Today, the Media Freedom Rapid Response (MFRR) publishes “Towards a safer haven: Advancing safety of journalists amidst rising threats in the Netherlands”. Following interviews with more than twenty local stakeholders, the MFRR concludes that policy and practice around the safety of journalists in the Netherlands in many ways constitutes a best practice example, thanks to its pioneering PersVeilig mechanism. Nevertheless, there remains a need to strengthen several areas to better protect journalists and media workers against the increasingly hostile climate pursuant to intensified societal polarisation and threats emanating from organised crime. The report details the findings and recommendations of the…

The Dorogomilovsky District Court in Moscow today has sentenced four journalists from a student magazine, DOXA, to two years of hard labour. According to the judge, they have called on young people to demonstrate against the Kremlin. They were arrested in April 2021 after a raid on the editorial office. The European Federation of Journalists (EFJ) denounced the eradication of press freedom in Russia and called for the immediate release of the journalists who were just doing their job. On 14 April 2021, law enforcement officers in Moscow raided the office of the student-run magazine DOXA and the apartments four…

A delegation from the European Federation of Journalists (EFJ) met with the leaders of the Belarusian Association of Journalists (BAJ) and their counterparts from Lithuania (LZS), Estonia (EAL) and Ukraine (NUJU) in Vilnius, Lithuania, on 12 April. The main purpose of the visit of the EFJ representatives was to coordinate efforts to protect journalists and media in the region in the context of the Russian military invasion of Ukraine and the intensification of repression in Belarus. The EFJ condemns the new criminal proceedings against Belarusian journalists, unjustified and illegal persecution and the arbitrary application of criminal proceedings for alleged treason,…

The European Federation of Journalists (EFJ) and its affiliates in Ukraine, the National Union of Journalists of Ukraine (NUJU) and the Independent Media Trade Union of Ukraine (IMTUU), joined the Global Forum for Media Development (GFMD) to support Ukrainian journalists and all international journalists, including freelancers reporting from Ukraine, by signing the Perugia Declaration for Ukraine: Russia’s invasion of Ukraine has underlined once again the essential role of independent, ethical journalism in assisting citizens to make life-or-death decisions, informing the world, and holding the powerful to account. As a powerful antidote to disinformation and propaganda that characterise hybrid warfare, and…

Novaya Gazeta’s editor-in-chief and Nobel Prize winner Dmitry Muratov was attacked in a train on Thursday 7 April 2022. Two people doused him with red paint mixed with acetone, injuring his eyes. The European and International Federations of Journalists (EFJ-IFJ) strongly condemned the attack. The incident occurred in a train compartment at the Moscow railway station Kazansky: “They poured oil paint with acetone in the compartment. Eyes burn terribly. Train Moscow-Samara. Oily smell all over the car. Departure has already been delayed by 30 minutes. I’ll try to wash off. He shouted: “Muratov, here’s to you for our boys,” said…

April 9 marks the one-year anniversary of the killing of veteran Greek crime reporter Giorgos Karaivaz in Athens. Ahead of the date, the European Federation of Journalists (EFJ) joined the Media Freedom Rapid Response (MFRR) partners in honouring Karaivaz’s memory and call on the Greek authorities to urgently bring to justice all those responsible for this abhorrent murder and to provide more transparency about the investigation. On April 9, 2021, Karaivaz, an experienced reporter who worked for the TV channel STAR and ran a news website focusing on crime and policing, was gunned down by two men on a scooter outside…

Lithuanian documentary film–maker Mantas Kvedaravicius was killed in Mariupol, Ukraine, by Russian forces on Saturday 2 April as he attempted to leave the city. The International and European Federations of Journalists (IFJ-EFJ) condemned his “deliberate killing” and have demanded that Russian forces let journalists work without being targeted. Kvedaravicius, 45, was known for his 2016 documentary, Mariupolis, which won Best Documentary at the Lithuanian Film Awards, as well as receiving commendations at the Berlin, Hong Kong and Stockholm film festivals. The film-maker also directed the 2011 award-winning documentary Batzakh, on Russia’s war in Chechnya. According to the Ukrainian Ministry of Defense, the film-maker’s…

There are at least 951 active lawsuits against Croatian journalists and media in which plaintiffs are demanding 10.3 million Euros in compensation, a Croatian Journalists’ Association (CJA) survey has revealed. The International and European Federations of Journalists (IFJ/EFJ) support their affiliate’s demands to urgently change the law to end the culture of harassing journalists and the media with lawsuits. Using SLAPPs (Strategic Lawsuit Against Public Participation) is a widespread practice in Croatia. Their objective is to censor, intimidate and silence media workers by burdening them with court proceedings. According to the CJA’s survey, at least 951 lawsuits were presented against journalists and media…

Ukrainian photojournalist Maks Levin who went missing since 13 March while documenting the Russian invasion of Ukraine near the capital, Kyiv, has been found dead on 1 April. The International and European Federations of Journalists (IFJ-EFJ) join their Ukrainian affiliates, NUJU and IMTUU, in condemning the deliberate attacks on journalists in Ukraine. Maks Levin is the 7th journalist to lose his life in Ukraine since the beginning of the Russian invasion. The photojournalist, Maks Levin, 40, was a prominent freelancer. His body was found in the Huta-Mezhyhirska village on Friday, according to the news website LB.ua, one of the outlets…