, Anders Krab-Johansen, Berlingske Media’s chief executive, and Sandy French,…

Italian journalists locked in room by Romanian anti-vax senator

A reporter and her crew working for Italian public broadcaster RAI were held in a Bucharest police station for several hours on Monday 13 December after an anti-vax Romanian Senator kept them locked up inside her office during an interview. The European Federation of Journalists (EFJ) condemns the attack on the RAI crew and the unjustified arrest of the journalists by the Romanian police. Italian journalist Lucia Goracci and her crew were detained after the alleged attack by the husband of Senator Diana Iovanovici Sosoaca, after the Senator locked the crew in her office. During her interview by Lucia Goracci,…