The European Federation of Journalists (EFJ) today joined its affiliate in Belarus, the Belarusian Association of Journalists (BAJ) in demanding the release of four journalists sent to jail just for doing their job. On 11 and 12 May, courts of Mahilou and Hlybokaye, in Belarus, sentenced four journalists, all of them BAJ members, Ales Asiptsou, Mikhail Arshynski, Alexander Burakou and Zmitser Lupach to 10 days of administrative arrest for alleged “participation in unauthorized protests”. They were in fact just covering these demonstrations for their media. Today, the Leninski District Court announced its decision in the case of Alexander Burakou: 10…

The European and International Federations of journalists (EFJ/IFJ) strongly condemned the smear campaign taking place in the streets of Athens against four sport journalists and union members. Around 10 000 posters featuring photos and names of the four journalists were plastered in the early hours of the morning in the streets across Athens on 6 May. Insulting words against the journalists such as “slanderers“, “shameful for 10 euros“, “impostors” were printed on the posters. Three of the targeted journalists are members of Journalists’ Union of Athens Daily Newspapers (JUADN), and IFJ/EFJ affiliate while the fourth is a member of the…

The European Federation of Journalists (EFJ) joined the National Union of Journalists (NUJ) in the UK and Ireland in condemning as “vile” a threat issued to journalists by the South East Antrim Ulster Defence Association (UDA), in Northern Ireland. The dissident loyalist group’s threat was made against journalists at the Belfast-based Sunday World and Sunday Life newspapers. The threat is being taken seriously by the Police Service of Northern Ireland (PSNI) and by the media company. The warnings came in the early hours of 8 May 2020. The PSNI is taking the threat seriously and officers have been in contact…

Following its recent webinar with European Press Councils, the European Federation of Journalists (EFJ) expressed concern about the negative impact of the coronavirus pandemic on freedom of information. The EFJ today joined ARTICLE 19 in calling on governments to ensure the public’s right to know in the COVID-19 pandemic. The EFJ and representatives of 17 press and media councils exchanged ideas and discussed in a webinar the impact of the pandemic on journalism. The EFJ expressed concern about access to information for journalists, as well as potential threats or restrictions to freedom of the press due to the crisis. In…

Media Freedom Rapid Response (MFRR) partners are concerned about the increased violence against media professionals at protests and demonstrations across EU Member States and Candidate Countries in the last months and call for increased protection. The recent violent attacks against media workers during demonstrations in Germany, three assaults in a few days, and similar threats witnessed across Europe, are establishing a worrying trend. The right to free assembly and association is a vital underpinning of a modern and pluralist democracy and has itself come under significant threat across Europe. However, threats against the press and media further weakens their ability…

The European Federation of Journalists (EFJ) together with its affiliate in Sweden Journalistförbundet (SJF) strongly condemned the online smear campaign targeting Swedish cartoonist Mahmoud Abbas since 21 April 2020, following the publication of his cartoon. Cartoonist of Palestinian origin Mahmoud Abbas is residing in Sweden. He is a Swedish citizen. On 20 April 2020, his cartoon about the collapse of international oil prices went viral on Twitter in Saudi Arabia. It shows a person in a Gulf Arab dress and a rolling barrel of oil behind. The character was identified by the audience as crown prince Mohammed Bin Salman and the cartoon…

There are currently 905 lawsuits filed against journalists and media outlets in Croatia, with plaintiffs claiming almost HRK 68 million, according to the results of an annual survey conducted by the Croatian Journalists’ Association (CJA) earlier this year and published on the occasion of World Press Freedom Day (May 3rd). Out of the 23 surveyed media outlets, 18 have a pending lawsuit for publishing “violation of honour and reputation”. Most lawsuits are filed against Hanza media (Jutarnji list, Slobodna Dalmacija and Sportske novosti), with as many as 502, weighing an average of HRK 100,000. Styria (Večernji list and 24 sata)…

While many European governments use the Covid19 crisis to massively restrict media freedom, the report of a fact-finding mission to Scandinavia shows policies and approaches that can inspire change for the better. Representatives of the European Centre for Press and Media Freedom (ECPMF), the European Federation of Journalists (EFJ) and Osservatorio Balcani e Caucaso Transeuropa (OBCT) visited Denmark and Sweden from 15 to 18 December 2019. They followed the questions: Why does Scandinavia regularly lead the rankings for media freedom? What can governments and media actors in other countries learn and adopt from this region? In summarising the report, ECPMF’s…

Time to put words into action! Europe’s cultural and creative sectors were among the first and hardest hit by the unprecedented COVID-19 crisis. They will also be among the last. Across Europe, almost all cultural activities have been cancelled or postponed indefinitely, while venues and retailers have closed with disastrous consequences for all creators’ and cultural and creative professionals’ livelihoods, as well as the ecosystem as a whole. Millions of jobs are on the line. In its Resolution on how to combat the COVID-19 crisis and its consequences1 , the European Parliament rightly underlines that the cultural and creative sectors “have…

€1 million euros for projects in Europe in 2020 The IJ4EU (Investigative Journalism for Europe) fund today opened two new calls for cross-border investigative journalism projects in the EU and EU candidate countries. IJ4EU’s Investigation Support scheme will provide grants of between €5,000 and €50,000 to new cross-border investigative projects, including those that have recently begun as well as new phases of existing projects. The deadline for applications is June 14. A second call under this scheme is expected to open in August. See full information and FAQs. Separately, IJ4EU’s Publication Support scheme will provide grants of up to €6,250…

Originally published on journo.com Journalists’ Union of Turkey (TGS) has depicted a grim picture with a special report that was published on World Press Freedom Day. The report was authored by TGS legal and labor experts Ülkü Şahin, İlyas Coşkun and Beste Dönmez Gedik to record the press freedom violations in Turkey from April 2019 to April 2020. According to the report, which is 150-page-long with its annexes, 85 journalists are currently in Turkey’s prisons. Throughout the past year, Turkish courts ruled for a total prison sentence of 178 years in 166 legal cases against journalists. Meanwhile, 37 journalists were physically…

On this World Press Freedom Day, the undersigned organisations honour those who work tirelessly to help keep the public informed and call for robust support for independent journalism. Millions of people around the world are looking for reliable, fact-based, and gender-sensitive journalism that can help them navigate the biggest shared challenge of our lifetime. The need for trustworthy information has never been greater and more urgent than during this pandemic. Access to timely, high-quality information is imperative during a global health crisis; it is one of the key pillars required to slow the spread of this virus, mitigate its impacts,…

A ZDF camera crew were attacked after filming a demonstration against the corona rules for satirical news programme the heute-show (Today Show) on Friday 1 May. The team were on the way back to their vehicles when the incident took place. The EFJ joined its German affiliates the German Association of Journalists (DJV) and the German Union of Journalists (dju in ver.di) in condemning the attack. Five of the seven members required hospital treatment and have since been discharged to recover from home. The police initially arrested six suspects, who were released from custody. Some 15 persons are suspected of…

Journalists in Europe have never before been subjected to as much violence and abusive treatment. Listen to our messages on the occasion of World Press Freedom Day. Ricardo Gutiérrez, EFJ General Secretary:   Renate Schroeder, EFJ Director: WPFD-BJV-1   Read also the Annual Report of the Council of Europe Platform For the Protection of Journalism and the Safety of Journalists and other Media Actors. #WorldPressFreedomDay #WPFD2020 #WPFD #EuropeForFreeMedia

The European Federation of Journalists (EFJ) welcomes today’s statement from the OSCE Representative on Freedom of the Media, Harlem Désir, on the occasion of World Press Freedom Day, on 3 May. He called on the 57 OSCE participating States to “let journalists do their job unhindered, ensure them access to information and support those media that are financially struggling because of the pandemic.” “As the world finds itself in the midst of a global pandemic, the necessity of a free media is even more vital and more crucial than ever.(…) Yet, we have seen many States responding to this crisis with measures that…

The European federation of Journalists (EFJ) welcomes today’s statement from the Vice-President of the European Commission, Věra Jourová, on the occasion of World Press Freedom Day, on 3 May. She calls on the governments of the EU Member States to support the media sector. “Member States have the tools available, with the support of the Commission, to help the media sector. And I will do all I can to ensure media are an important element of the European recovery package. Today I ask governments to make sure that journalists are able to work in the right conditions,” she said. Věra…