Journalists’ unions around the world endorsed on 12 June, in Tunis, a new Charter of Ethics for Journalists following months of consultations. The document builds on and reinforces the ethical standards laid down by the 1954 IFJ Declaration of Principles on the Conduct of Journalists, the most widely recognised text on journalistic ethics to date. That Declaration was drafted in Bordeaux, France, 65 years ago, and was last updated in 1986, hence the need for a new Charter adapted to current challenges facing the media. Drafted by a working group of 16 people, including representatives of the IFJ leadership, regions and…

When it comes to crediting photojournalists below their pictures, big german newspapers perform worse than smaller ones. That’s the result of the 2019 ranking by the EFJ German affiliate, Deutscher Journalisten Verband (DJV). The ranking is part of a campaign called “Photographers do have names” with the main goal to raise awareness about photojournalists who are often deprived of their right. DJV investigated 87 nationwide selected newspapers in a random sample and found out that smaller newsrooms performed far better in quoting photographers than bigger ones. This year, the three Bavarian Newspapers Fränkische Landeszeitung, Main Post and Nürnberger Nachrichten were…

We, the undersigned international freedom of expression and journalists’ organisations, welcome the resolution of the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe (PACE) adopted on 26 June, condemning the continued impunity for the assassination of journalist Daphne Caruana Galizia and broader systemic rule of law shortcomings in Malta, and inter alia, calling for the launch of an independent public inquiry within three months. Titled Daphne Caruana Galizia’s assassination and the rule of law in Malta and beyond: ensuring that the whole truth emerges, the resolution accompanied a report drafted by Dutch MP Pieter Omtzigt in his capacity as the PACE Special Rapporteur…

On Sunday 23 June, around 4,000 people gathered in Moscow, Vladivostok, St Petersburg, Perm, Makhachkala to protest against the fabrication of criminal charges to incriminate journalists and human rights activists in Russia. The Journalists’ and Media Workers’ Union (JMWU) was one of the moving forces in this campaign. The Meduza journalist Ivan Golunov was freed on 12 June thanks to the unprecedented campaign of social pressure and solidarity from the journalism community and civil society as a whole. Against this backdrop, journalist Igor Rudnikov, who was threatened with 10 years in prison on absurd charges of extortion, was also freed.…

According to the Independent Association of Georgian Journalists (IAGJ), journalists were forcefully removed from the Georgian Parliament building and at least ten more were injured while covering protests around Parliament in the capital Tbilisi on 20th June. The International and European Federations of Journalists (IFJ/EFJ) have urged the authorities to stop targeting journalists and to respect press freedom and the right to information. Reports say that clashes between the riot police and the protesters started after Sergei Gavrilov, a Russian national who supports the independence of the Georgian breakaway regions of Abkhazia and South Ossetia and a supporter of Vladimir…

From 18-21 June 2019, we undertook an international freedom of expression mission to Albania, comprised of the European Centre for Press and Media Freedom (ECPMF), ARTICLE 19, the Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ), the European Federation of Journalists (EFJ), the International Press Institute (IPI), Reporters Without Borders (RSF) and the South East Europe Media Organisation (SEEMO). The mission sought to gather information about challenges to freedom of expression and press freedom in Albania and bring concerns directly to Albanian government representatives. We met with journalists; editors-in-chief; representatives of civil society, international organisations and foreign embassies present in Tirana; and senior…