🚀 go-pugleaf

Path: news.web.net!web!ifex From: IFEX <ifex@web.apc.org> Newsgroups: ifex.comm
Subject: IFEX World Press Freedom Day Issue Message-ID:
<APC&3'0'167a1896'e25@web.apc.org> Date: Mon, 03 May 1999 17:56:37 -0400 (EDT)
X-Gateway: notes@web.apc.org Lines: 641

View the webzine version of the IFEX "Communique" on-line at:
www.ifex.org/communique.

International Freedom of Expression eXchange Clearing House
_____________________________________________________________________________
IFEX "COMMUNIQUE" # 8-16                                            3 May 1999

SPECIAL WORLD PRESS FREEDOM DAY ISSUE
**INDEX**
1. WORLD PRESS FREEDOM DAY TO HIGHLIGHT CASES OF IMPUNITY AGAINST MEDIA
2. FREEDOM HOUSE SURVEY SAYS GLOBAL PRESS FREEDOM DECLINED IN 1998
3. MEDIA FREEDOM STIFLED IN TIMES OF TENSION, SAYS MISA REPORT
4. MILOSEVIC HEADS CPJ'S 10 ENEMIES OF THE PRESS LIST
5. CAMPAIGN SHOWS SOLIDARITY WITH INDEPENDENT MEDIA IN YUGOSLAVIA
6. PINA 3 MAY EVENT CELEBRATES MEDIA FREEDOM AS INDIVIDUAL RIGHT
7. WAN PUBLISHES ESSAYS BY THREATENED EDITORS FOR 3 MAY
8. MEDIA FREEDOM STILL REPRESSED IN KENYA, SAYS THE MEDIA INSTITUTE
9. RSF ANNUAL REPORT SAYS MORE REPORTERS KILLED FOR CORRUPTION STORIES
10. WIPC HIGHLIGHTS UNPUNISHED MURDERS OF THREE JOURNALISTS
11. CJFE CO-HOSTS EVENTS WITH DOAN VIET HOAT AND BOSNIAN JOURNALIST
12. CENTRE FOR MEDIA FREEDOM CALLS ON JOURNALISTS TO PROMOTE PEACE
13. OTHER WORLD PRESS FREEDOM DAY EVENTS, PUBLICATIONS AND WEBSITES
ALERTS ISSUED BY THE CLEARING HOUSE DURING THE PAST WEEK

** ** **

WORLD PRESS FREEDOM DAY TO HIGHLIGHT CASES OF IMPUNITY AGAINST MEDIA

World Press Freedom Day is celebrated on 3 May each year to commemorate
the signing of the Declaration of Windhoek, a statement advocating  a
free, independent and pluralistic media. It was endorsed by journalists
at a regional conference in Windhoek, Namibia organised in 1991 by the
United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organisation
(UNESCO). Similar declarations have been signed in the other regions of
the world. In 1993, the UN General Assembly chose 3 May as World Press
Freedom Day. To mark this day, the International Freedom of Expression
eXchange (IFEX) Clearing House has created a World Press Freedom Day page
on its website at www.ifex.org. In addition, this special issue of the
IFEX "Communique" includes statements, reports and news from IFEX members
and other human rights and press freedom groups and supporters.

The theme for this year's World Press Freedom Day is "the impunity of
most crimes committed against journalists and information professionals,"
according to UNESCO. To this end, many IFEX members and others around the
world are focusing on impunity. UNESCO will commemorate World Press
Freedom Day in Bogotá, Colombia this year. A number of IFEX members will
attend the two-day event and have contributed case studies of murdered
journalists to the UNESCO 3 May package.

The UNESCO package contains information on the case of Metin Goktepe, a
Turkish journalist with the newspaper "Evrensel" who was murdered by
police officers in January 1996, submitted by ARTICLE 19; the case of
Ferdinand Reyes, the publisher and editor of the weekly "Press Freedom"
newspaper in the Philippines who was murdered in February 1996, submitted
by the World Association of Newspapers (WAN); the case of Nechi Lyimo, a
Tanzanian journalist with the British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC) who
escaped with his life in an attack on his home last June, submitted by
the International Federation of Journalists (IFJ); the case of Anatoly
Levin-Utkin, a Russian journalist who was murdered in August 1998,
submitted by the International Press Institute (IPI); the case of Tahar
Djaout, an Algerian journalist murdered in 1993, submitted by Reporters
sans frontières (RSF); and the cases of Zaqueo de Oliveira and Aristeu
Guida da Silva, two Brazilian journalists murdered in 1995, submitted by
the Inter-American Press Association (IAPA). In addition, the UNESCO
package includes a submission on the murder of Guillermo Cano Isaza, the
editor of "El Espectador" in Bogotá who was murdered in 1986, prompting
in part the creation of the Guillermo Cano Foundation, which along with
UNESCO offers the UNESCO/Guillermo Cano World Press Freedom Prize each year.

UNESCO notes that "in many countries around the world murder, violence,
and intimidation are used as means to silence journalists and most of
these crimes are not investigated and punished." In particular, "Latin
American and zones of armed conflict are the most hazardous for the
journalist's trade," continues UNESCO. In 1997, UNESCO's Member States
adopted a resolution calling for those responsible for crimes against
journalists and others exercising the right to freedom of expression to
be brought to justice. To mark this day, UNESCO Director-General Federico
Mayor, UN Secretary-General Kofi Annan, and UN High Commissioner for
Human Rights Mary Robinson issued a joint message calling for "all
governments, regional and local authorities to renew their commitment to
guarantee the safety of journalists and to ensure that crimes against
journalists do not go unpunished." They note that this century has been
"marked by ceaseless struggle for press freedom. It has been a century of
numerous abuses of the right to freedom of expression."

Given the theme and the history of unpunished attacks on journalists in
Colombia, it is an appropriate location for this year's World Press
Freedom Day. The 1999 UNESCO/Guillermo Cano World Press Freedom Prize
will be awarded to Mexican journalist J. Jesús Blancornelas, the editor
of the weekly "Zeta" who escaped with his life in a November 1997 attack.
He has been threatened for exposing  corruption and drug-trafficking, and
remains under armed guard. He is also the vice-president of the Society
of Journalists in Mexico, which fights for press freedom nationwide.
Blancornelas was nominated for the award by Canadian Journalists for Free
Expression (CJFE), which will send a representative to the events in
Colombia.

2. FREEDOM HOUSE SURVEY SAYS GLOBAL PRESS FREEDOM DECLINED IN 1998

Press freedom worldwide declined overall in 1998, according to the annual
survey of the news media issued by Freedom House to mark World Press
Freedom Day. The survey, "News of the Century: Press Freedom 1999,"
attributes the drop to government-imposed legal restrictions "rather than
outright oppression or violence." This is "particularly disturbing
because it reverses, even if temporarily, the twentieth century's
movement toward the enlargement of press freedom," says Leonard Sussman,
coordinator of the survey. "While physical attacks, even murder and
arrest of journalists have not ended, regimes increasingly use subtle
legislation such as 'insult laws' to restrict criticism."

Sussman notes that press freedom decreased in 53 countries, and increased
slightly in only 20 nations. "Nearly 30 percent of 186 countries took new
initiatives to restrict, if not silence, press reports and especially
dissent," according to Sussman. "The trend suggests a form of censorship
by stealth - the use of innocuous-sounding laws to restrict reporting and
inspire self-censorship." Freedom House says these laws tend to
"emphasise the 'duties' of journalists to protect national security,
public health and morals, and the reputations of citizens, especially
rulers and their parties."

According to the survey, 68 countries have a free press, 52 have a partly
free press, and 66 have news media that are not free. Freedom House notes
"major declines in press freedom - in Ghana, Peru, and Jordan, whose
media declined from partly free to not free, while Namibia and Samoa
declined from free to partly free." The survey notes that "most
reductions in news media freedom were marginal," however, "only 1.2
billion people live in nations with a free press, 2.4 billion where the
press is partly free, and another 2.4 billion in not-free nations." The
scores are determined by assessing a country's "press laws and their
administration, the degree of political and economic influence on
journalistic content, and actual cases of violations ranging from
harassment of journalists and the media to physical attacks and murder."

For a copy of the study or a "Map of Press Freedom 1999", contact Freedom
House, 1319 18th Street, NW, Washington, DC 20036, USA, tel: +202 296
5101, Website: http://www.freedomhouse.org/.

3. MEDIA FREEDOM STIFLED IN TIMES OF TENSION, SAYS MISA REPORT

Southern African countries failed to protect media freedom during times
of political tension in 1998, says the Media Institute of Southern
African (MISA) in its report on the state of media freedom in southern
Africa for 1998, entitled "So This is Democracy?" The report lists over
160 separate incidents involving various types of violations or important
developments affecting the media in Angola, Botswana, Lesotho, Malawi,
Mozambique, Namibia, South Africa, Swaziland, Tanzania, Zambia and
Zimbabwe. In the regional overview, South African journalism professor
Guy Berger says "the true test of media freedom in society is during
times of high political tension and that during 1998, none of the
countries reported on by MISA truly passed the tests that confronted
them," according to MISA. "What gains were made in 1998, were not given
on a plate, but were fought for. What defences were held, were maintained
not through weakness of attacks but the resilience of the defenders.
There was no shortage of powerful forces seeking to silence journalists,"
says Prof. Berger.

MISA says, "An important addition to this year's "So This is Democracy?"
is recognition of the various victories secured by the media. However,
out of all the incidents listed, only 25 victories were recorded." The
most alerts were issued for Zambia, with 28, making it the leading
offender for the third year in a row. However, MISA notes, there were a
few victories in Zambia. "Over half of the incidents recorded on Zambia
concerned legal action, testimony to litigious politicians who have no
tolerance for an independent media," says MISA. There were 21 alerts
issued on Tanzania and MISA says "this should set off some alarm bells
since it's a sharp increase from the 12 alerts that were issued against
it in 1997." MISA only records one journalist murdered in the region in
1998, in Angola, and 17 imprisoned. MISA also reports "19 incidents where
media workers or institutions were attacked, 33 censored, 29 harassed,
nine threatened, and 66 incidents of legal action, which involved either
media workers or institutions facing legal action or new legislation that
was introduced or repealed."

To mark World Press Freedom Day, MISA has also prepared letters to a
number of heads of state in Southern Africa appealing to them on matters
pertaining to freedom of expression and media freedom. The letters are
written for individuals and the aim is for a person to sign the letters,
and fax them, preferably during the week of May 3 or the month of May. To
obtain a copy of "So This is Democracy?", contact Gisella Itembu at the
MISA Regional Secretariat, Private Bag 13386 Windhoek, Namibia, tel: +264
61 260 394, fax: +264 61 248 016 or e-mail: research@misa.org.na. Website
address: http://www.misanet.org/.

4. MILOSEVIC HEADS CPJ'S 10 ENEMIES OF THE PRESS LIST

Yugoslavian President Slobodan Milosevic is number one on the list of 10
Enemies of the Press released by the Committee to Protect Journalists
(CPJ) on World Press Freedom Day. He is followed by President Jiang Zemin
of China, President Fidel Castro of Cuba, President Laurent Kabila of the
Democratic Republic of Congo, Prime Minister Meles Zenawi of Ethiopia,
President Zine Abdine Ben Ali of Tunisia, Prime Minister Mahathir Mohamad
of Malaysia, President Alberto Fujimori of Peru, President Leonid Kuchma
of Ukraine, and President Hosni Mubarak of Egypt. Milosevic is guilty of
stifling the media "through intimidation, assault, crippling fines, and
license denials - all codified in a draconian media law imposed in
October." Since the beginning of the bombing, CPJ says, Milosevic "has
quelled every opposition voice, imperiled journalists' lives, and filled
the airwaves with hate speech."

In China, Jiang has "presided over worsening conditions for politically
independent journalists in the last year as the Communist Party's
propaganda department shut down several newspapers, magazines, and book
publishing houses and threatened many others for challenging party
orthodoxy," while journalists continue to be jailed. Castro makes the
list again this year for arresting numerous independent journalists and
for passing a press law which "criminalises free speech" in Cuba.

In the Democratic Republic of Congo, Kabila "has created a reign of
terror for scores of journalists through his penchant for blaming his
military failures on the independent press," says CPJ, noting that under
his rule,"more than 70 journalists have been detained without charge,
imprisoned, attacked, or harassed." Zenawi also stays on the list as
"Africa's leading jailer of journalists," with "12 in prison at the end
of 1998, and another 20 incarcerated during the year" in Ethiopia. Kuchma
is sixth on the list for "using tax and libel laws as instruments of his
hostility to journalists" in the Ukraine, and because "his tacit
acceptance of violence against the press has encouraged bombings of
newspaper offices, assaults on reporters and editors, and a general
climate of fear and self-censorship." Tunisia's President is seventh for
having created "a climate of fear" where "journalists who dare to veer
from a path of strict self-censorship face swift reprisal in the form of
dismissal from jobs, severing of phone and fax lines, restrictions on
travel, and intimidation by state agents."

CPJ says under Malaysia's Mahathir , "strict licensing requirements are
in force, self-censorship by journalists of news deemed negative or
derogatory is rewarded, and foreign press are closely monitored and
frequently harassed." In Peru, CPJ says, "Fujimori's intelligence arm has
engaged in assassination plans, death threats, wiretapping, surveillance,
and smear tactics to harass and imperil journalists, often forcing or
ordering them into exile." Finally, in Egypt, "a siege of jailings under
the provisions of the Mubarak-approved press law and the censorship and
closure of newspapers marked a sharp deterioration in the climate for
press freedom in his one-man 18-year rule." For more information, visit
the CPJ's website at http://www.cpj.org.

5. CAMPAIGN SHOWS SOLIDARITY WITH INDEPENDENT MEDIA IN YUGOSLAVIA

On World Press Freedom Day, the World Association of Community Radio
Broadcasters (AMARC) and HelpB92 are launching an international campaign
of solidarity with Radio B92 and 50 other independent broadcasters from
the Association of Independent Electronic Media (ANEM). This action is
supported by many IFEX members, among others. The two groups initiated
the action to "protest at the blanket repression of broadcast and other
media in and from the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia." AMARC and HelpB92
"call on supporters of freedom of expression around the globe to join
this action to assure the safety and continuing work of independent media
activists during this time of extreme crisis and war." The long-term goal
is to get Radio B92 and all ANEM stations back on the air as soon as
possible. To help realise this goal, the campaign aims to twin fellow
broadcasters, radio and television stations, freedom of expression
organisations and activists from around the world with journalists and
other staff from these independent media in the region.

The main focus of the launch is the mobilisation of community radio
broadcasters throughout the world, many of whom will undertake solidarity
broadcasts with ANEM and Radio B92 on World Press Freedom Day. AMARC
President, Maria Victoria Polanco, will present the campaign in Bogotá
during the UNESCO celebrations of World Press Freedom Day. For further
information, please contact Brian Carty at AMARC European Secretariat, 15
Paternoster Row, Sheffield S1 2BX, United Kingdom, tel: +44 114 221 0592,
fax: +44 114 279 8976, e-mail: brianc@amarc.org, website:
www.amarc.org/b92. Also contact Steve Buckley, Deputy President of AMARC,
at tel: +44 114 279 5219 or Julia Glyn-Pickett, B92 spokesperson, at tel:
+44 797 108 7184.
6. PINA 3 MAY EVENT CELEBRATES MEDIA FREEDOM AS INDIVIDUAL RIGHT

Freedom of expression and information were celebrated as basic human
rights at Pacific World Press Freedom Day regional ceremonies organised
by the Pacific Islands News Association (PINA) on 3 May in Suva, Fiji
Islands. The event, hosted by the Secretariat of the Pacific Community
(SPC) at its centre in Suva, was attended by journalists, journalism
trainers, and news executives from 13 Pacific Islands countries, as well
as diplomats, international agency representatives and community leaders.
In the keynote address, PINA president William Parkinson remarked that
the need to promote media freedom in Fiji stemmed from the 1987 military
coups. Parkinson told participants, "In Fiji, people realised media
freedom was a precious thing we had to fight for. But media being only a
small component of the society, we realised we couldn't fight it alone.
The general public had to be made aware that media freedom is an
individual right." As a result of the coups and other pressures on the
regional media PINA began its "Media Freedom is Your Freedom" campaigns.
These stressed Article 19 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights.
PINA jointly emphasises "promoting and defending media freedom and
developing professional standards through education and training."

PINA's World Press Freedom Day ceremonies included the opening of two
regional workshops, one on writing and editing for TV news, the other on
training the trainers on women in the news. In other addresses at the
ceremonies, Australia's Acting High Commissioner Anne Plunkett opened the
workshops and welcomed the participation of more women. The Pacific
Community's deputy Director-General, Dr. Jimmie Rodgers, said the biggest
challenge facing the regional media these days is to "get the governments
to put into practice the principles of media freedom." PINA's 1999
campaign featured the celebration and promotion of the 50th anniversary
of Article 19. With support from UNESCO, PINA produced posters, and radio
and TV tapes promoting Article 19 in the region's two main languages,
English and French. As well, PINA has had Article 19 translated into all
the region's main local languages. These were included in a special Media
Freedom Handbook.

7. WAN PUBLISHES ESSAYS BY THREATENED EDITORS FOR 3 MAY

As part of its annual World Press Freedom Day activities, the World
Association of Newspapers (WAN) has compiled essays by dissidents and
editors, case studies on jailed journalists, statistics about murders and
other press freedom attacks, and advertisements highlighting press
freedom. The package, sent to 15,000 newspapers worldwide for publication
on 3 May, includes an interview with Milos Vasic, the President of the
Independent Journalists Association of Serbia, entitled "The Berlin Wall
Still Stands in Serbia," written before the bombing campaign. In his
prescient essay, Vasic writes, "The regime - and most opposition
political parties, for that matter - are unable or unwilling to
understand that freedom of the press is one of the basic infrastructural
rules of the game in a democratic society, something like railways,
electricity or telephone networks."

Other essays included in WAN's 1999 World Press Freedom Day package are
written by Nigerian journalist Chris Anyanwu and Vietnamese journalist
Doan Viet Hoat, both released from jail last summer. In addition, there
is an essay by Mexican editor J. Jesus Blancornelas, the 1999 winner of
the UNESCO/Guillermo Cano World Press Freedom Prize who nearly died in a
November 1997 attack. Faraj Sarkuhi, an Iranian editor who won the 1999
WAN Golden Pen of Freedom and was released from prison in 1998, has also
written an essay for the WAN package. The World Press Freedom Day
materials are available on the WAN web site at www.wan-press.org/wpfd99/.

8. MEDIA FREEDOM STILL REPRESSED IN KENYA, SAYS THE MEDIA INSTITUTE

Although free expression has improved in Kenya in the last decade, press
freedom suffers under the heavy hand of political forces, say the Media
Institute (MI) and the Kenya Union of Journalists (KUJ) in a joint
statement to mark World Press Freedom Day. "Thanks to concerted efforts
by the reform movement and the resilient sections of the press, we are
now able to rank qualitatively as a progressive country. But we are not
yet there," write Kihu Irimu, KUJ Secretary General, and David Makali, MI
Programmes Director. "Kenya ranks as one of the countries where the
politically dominant forces are still intent on suppressing press freedom
and, by extension, undermining the hard-won gains of the struggle for
democracy and human rights." The '90s were marked by open violence
against journalists, interference in the daily work of journalists by
media owners, corruption and deteriorating working conditions.

Irimu and Jamali write, "On this occasion of the World Press Freedom Day,
the KUJ and the MI wish to express their concern at the systematic
marginalisation and alienation of the media from the mainstream of
national decision and policy-making processes. The ongoing constitutional
review has been conducted without sufficient regard to the fundamental
role of the media in the democratisation process and of its significance
as a stakeholder."

In honour of World Press Freedom Day, the MI and the KUJ have put
together an elaborate week of activities "that focus on the essence,
contribution and future of the press in Kenya." All week, a photo
exhibition entitled "Transitional Images: The Road to Democracy" will
run, featuring "a collection of the best pictures by leading
photojournalists and cartoonists that recapture memories of the
transition to democracy from 1990 to date." On 3 May, a Conference on
Electronic Media Pluralism is being held to examine "the progress made in
liberalising the airwaves and the obstacles in its way." A
Photojournalism Symposium is being held on 4 and 5 May. Finally, the MI
will launch its new journalism awards on 3 May, to be presented in October.

9. RSF ANNUAL REPORT SAYS MORE REPORTERS KILLED FOR CORRUPTION STORIES

Reporters sans frontières (RSF) commemorates World Press Freedom Day by
publishing its annual report and a photo album by French photographer
Henri Cartier-Bresson. The 1999 edition of RSF's annual report highlights
press freedom violations in 127 countries. It says that although fewer
journalists were killed because of their work in 1998 than in previous
years, with a total of 19 murdered, there were more cases of journalists
murdered for investigating corruption. In addition, about the same number
of journalists remain in jail, about 100, says RSF, noting that ''the
worst offenders are still the same, with China and Ethiopia vying for the
record of keeping the most journalists in jail.'' RSF adds, ''Syria and
Turkey are ahead of the field when it comes to journalists tortured while
in detention.'' RSF also criticises countries where broadcasting and the
Internet are controlled, such as Vietnam, China, Croatia, Burma and Malaysia.

The photo album, entitled "Henri Cartier-Bresson for the Defense of Press
Freedom", is being sold in newspaper shops throughout France. In addition
to the French edition, the album will be translated into English,
Spanish, German and Italian, and is to be sold in 30 other countries. It
is available in all European countries with an RSF branch (Germany,
Austria, Belgium, Spain, France, Italy, Sweden and Switzerland), as well
as in Denmark, Greece, Luxembourg and Portugal. It will also be available
in the USA, Canada, Colombia, Argentina, Venezuela, Guyana, Brazil,
Mexico, Morocco, Gabon, Senegal, Côte d'Ivoire, Cameroon, New-Caledonia
and Tahiti. The profits from sales of the photo album will go towards
imprisoned journalists. RSF also launched a promotional campaign marking
World Press Freedom Day in France to call for the release of ten
imprisoned journalists in Burma, China, Cuba, the Democratic Republic of
Congo, Ethiopia, Russia, Syria, Turkey, Uzbekistan and Vietnam. With the
support of several advertising firms and media, this campaign will be
highlighted throughout France with posters, newspapers and magazines,
radio, television and in movie theatres. For more information, visit
RSF's website at www.rsf.fr.

10. WIPC HIGHLIGHTS UNPUNISHED MURDERS OF THREE JOURNALISTS

To mark the twentieth century's last World Press Freedom Day, the Writers
in Prison Committee (WiPC) of International PEN will participate in the
campaign to highlight unpunished crimes against journalists. WiPC is
highlighting the cases of three assassinated journalists whose murders
have never been resolved, Tahar Djaout, Metin Goktepe, and Anatoly
Levin-Utkin. WiPC, which has been very involved with these cases,
encourages others to pursue justice in these cases by writing appeals or
publicising them. WiPC says, "Djaout, Goktepe and Levin-Utkin worked in
different places - Algeria, Turkey and Russia respectively - but shared a
similar mission to protect the ever-shrinking space in their various
countries for freedom of expression. They also shared similar fates. Each
was brutally killed as a result of carrying out their journalistic
duties." Djaout, a journalist and founder of the journal "Ruptures", was
shot in the head on 26 May 1993 and his killers have yet to be found. He
was the first of at least 53 journalists murdered in Algeria between 1993
and 1996. Goktepe, a journalist with the left-wing newspaper "Evrensel"
was beaten to death on 8 January 1996 by 11 police officers who have
since been to trial and released without being brought to justice.
Levin-Utkin, a journalist and deputy-editor at the St. Petersburg weekly
"Yuridichesky Petersburg Segodnya" ("Juridical Petersburg Today"), died
in August 1998 after a beating, but his murder remains unsolved.

11. CJFE CO-HOSTS EVENTS WITH DOAN VIET HOAT AND BOSNIAN JOURNALIST

On 3 May, Vietnamese journalist Doan Viet Hoat joins the Fédération
professionnelle des journalistes du Québec (Québec Journalists'
Federation) when it launches its Comité québécois pour la liberté de la
presse (the Québec Committee for Press Freedom.) The FPJQ defends press
freedom in Québec and internationally, and says, "with the creation of
this new committee, it hopes to contribute more actively to the defense
of press freedom around the world." The FPJQ will collaborate with other
groups such as Canadian Journalists for Free Expression (CJFE) and
Reporters sans frontières. The guest of honour will be Prof. Hoat, who
spent 20 of the last 22 years in prison in Vietnam until his release last
September. CJFE's Michaël Elbaz joins the news conference to talk about
CJFE and the International Freedom of Expression eXchange (IFEX).

Also on 3 May, CJFE is participating in a National Press Club of Canada
lunch in Ottawa marking World Press Freedom Day. The programme includes a
status report on IFEX's work by journalist Bob Carty, a former CJFE board
member, a presentation by Peter White of the Inter American Press
Association's (IAPA) Freedom of Expression Committee, and a UNESCO video
on four press freedom cases. In addition, Gordana Knezevic will speak on
current events in the former Yugoslavia. She was the editor of
"Oslobodenje" newspaper in Sarajevo, which continued to publish during
the war in Bosnia. She came to Canada after receiving death threats and
currently sits on CJFE's board of directors.

12. CENTRE FOR MEDIA FREEDOM CALLS ON JOURNALISTS TO PROMOTE PEACE

On World Press Freedom Day, the Centre for Media Freedom sends "a message
to all journalists in the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) calling on
them to engage in the promotion of a culture of peace in the region." The
Centre's director, Said Essoulami, said, "Journalists are used as weapons
in the propaganda war between states which are in conflict. Even when not
in conflict, most MENA governments use the print and broadcast media to
incite the public against women's rights, minorities and human rights
activists." The Centre appeals to journalists "to be the catalysts of
conciliation and to refuse to be instruments to propagate hatred in the
service of undemocratic regimes." It says, "It is time for the media to
engage in the democratic process and promote a culture of peace in their
countries," particularly in Algeria and Sudan. The Centre calls on
governments to "stop interfering with the media and must provide the
legislative framework, which will allow the flourishing of a free and
independent media;" and "cease censoring, harassing and intimidating
journalists and allow them the right to access of information and to
publish without prior censorship." It also promotes the right of
journalists to join "free and independent unions." Finally, it calls on
those organisations in the field "to provide journalists with appropriate
training to develop conciliatory reporting skills," and appeals to
funding institutions to support such training.

13. OTHER WORLD PRESS FREEDOM DAY EVENTS, PUBLICATIONS AND WEBSITES

PERIODISTAS PUBLISHES ANNUAL REPORT AND ORGANISES PRESS FREEDOM PANEL

On 24 April, prior to World Press Freedom Day, Periodistas, la Asociación
para la Defensa del Periodismo Independiente (the Argentinean Association
for the Defence of Independent Journalism,) presented its annual report,
which is being published in book form for the first time in the
organisation's history. The report, "Attacks on the Press" ("Ataques a la
Prensa"), features a chronology of events in 1998, photos, and essays.
Periodistas also organised a panel discussion on press freedom. Six
panelists, all members of the organisation, will be reviewing and
evaluating the current state of press freedom in Argentina. For more
information, contact Ivón L'Estrange Wallace, Executive Director,
Periodistas, Sarmiento 1334 (1041), Buenos Aires, Argentina, tel: +54 11
4372 6201, e-mail: periodis@netizen.com.ar, website:
http://www.netizen.com.ar/periodistas.

SPP ORGANISES FREE EXPRESSION MARCH IN ASUNCIÓN ON 3 MAY

The Sindicato de Periodistas del Paraguay (Paraguay Journalists' Union,
SPP) is organising a march in the Paraguayan capital, Asunción, from the
National Palace to the Square of the Disappeared (Plaza de los
Desaparecidos), located near the Governmental Palace. A public event will
be held in the square, in support of freedom of expression in Paraguay.
SPP says, "This is the first time that SPP is organizing a public event
on World Press Freedom Day, deeming it more necessary than ever,
particularly as the organisation is celebrating its twentieth anniversary
in 1999."

SLAIN JOURNALIST NORBERT ZONGO REMEMBERED IN BURKINA FASO ON 3 MAY

On World Press Freedom Day, journalists in Burkina Faso will remember the
murder of Norbert Zongo in December 1998, apparently in retaliation for
his investigative reporting, reports the Centre national de Presse (CNP)
in Burkina Faso. Zongo, the respected Editor of the private weekly
"L'Indépendent", founding member of the CNP and head of the Société des
Editeurs de Presse Privée (SEP), was found dead in a burnt car riddled
with bullet holes with three other people. The CNP notes that Zongo's
death remains unpunished, along with many other journalists commemorated
this year. In memory of Zongo, editorials will appear on 3 May about the
slain editor and his colleagues will launch the Norbert Zongo Journalism
Prize to recognise outstanding work in the field of investigative
journalism. For more information, visit http://www.multimania.com/zongo.

COLOMBIAN WEBSITE PUBLISHES FREE EXPRESSION REPORT

The Comité Protección Periodistas de Colombia (Committee for the
Protection of Journalists in Colombia), run by a Colombian journalist in
exile, offers news on World Press Freedom Day and the state of freedom of
expression in Colombia at www.angelfire.com/la/PRENSALIBRE/index.html.
For more information, contact e-mail: prensalibre@hotmail.com.

MALAWI GROUP PHOTAMA ISSUES REPORT ON ATTACKS ON PHOTOGRAPHERS

Photographers have suffered attacks in Malawi and elsewhere, says a
report by the Photographers Association of Malawi (PHOTAMA) issued for
World Press Freedom Day. PHOTAMA promotes the development of photography
and the rights of photographers in Malawi. "Over the past year throughout
the world, there have been many unfortunate cases of violent physical and
mental abuse of media workers while they were carrying out their duties.
Many of these media workers have been photographers," says Photama. In
the past year in Malawi, photographers have been beaten up and had their
cameras destroyed or confiscated. For more information, contact Chris
Osler, Programme Coordinator, PHOTAMA, Second Floor, Phekani House, Glyn
Jones Road, P.O. Box 3051, Blantyre, Malawi, tel/fax: +265 623 417,
e-mail: chris.osler@malawi.net or photama@malawi.net.

AZERBAIJAN ROUNDTABLE CALLS FOR FREEDOM FOR FUAD QAHRAMANLI

A roundtable discussion was organised by the Trade Union of Journalists
(TUJo) in Azerbaijan on 3 May, World Press Freedom Day, to discuss media
freedom in the country. It was attended by representatives of political
parties and human rights organisations. Participants agreed to
participate in campaign to free jailed journalist Fuad Qahramanli,
organised in cooperation with the International Press Institute and
supported internationally by many other organisations. The Union's Chair
Azer Hasret spoke about positive and negative factors affecting the media
in Azerbaijan in 1998 and in the beginning of 1999. He mentioned
newspapers and radio stations closed down by the government, and noted
that opposition and independent media were targeted around election time.
In 1998, TUJo recorded 108 cases of police violence against journalists.
At the end of the roundtable, participants signed an appeal to the
government to establish National Press Freedom Day on 6 August, the day
state censorship was abolished last year.

FREEDOM FORUM MARKS WORLD PRESS FREEDOM DAY WITH EVENTS WORLDWIDE

The Freedom Forum will mark World Press Freedom Day with a number of
events and programs around the world during the week of 3 May, including
at some Freedom Forum International Centers. In New York on 3 May, the
United Nations Department of Public Information and UNESCO are observing
World Press Freedom Day by co-sponsoring a panel discussion with The
Freedom Forum entitled "Turbulent Eras: Generational Perspectives on
Freedom of the Press". Bob Giles, senior vice president of The Freedom
Forum and executive director of the Media Studies Center in New York
City, is introducing a panel discussion at the United Nations following
keynote speaker Stephen Rosenfeld of "The Washington Post." At The
Freedom Forum's Newseum and World Center in Arlington, Va., the
Journalists Memorial will be rededicated according to a yearly tradition
on 5 May. The memorial honors journalists who have given their lives
covering the news. The names of those who have died in that cause since
last year will be added to the memorial in a ceremony in Freedom Park.
For more information, visit The Freedom Forum's website at
www.freedomforum.org.

** ** **

ALERTS ISSUED BY THE CLEARING HOUSE DURING THE PAST WEEK

26/04/1999
PERU: Journalist (m) attacked in Jaen (IFJ) - alert
PERU: Journalists, radio station attacked (IFJ) - update
FEDERAL REPUBLIC OF YUGOSLAVIA: Detained journalist (m) accused of
espionage (IPI) - update

27/04/1999
ZIMBABWE: Concern over reinforcement of defamatory laws (RSF) - alert
FEDERAL REPUBLIC OF YUGOSLAVIA: RSF asks for release of detained
journalists (RSF) - press release/update
CHINA: Poet Xue Deyun (m) sentenced (WiPC) - update
DEMOCRATIC REPUBLIC OF CONGO:  Journalist (m) imprisoned (RSF) - update
FEDERAL REPUBLIC OF YUGOSLAVIA: TV Soko editor (m) imprisoned (ANEM) -
press release/update
CHINA: Special action to mark the tenth anniversary of suppression of
pro-democracy movement (WiPC) - special action

28/04/1999
ZIMBABWE: President vows to broaden state powers against media (MISA) -
update
PERU: Threats and attacks against Satipo press continue (IPYS) - update
NIGERIA: Nigeria Union of Journalists' Chairman arrested (IJC) - alert
TUNISIA:  Journalist (m) harassed (RSF) - update

29/04/1999
CUBA:  Journalist (m) threatened under new law (RSF) - update
VANUATU: Publisher (m) attacked, paper threatened (PINA) - alert
COOK ISLANDS: Chief justice (m) declares election law unconstitutional
(PINA) - alert

30/04/1999
NIGERIA: Media worker (m) killed (IJC) - alert
ANGOLA: Journalist (f) assaulted for reporting on military draft evasion
(CPJ) - alert
NIGERIA: Alarm raised over new attacks in Nigeria (A19) - press
release/update
ZIMBABWE: Charges against journalist (f) and publisher (m) dropped (MISA)
- update
FEDERAL REPUBLIC OF YUGOSLAVIA: Poet and women's rights activist Flora
Brovina (f) reportedly abducted (WiPC) - alert
GUINEA: Journalist (m) arrested (RSF) - alert
TOGO: Press under siege (UJIT/WAJA) - alert/update
PERU: Renewed attacks against the director (m) of "La República" (IPYS) -
update
PERU: Journalist (m) assaulted and threatened (IFJ) - alert

** ** **

The IFEX "Communique" is published weekly in English, French and Spanish
by the International Freedom of Expression eXchange (IFEX) Clearing
House. The office is operated by Canadian Journalists for Free Expression
(CJFE) in partnership with the member organizations of IFEX. Contact the
IFEX CH at 489 College St. #403, Toronto, Ontario M6G 1A5 Canada, tel: +1
416 515 9622, fax: +1 416 515 7879, general e-mail: ifex@ifex.org,
"Communique" e-mail: communique@ifex.org. The "Communique" and the alerts
can be viewed on the IFEX Internet Service at: www.ifex.org. "Communique"
Editor: Kristina Stockwood. Subscriptions are available free or through
voluntary donation by e-mail and surface mail. The views expressed in the
"Communique" are the responsibility of the sources to which they are
attributed.

:-) Message Ends; George(s) Lessard's Signature Begins (-:
      Community Media Arts, Management & Mentoring
      A brief Survey, contact info, subscriptions,
        public keyword searchable archives and
CAUTIONS, Disclaimers, NOTES TO EDITORS & (c) information may
be found @ http://members.tripod.com/~media002/disclaimer.htm
...also includes an ICQ Online Status indicator...
                      68.3 N, 133.48 W
                          - 30 -