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…

On 20 January 2019, German journalist Thomas Jacobi, Greek photojournalist Kostis Ntantamis, as well as a cameraman for the public broadcaster ERT, have been attacked by members of the Greek neo-Nazi party Golden Dawn in Athens. The three journalists were covering a protest held outside the parliament building on Syntagma Square about the renaming of North Macedonia. Journalist Thomas Iacobi, co-author of our documentary, was attacked in Athens today, while on the job, by a group of fascists, who identified him and called out to him: "You! you made that documentary on Golden Dawn!"[Audio from the attack (Greek): https://t.co/OrDsJyMDEt] —…

A bomb blast today damaged a building in Athens housing the headquarters of Greece’s private radio and television network Skai and Greek daily newspaper Khatimerini, but there were no casualties. Anti-terrorist police opened an investigation into the attack that focused on Greek extremist groups. The International and European Federations of Journalists (IFJ-EFJ) join their Greek affiliates in condemning the blast as “an attack on media pluralism”. The homemade device went off at around 2:37 am, 45 minutes after an anonymous telephone warning to another TV network. Police cordoned off the neighbourhood in the Athens suburb of Neo Phaliro and evacuated the building, which contains…

RES-MPA correspondent Stratis Balaska has been under online and verbal attacks by members of neo-nazi movement “Golden Dawn” after publishing an editorial on August 15th. The publication covered history of Mytilene’s Chapel of Virgin Mary and its significance to the refugee women. Death threats, harassment and incitement to “punishment he deserves” were sent to journalists on Facebook. The threats online were a part of series of threats against Stratis Balaska because of his journalistic work. He was verbally attacked by three men, who he said to be extremists, on the street at the port of Mytilene, Lesbos, on August 12th. After…

The International and European Federation of Journalists (IFJ and EFJ) have backed their Greek affiliates, standing with 420 MEGA TV station journalists and media workers left with no pay and no jobs for over 16 months. MEGA is one of the first private TV stations established in Greece, 28 years ago, and has attracted large audiences for practicing reliable and quality journalism in news bulletins and news programs and producing very popular series. During the past months, the station was broadcasting only entertainment content, bringing in a lot of advertising money. However the journalists were left with no pay. The…

The European and International Federation of Journalists (EFJ/IFJ) condemn the attacks that took place in Thessaloniki (Greece) on 20 and 21 December 2017, against the Journalists’ Union of Macedonia and Thrace Daily Newspapers (ESIEMTH) and two municipal media. Today at noon, the ESIEMTH headquarters were attacked by around ten hooded assailants. The staff were threatened and asked not to move as the intruders said that “an intervention (was) about to take place”. They destroyed two PCs, a TV set and other material such as chairs and a printer before leaving the office. ESIEMTH told the EFJ that the police has launched an investigation. Yesterday, what…

The Athens Journalists’ Union (ESIEA) called on a 48-hour strike in all Greek media on Tuesday 24 and Wednesday 25 October to protest against the impact of cutbacks on the health care and social security organisation (EDOEAP) as well as recent job cuts across the sector. In addition, four women have been on hunger strike for more than ten days. The EFJ expresses its support to its Greek affiliate and all the journalists currently on strike. Greek journalists have been in turmoil for many months following the government’s and mass media owners’ new policy which caused the collapse of EDOEAP.…

International Federation of Journalists affiliates from all over the world have backed colleagues from the Journalists’ Union of Athens Daily Newspapers (JUADN) who began a 24-hour general strike at 6pm today. Unions from South Africa, Australia and the US today sent solidarity messages to Greek colleagues, who are fighting to protect a Fund – Unified Journalistic Organisation of Subsidiary Social Insurance and Health Care (EDOEAP) – which for over 50 years has provided social security and welfare payments for journalists and media workers in Greece. “We the workers in news information are going on strike demanding a new ‘Charter’ for…

On 27 February 2017, the European Federation of Journalists submitted the following alert to the Council of Europe platform for the protection of journalism and the safety of journalists: On 20 February 2017, two journalists were harassed by far-right wing protesters while reporting live in Thessaloniki, Greece. Maria Travlou, who works for the public broadcaster ERT3, and Eleni Latrou, for the private station Skai TV, were insulted and stopped from doing their job by some men and women part of the so-called “Patriots’ Organisation” demonstrating outside a school. They were preventing refugee children from attending classes. The protesters covered the…

The two oldest newspapers in Greece, To Vima and Ta Nea, were among the publications which were supposed to cease publication last weekend. On Saturday , the media group which owns them, Lambrakis Press Group (DOL), announced the end of their publications “within days due to financial reasons.” The International and European Federation of Journalists (IFJ and EFJ), together with their Greek affiliates, are asking for time to negotiate a long term solution. As a result, over 500 media workers, including 250 journalists, most of whom are members of the IFJ/EFJ Greek affiliate JUADN (Journalists’ Union of Athens Daily Newspapers),…

The International and European Federations of Journalists (IFJ and EFJ) have strongly backed calls by Greek journalists to prevent banks forcing the closure of the country’s oldest newspapers and threatening up to 500 jobs. The IFJ and EFJ have backed demands from their Greek affiliate, the Journalists’ Union of Athens Daily Newspapers (JUADN), to stop the banks foreclosing on the Lambriakis Press Group (DOL) loans.  The group, which owns the oldest national newspapers To Vima and Ta Nea, is facing serious trouble after the banks threatened to call in their loans. Over 500 media workers, including 250 journalists, most of…

On 10 January, Greek police arrested the publisher and the director of Parapolitika newspaper, Giannis Kourtakis and Panayiotis Tzenos, following a lawsuit filed against them for libel and attempted extortion by Greek defense minister Panos Kammenos. The EFJ and the IFJ condemned today the massive police raid at Parapolitika headquarters in Athens and the detention of both newspaper executives. Publisher Giannis Kourtakis said he went voluntarily to the police headquarters after being informed about the lawsuit, while director Panagiotis Tzenos was arrested by police in his office, in Athens. Panos Kammenos filed a lawsuit against Kourtakis and Tzenos for allegedly…

The Steering Committee of the European Federation of Journalists decided today that the EFJ will hold its 2017 Annual Meeting in Athens, Greece, on 18th and 19th May, 2017. The meeting will be hosted by the Panhellenic Federation of Journalists’ Unions (POESY-PFJU) in the headquarters of the Journalists’ Union of Athens Daily Newspapers (JUADN). Dimitris Koupias, president of PFJU, said it will be “an opportunity to raise issues about press freedom and journalists’ labour rights in Greece.” Picture credit: Louisa Gouliamaki / AFP.

Update (27/10/2016): On 26 October 2016, the Council of State ruled the TV licence law unconstitutional. ———————- The European Federation of Journalists (EFJ) backs its Greek affiliate, the Journalists’ Union of Athens Daily Newspapers (JUADN), to denounce the closure of four out of the eight private TV channels, leading to thousands of job losses, after the decision of the Greek government to launch a multi-million euro auction for four private TV licences despite protests by broadcasters and journalists. The EFJ strongly supports the mobilisation of media workers in the protest to safeguard media pluralism and independent journalism in Greece. Early this year, the Greek government has passed…

Journalists at Greece’s Alpha 989 radio station are to meet to consider action following the “unfair, illegal and abusive” dismissal of their union representative. The International and European Federations of Journalists have pledged their support to Greek affiliate JUADN following the sacking of Georgia Ioannidou. The union had given the radio station’s board a deadline to reinstate Georgia, who is also a board member of JUADN, but the company failed to act. In a statement the union said: “Our colleague has been targeted for being a union representative and her persistence in taking up issues with the personnel department such…