The European Federation of Journalists (EFJ) has joined the oral statement delivered today (22/06/2016) by Reporters without borders (RSF) at the UN Human Rights Council in Geneva and also co-sponsored by the International Federation of Journalists (IFJ), PEN International, Article 19, the International Press Institute and 25 non-ECOSOC NGO’s to demand the immediate and unconditional release of Sebnem Korur Financi, Ahmet Nesin and Erol Önderoglu and to call for the withdrawal of all charges against all participants to the solidarity campaign with the Kurdish daily Özgür Gündem. The statement says : JOINT ORAL STATEMENT* HRC 32 – Item 4: Situations requiring…

The European and International Federations of Journalists (EFJ-IFJ) strongly condemn the arrestation of Şebnem Korur Fincancı (President of Turkey Human Rights Foundation), Erol Önderoğlu (journalist at Bianet and RSF Turkey correspondent) and Ahmet Nesin (journalist and author). The three editor-in-chief ad interim of the Kurdish daily newspaper Özgür Gündem have been arrested today (June 20) over “terror propaganda” because of their participation as temporary editor-in-chief to the production of the newspaper in the framework of a project called Editors in Chief on Watch coordinated by Özgür Gündem daily. The campaign launched on May 3 for the Unesco’s World Press Freedom Day has…

This year’s edition of the Silver Rose Awards took four highly prevailing political choices: Among the winners is the Journalists Union of Turkey (Türkiye Gazeteciler Sendikasi, TGS), which supports jailed journalists and promotes solidarity between journalists in Turkey and abroad. TGS President Uğur Güç came to Brussels to receive the prize at the European Parliament. “It’s really a great honor for all of us in Turkey to receive this prize from SOLIDAR network and especially at the European Parliament in Brussels given the challenges we are facing to defend our freedoms and to fight for our rights against an oppressive system…

The European Union must shape the digitalisation of Europe’s economy and society much more actively, with policy initiatives to avoid massive job losses and ensure the creation of quality jobs and decent working conditions, said the European Trade Union Confederation (ETUC). attending @etuc_ces ExCom, Luca Visentini (ETUC GS) setting the agenda pic.twitter.com/ERPtmvfuW9 — EFJ (@EFJEUROPE) June 8, 2016 A resolution, adopted by national and European trade union leaders gathered in Brussels today, calls for A Directive on privacy at work; An EU Framework on crowd-working to maintain minimum pay rates, working time, social protection and fair taxation; A big increase…

Delegates of the International Federation of Journalists (IFJ) meeting at the 29th World Congress in Angers elected Philippe Leruth, member of the Belgian Association Générale des Journalistes Professionnels de Belgique (AGJPB) as president of their organization on 9 June 2016. Journalist at the daily L’Avenir, Philippe Leruth was vice-president of the European Federation of Journalists (EFJ), the European organisation of the IFJ, from 2004 to 2013, and AGJPB president from 1995 to 2005. He is taking over from departing British President, Jim Boumelha, who headed the IFJ from 2007 to 2016. “The first challenge is to restore IFJ unity” said the newly elected…

In a world of rapid changing political and social circumstances, growing conflicts and inequalities, progressive politics to ensure social justice and global solidarity are more important than ever. The 2016 edition of the SOLIDAR Silver Rose Awards presents four courageous political choices with four awardees working on highly sensitive and late-breaking political issues: Press Freedom, Decent Work, Women’s Rights, Access to Education for All. This year’s winners are: Journalist Union of Turkey (Türkiye Gazeticiler Sendikasi, TGS), to which we dedicate the Silver Rose for Fundamental Rights. TGS supports jailed journalists and promotes solidarity between journalists in Turkey and abroad –…

The European Trade Union Confederation (ETUC) has written to the European Commission demanding that it : • rejects the arguments against the revision of the posting of workers directive in the ‘yellow card’ from some Member States; • allows a democratic debate without delay on the existing proposal through the normal EU legislative procedure with governments and the European Parliament. The ETUC letter accuses the Member States involved of neglecting their own workers. “All trade unions in Europe, including in countries where parliaments have supported the yellow card procedure, strongly support revision of the Posting of Workers Directive,” said Luca Visentini,…

The European Federation of Journalists (EFJ) and the European Trade Union Institute (ETUI) have successfully organised a 3-day training (25-27 May) in Leuven (Belgium) on Cybersecurity for journalists : Secure, protect, investigate. This was the second edition of a course organized 2015 along four days about Cybersecurity for journalists and with the same practical approach. The course aimed to facilitate technical skills to journalists helping them to protect themselves, their work and their sources. 13 journalists and / or unionists coming from 11 countries took part to the training, with an important participation of participants coming from countries of the…

Hungary It all started with a simple question. Janos Karpati, then Brussels correspondent for the Hungarian national newswire, didn’t think it would terminate his longtime career when he addressed the Hungarian Prime Minister Victor Orban at a press conference at the fringes of the European Parliament’s plenary meeting in Strasbourg. Orban had come to Strasbourg to speak about migration – and his widely-criticized comment on reinstating the death penalty. Karpati, an experienced correspondent who has worked in Prague and Washington, DC, asked Orban about Fidesz’ position within the European People’s Party, a question he hadn’t cleared with anyone beforehand. He…

Journalists Union of Serbia (SINOS – EFJ affiliate) in partnership with the Friedrich Ebert Foundation held a seminar in Prolom Banja (Serbia) from 19 to 21 May. The theme of the was organising unions for media workers in Serbia and the Balkans countries. The participants talked about precarious work, legal and social status of journalists and the sustainability of trade unions in the media with multinational ownership problems. The President of the European Federation of Journalists (EFJ), Mogens Blicher Bjerregard spoke about the experience of organizing unions for journalists in different European Union member states. He stressed that progress is possible when…

Update (25th May): Our Turkish colleague Erol Önderoglu is also under criminal investigation for “terrorist propaganda” for participating in a solidarity campaign with the Kurdish daily newspaper Özgür Gündem. The EFJ and IFJ demand that all criminal charges be dropped against journalists involved in this campaign. The European and International Federations of Journalists (EFJ and IFJ) is calling upon the presumptive upcoming Turkish Prime minister, Binali Yildirim, to end the climate of permanent judicial intimidation, threats, harassment, detention and physical assaults against journalists and media workers in Turkey. The EFJ is particularly underlining the fact that Turkish judicial authorities have recently opened an…

Three top editors from the Russian RBC media group announced their departure on 13 May as the political pressure against the independent media outlet grows in Russia. The International and European Federations of journalists (IFJ/EFJ) back their affiliate the Russian Union of Journalists (RUJ) in expressing concerns over the growing intimidation against the media in Russia. In a statement published on 13 May RBC said that the resignations of editor-in-chief Yelizaveta Osetinskaya, chief editor of the RBC newspaper Maxim Solyus, and chief editor of the RBC news agency Roman Badanin were due to “differences regarding the media company’s future and…

A Ukrainian organisation working on national security published thousands of personal details of journalists on its website on 7 May claiming the journalists had accreditation with pro-Russian separatists in the eastern Ukraine. It further accused them of ‘co-operating with terrorist organisations’ and violating Ukraine law. The European and International Federation of Journalists (EFJ/IFJ) support their Ukrainian affiliates the National Union of Journalists of Ukraine (NUJU) and the Independent Media Trade Union of Ukraine (IMTUU) in denouncing this leak which endangers journalists’ safety and urge the Ukrainian government to bring those responsible to justice. The private contact details published by Myrotvorets (“The Peacemaker”…

The European Federation of Journalists (EFJ) is strongly supporting the initiative of its affiliate in Greece the Journalists’ Union of Macedonia and Thrace Daily Newspapers (ESIEMTH) – who drafted a proposal for the adoption of the Anti-racism Ethics Code of the Greek journalists called The Charter of Idomeni, in the name of the border control village where thousands of refugees are passing through to reach Northern European countries. The aim of the charter is to preserve the social role of journalists in the conditions created by the presence of refugees, migrants, minorities and socially vulnerable groups in Greece, discourage and denounce climates of intolerance, guarantee…

Khadija Ismayilova‘s acceptance speech on the occasion of receiving the UNESCO/ Guillermo Cano World Press Fredom Prize 2016 The mother of imprisoned Azerbaijani journalist Khadija Ismayilova has accepted the 2016 UNESCO/Guillermo Cano World Press Freedom Prize on her daughter’s behalf. Dear ladies and gentleman, distinguished colleagues. You have graciously and generously gathered tonight on the occasion of the award of the annual Guillermo Cano award for press freedom. If you don’t mind, I will take a minute to pay tribute to Mr. Cano, since the award is very much about him, a person, as much as it is about press…

The European Federation of Journalist (EFJ) has strongly condemned the assassination attempt on 6 May in Istanbul against journalist Can Dündar (editor-in-chief of Cumhuriyet daily newspaper) and the jail sentences of 5 years and 10 months for Can Dündar and 5 years for Erdem Gül for procuring, revealing and publishing state secrets. Cumhuriyet published in May 2015 footage that show Turkey’s state intelligence agency ferrying weapons into Syria in 2014, the journalists have since been accused of revealing state secrets. “This new verdict is clearly unacceptable, in contradiction with Turkey’s Constitutional Court ruling and nobody can claim of a fair trial since the court decided to hold the trial behind closed…