World Press Freedom Day 2014
World Press Freedom Day serves as a reminder of the importance of free media and the fundamental role it plays in civil society. It is a day on which we pay tribute to journalists who work under increasingly difficult conditions around the world. With the crisis in Ukraine, journalists’ safety, offline and online, is of particular concern and we need to stop the attacks, intimidation , detention and imprisonment of members of the media.
On 2 May, the OSCE Representative on Freedom of the Media Dunja Mijatović paid tribute to media workers around the world and emphasized their essential role in the development of democracy in the run up to World Press Freedom Day on 3 May.
The Office of the OSCE Representative on Freedom of the Media today also released the Second Edition of the Safety of journalists Guidebook. It is available in English at www.osce.org/fom/118052 and in Russian at www.osce.org/ru/fom/118202.
World Press Freedom Day around the world
3 May was proclaimed World Press Freedom Day by the UN General Assembly in 1993 following a Recommendation adopted at the twenty-sixth session of UNESCO's General Conference in 1991. 3 May 2014 marks the 21st World Press Freedom Day and it serves as a reminder of the violations of press freedom that take place every day, in the OSCE region and beyond.
UNESCO marks World Press Freedom Day each year by gathering media professionals, press freedom NGO’s and international organizations to discuss current challenges for press freedom. This year the discussion will focus on three interrelated themes: media’s importance in development; safety of journalists and the rule of law; and the sustainability and integrity of journalism.
The Public Liberties and Human Rights department at Al Jazeera, in co-operation with several international organizations who promote press freedom and the protection of journalists around the world, has produced a video in recognition of World Press Freedom Day on the May 3rd, 2014. It raises awareness of the number of journalists that have been killed in the past two decades and demands an end to impunity for those responsible.
IFJ launches week of actions to mark World Press Freedom Day 2014 http://t.co/OBI8bjrzUk #pressfreedom
— IFJ (@IFJGlobal) April 29, 2014
What can be done to improve the media freedom situation over the next 15 years?
Catalina Botero, Special Rapporteur for Freedom of Expression, Organization of American States (OAS)
Frank La Rue, UN Special Rapporteur on the Promotion and Protection of the Right to Freedom of Opinion and Expression
We believe no journalist should be imprisoned for doing their job. You, too, can add your voice. #FreeThePress #WPFD http://t.co/clRRvGhYaQ
— CPJ (@pressfreedom) April 29, 2014
Impunity must end now
A campaign against impunity for crimes committed against journalists, produced by the Commission for the Investigation of Murders of Journalists and supported by the Office of the OSCE Representative on Freedom of the Media.
Here are 10 journalists to free from prison. #FreethePress #WPFD http://t.co/DjBL26k0er
— Joel Simon (@Joelcpj) April 29, 2014