As the Azerbaijani government intensifies its crackdown on journalists ahead of the COP29 conference in Baku, the European Federation of Journalists (EFJ) calls on the international community to step up pressure on the authorities to release the 23 journalists and media workers unjustly imprisoned in Azerbaidjan. The UN Climate Change Conference, more commonly known as COP29, is hosted by the government of Azerbaijan. It will take place in Baku on November 11-22, 2024. Ahead of this international conference, the EFJ calls on the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) secretariat, based in Bonn, Germany, to ensure that all COP…

Early August 2024, the Lithuanian Parliament proposed amendments to introduce fines for people who insult or humiliate journalists. This legislative project aims to protect journalists from abusive behaviours and ensure their ability to freely exercise their professional duty of delivering information to the public. The European Federation of Journalists (EFJ) welcomes this initiative and calls for all European countries to implement similar measures in line with the Council of Europe Recommendation 2016/4 on the protection of journalism and safety of journalists.  The Lithuanian proposal, prepared by Speaker of the Seimas Viktorija Čmilytė-Nielsen, suggests amendments to the Code of Administrative Misdemeanors.…

Update (20/08/2024): The EFJ condemns the death threats against the two journalists by pro-Russian circles in Italy, in particular the writer Nicolai Lilin. ——————————- The European Federation of Journalists (EFJ) joins its Italian affiliate FNSI in strongly condemning Russian threats to prosecute Italian journalists covering the Ukrainian counter-offensive in the Kursk region, in Russia. The EFJ considers that these intimidations amount to censorship and are aimed at preventing public opinion from being informed about ongoing operations. Russian media reported on Friday that the Russian interior ministry intends to press criminal charges against Italian journalists who reported from the region of…

On 11 August 2024, Serbian President Aleksandar Vučić verbally abused journalists from Serbia, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Croatia, and Kosovo during a press conference in Belgrade on the occasion of the rally against the Serbian government’s approval of lithium ore mining in Serbia. The European Federation of Journalists (EFJ) joins the SafeJournalists network in expressing its full solidarity with the journalists who have been targeted by President Vučic. We urge President Vučić and the authorities to refrain from this blatant pattern of harassing journalists or media outlets for critical reporting and instead ensure respect for the fundamental guarantees of media freedom.…

Russian internet monitoring services reported widespread slowdowns of online platform YouTube on 8 August, making it nearly inaccessible without using virtual private networks (VPNs). YouTube has remained one of the few platforms of free expression in the country, amid the government’s crackdown on independent media. The International and European Federations Journalists (IFJ-EFJ) strongly condemn Russia’s slow down of YouTube as a severe act of censorship and urge authorities to revoke the restrictions. On 31 July, Russian authorities announced plans to slow down YouTube’s performance with speeds expected to drop by up to 70%, as part of a strategy to persuade…

Today, 9 August 2024, marks four years since the fraudulent presidential election took place in Belarus, which intensified the crackdown on journalists, independent media and trade unions to crush free speech and political opposition by Aleksandr Lukashenko’s regime. The International and the European Federation of Journalists (IFJ-EFJ) join their affiliate, the Belarusian Journalists’ Association (BAJ), in calling on the regime to release all journalists and media workers behind bars. The Federations also urge the authorities to stop their harassment of exiled journalists, including raiding their residences and causing distress to their families to exert leverage on them. Four years after…

The European Federation of Journalists (EFJ) joins its Media Freedom Rapid Response (MFRR) partners in calling on the authorities in Georgia not to extradite journalist Afgan Sadygov to Azerbaijan and to release him from extradition detention. Additionally, authorities should allow Sadygov to freely leave Georgia for a third country. Georgian authorities arrested Sadygov on 3 August according to the journalist’s wife, who posted footage of him being escorted into a car by law enforcement. The following day, a court in Tbilisi ordered Sadygov to be held in extradition detention. Authorities in Azerbaijan have charged Sadygov with “threatening to spread offensive…

On 31 July 2024, French journalist Thomas Dietrich was ordered by the Swiss justice to withdraw his publications exposing alleged corruption in Guinea and was banned from speaking on the subject. The European Federation of Journalists (EFJ) condemns the order issued by the Geneva Court of First Instance against the investigative journalist and considers it a serious attack on press freedom. The so-called “provisional and super-provisional” measures were taken without informing the journalist, who was silenced until the next hearing. On 4 May, Thomas Dietrich revealed in a video that the Swiss company ADDAX ENERGY, owned by the  billionaire Jean-Claude…

Georgian authorities should immediately release Azerbaijani journalist Afgan Sadygov and stop his extradition to Azerbaijan, said today the European Federation of Journalists (EFJ) and its affiliate in Georgia, the Independent Association of Georgian Journalists (IAGJ). On Saturday 3 August, Azerbaijani journalist Afgan Sadygov, editor-in-chief of AzelTV news website, known for his reporting on embezzlement of public funds in Azerbaijan, was arrested by Georgian criminal police as he was leaving his home in Tbilisi with his wife and children. Georgia made the arrest in response to an extradition request from the Azerbaijani authorities, following vague accusations of threats and extortion. On…

Since 29 July 2024, FoNet journalist Tamara Skrozza has been subjected to a coordinated defamation campaign by media outlets closely aligned with the Serbian government. The International and European Federations of Journalists (IFJ-EFJ) join their affiliates in Serbia (NUNS, UNS), in standing in solidarity with Skrozza and in condemning these smearing methods aimed at publicly discrediting the journalist with false information. The defamatory articles first appeared on the news portals informer.rs and novosti.rs on 29 July, followed by further dissemination through primetime news on Pink Television and other media close to the government. Tamara Skrozza was falsely accused of stating…

The Media Rapid Response (MFRR) partners stand in solidarity with journalists in Italy and call for an immediate end to all forms of attacks against them. We encourage all key stakeholders, including institutional ones, to join forces in enhancing the protection of journalists and media professionals.  The MFRR is a network of six media freedom organisations committed to working towards a resilient and free media landscape, including through conducting fact-finding and advocacy missions to assess the situation on the ground. Amidst a documented increase in attacks affecting the press and media freedom landscape in Italy recorded by the Media Freedom…

A major prisoner exchange between Russia and the west is under way today involving at least four journalists: Alsu Kurmasheva, Evan Gershkovich, Vladimir Kara-Murza and Pablo Gonzalez. The European and International Federations of Journalists (EFJ-IFJ) welcomes their release, condemns hostage-taking tactics and calls on Russia, Belarus, Azerbaijan and Turkey to free the 137 other journalists currently behind bars in Europe. According to the Turkish authorities, 26 people from prisons in seven different countries were exchanged in Ankara, under the coordination of the Turkish National Intelligence Agency (MIT). The prisoners are from the US, Germany, Poland, Slovenia, Norway, Russia, and Belarus.…

On 1 August, Georgia’s bill on Transparency of Foreign Influence came into force, posing a severe threat to press freedom and democracy, with the potential to criminalise journalists and independent media. The International and European Federation of Journalists (IFJ-EFJ) strongly condemn this oppressive legislation, highlight its potential to be weaponised against critics of the government, and urge the authorities to immediately and unconditionally withdraw it. After Georgia’s controversial bill on Transparency and Foreign Influence came into force on 1 August, all media and civil society organisations receiving more than 20% of its funding from abroad are mandated to register as…

The European Federation of Journalists (EFJ) undersigned a statement with 14 human rights and media freedom organisations, expressing that the European Commission’s 2024 Rule of Law Report misleads readers about the state of the rule of law in Greece. This comes at a time when media freedom and civic space face dire threats and attacks. The overly positive account in the report starkly contrasts an alarming reality experienced by journalists, activists, and civil society organisations on the ground, and a growing international concern over the deterioration of the rule of law in the country. This was already highlighted by 17 human…

This is a black week for press freedom in Greece, where on Wednesday a court acquitted the two suspects accused of murdering journalist Giorgos Karaivaz in 2021. The previous day, on Tuesday, the Greek supreme court ruled out any possibility of prosecution against the state and its security service in connection with the illegal wiretapping scandal Predatorgate. Impunity remains the norm in Greece A Greek court acquitted two men who had faced charges of killing a prominent crime journalist. On 9 April 2021, investigative journalist Giorgos Karaivaz was returning home from a daytime show on STAR TV when he was…

On 26 July 2024, Iman Sefati, journalist for the BILD newspaper, was ambushed and threatened with a knife after he spent the day reporting on a peaceful demonstration in Berlin. The European Federation of Journalists (EFJ) joins its German affiliates, dju in ver.di and the German Journalists Association (DJV), in condemning this violent attack and calling for legal action against the perpetrators.  Iman Sefati was covering the Dyke March, a demonstration in favor of lesbian visibility in Berlin-Neukölln as a video reporter. Later that day, as the reporter was about to leave his private residence, he was approached by a…