Curbing impunity against journalists: Global media actors demand more from Judiciary

A staggering 1653 journalists were killed across the world between 1993 and 2023
 

Kofi Yeboah Writes From Addis Ababa,

GLOBAL media actors have urged the Judiciary to deal swiftly and decisively with perpetrators of crimes against journalists in order to curb such impunity.

Speakers at a two-day meeting in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, to commemorate this year’s International Day to End Impunity for Crimes against Journalists, were unanimous that prosecution and conviction of persons involved in crimes against journalists would ensure deterrence and curb the impunity.

The Editor and Publisher of The Daily Star in Bangladesh, Mahfuz Anam, said the Judiciary was not doing enough to support the cause of ending impunity for crimes against journalists.

According to him, when journalists are killed and attacked but no convictions are made, the perpetrators are emboldened to continue the impunity.

Mr Anam said in a world where democracy was failing to yield its dividends, journalism provided a source of hope in respect of addressing the needs of the people.

The President of the Federation of African Journalists (FAJ), Omar Faruk Osman, said Africa was among the worst regions in the world regarding crimes against journalists, citing the case of Sudan where about 800 journalists had fled the country to safeguard their lives.

He said even in some thriving democracies in Africa, journalists were not safe, drawing attention to Ghana where investigative journalist Ahmed Suale was killed in 2019.

He said there was the need for action-oriented interventions, including the conviction of perpetrators of such crimes in order to ensure deterrence.

End the impunity

The number of journalists killed across the world is staggering, with 1653 casualties in a spate of 30 years (from 1993 to 2023).

There are deep concerns about the increasing number of journalists killed during crises and emergencies.

Those concerns informed the theme for this year’s International Day to End Impunity for Crimes against Journalists – ‘Safety of journalists in crises and emergencies’.

The participants said there was the need to move beyond commemoration to real action to ensure the safety and protection of journalists, adding that freedom of expression is not conditional; it is necessary.

The commemoration of the occasion was under the joint auspices of UNESCO and the African Union (AU).

The African Commission on Human and Peoples Rights (ACHPR) Special Rapporteur on Freedom of Expression and Access to Information in Africa, Ourveena Geereesha Topsy-Sonoo, expressed concern about the situation in the Sahel region where there are reports of forced disappearance of journalists.

A Justice of the African Court on Human and Peoples Rights, Justice Dennis Adjei, said the Court was committed to dealing with human rights cases.

He, however, expressed concern about the lack of commitment by some African countries to comply with the mandate of the Court.

END

Kindly share your thoughts and read other articles on this blog

Writer's Email: kofiyebo@yahoo.com

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

A grand funeral for ‘The Grandmaster’

Image
                                                     Godwin Avenorgbo, The Grandmaster Kofi Yeboah Writes, AT the funeral of ‘The Grandmaster’, there were no food or ‘takeaways’ served but that did not leave mourners hungry and angry because there were plenty takeaways and food for thought that left them really satisfied. The funeral was very simple – no elaborations; no tributes, and nothing grandeur, all in keeping to the wishes of The Grandmaster, Godwin Rosevelt Avenorgbo. The renowned broadcaster believed in simplicity – of life and events – so his family kept the funeral as such. He was time conscious and punctual (I bear testimony of this attribute having worked closely with him) and his funeral started and ended within schedule as indicated in the funeral programme. There was no ‘funeral cloth’ because in his lifetime, he detested that practice, calling it waste of money for the dead when the living need such resources for survival. There were no tributes because he
Read more

Curiosity: The driver to Egypt

Image
Kofi Yeboah Writes From Cairo, In the heart of Accra, at the Kwame Nkrumah Mausoleum, the mortal remains of two distinguished persons are cleaved decades after their marriage celebrated both on earth and in heaven. The marriage between Ghana’s first president Kwame Nkrumah and Egyptian beauty, Fathia, caught the fancy of the nation, and even after ‘death did them part’ more than five decades ago, their mortal remains cleaved in the belly of the earth at the tourism enclave in Accra, still attract a large number of eyeballs. Nkrumah was a champion of African unity but for him to live that charge beyond imagination, by tying the nuptial knot with Fathia, is a masterstroke of the African unity agenda he enjoyed or enjoys huge applause for on earth and in the heavens. In Ghana, especially among rural folks, whenever a star appeared close to the moon, they were deemed to be the symbolic marriage between Nkrumah and Fathia, as people rushed outside to fix a gaze in the sky and exclai
Read more

When birthday becomes dark day

Image
Kofi Yeboah Writes, Today is the birthday of Jesus Christ, and that reminds me of my last birthday on October 23. The three wisemen in biblical setting who followed the star to look for Jesus, celebrated his birth with gifts of gold, frankincense and myrrh, when they had found him. Hear me ye wisemen of our contemporary setting: on my birthday, follow my advice here; look for, and celebrate, me with gifts but never forget to add chocolate. Beside appreciating God on this auspicious occasion, for almost two decades now, my birthday celebration was never complete without eating and sharing chocolate. And if it is chocolate, it must definitely be ‘Golden Tree Kingsbite’ milk chocolate (large size) produced by the Cocoa Processing Company in Ghana. That brand of chocolate is the only companion besides God that holds my sanity intact, in good and/or bad mood. Whenever I get an opportunity to travel abroad, I carry ‘Golden Tree Kingsbite’ milk chocolate along for two reasons: f
Read more