Addis Ababa Declaration:

Safety and Protection of African Journalists

WE, the participants of the Regional Workshop on Safety and Protection of African Journalists meeting in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, on 2-3 September 2010 at the African Union Conference Centre in partnership with the African Union Commission (AUC) and the Federation of African Journalists (FAJ);

WELCOMING the declaration of the Heads of State and Government of the member States of African Union making 2010 the year for Peace and Security – a timely and much needed declaration for the citizens of Africa, including journalists and all other media workers;

APPLAUDING the African Union Commission’s (AUC) increased and proactive engagement, support for - and partnership with- journalists and the media community in Africa in their efforts to develop and promote professional, independent and quality journalism and media that operate in safe and secure environment;

MINDFUL of the principles enshrined in the Charter of the Organization of African Unity, in particular that "freedom, equality, justice and dignity are essential objectives for the achievement of the legitimate aspirations of the African peoples";

REAFFIRMING the pledge solemnly made in Article 2 of the said Charter to eradicate all forms of colonialism from Africa, to coordinate and intensify cooperation and efforts to achieve a better life for the peoples of Africa and to promote international cooperation having due regard to the Charter of the United Nations and the Universal Declaration of Human Rights;

COMMENDING the member States of the African Union for showing strong leadership by putting in place the African Commission on Human and Peoples’ Rights and the African Court on Human and Peoples’ Rights;

RECALLING Article 6 of the African (Banjul) Charter on Human and Peoples' Rights which affirms that “Every individual shall have the right to liberty and to the security of his person. No one may be deprived of his freedom except for reasons and conditions previously laid down by law. In particular, no one may be arbitrarily arrested or detained”;

 
FURTHER RECALLING Article 23 of the African (Banjul) Charter on Human and Peoples' Rights which states that all peoples shall have the right to national and international peace and security;

TAKING NOTE of Article 19 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights that guarantees freedom of expression as a fundamental right, and confirming that freedom of expression is essential to the realisation of other rights set forth in international human rights instruments;

TAKING NOTE of Article 9 of the African (Banjul) Charter on Human and Peoples' Rights which guarantees the right of every individual to “receive information” and to “express and disseminate his/her opinions within the law”;

TAKING NOTE of the African Declaration of Freedom of Expression adopted in 2002;

WELCOMING the adoption by the Security Council of the United Nations of Resolution 1738 on 23 December 2006 calling on all parties to an armed conflict to fulfil their obligations towards journalists under international law, including the need to prevent impunity for crimes against them and further requesting the UN Secretary-General to include as a sub-item in his subsequent reports on the protection of civilians in armed conflict the issue of the safety and security of journalists, media professionals and associated personnel;

UNDERSCORING Resolution 29 entitled “Condemnation of violence against journalists”, adopted by the General Conference of UNESCO on 12 November 1997, which condemns violence against journalists and calls on Member States to uphold their obligations to prevent, investigate and punish crimes against journalists;

UNDERSCORING the Resolution of the 2^nd Continental Congress of the Federation of African Journalists (FAJ) in Harare, Zimbabwe, in March 2010 on “Safety of African Journalists and the Culture of Impunity” and the Resolution of the World Congress of the International Federation of Journalists (IFJ) in Cadiz, Spain, in May 2010 on Safety of Journalists;

DEEPLY CONCERNED about the increasingly dangerous and hostile environment that journalists face in Africa, often resulting in the killing of journalists and associated media personnel;

STRONGLY DISTURBED by the lack of respect by all parties in armed conflict and the arbitrary arrest as well as incommunicado detention of journalists for simply carrying out their journalistic work;

EXPRESSING ITS DEEP CONCERN at the continued culture of impunity which undermines fundamental freedoms of African peoples, resulting in the vast majority  of crimes committed against journalists and other media professionals in Africa remaining uninvestigated and unpunished;

STRESSING the need to build a culture of safety for African journalists as messengers and communicators of African peoples and to establish the respect for freedom of expression and press freedom as fundamental human rights;

REAFFIRMING that censorship, violence, intimidation ,harassment, pressure and threats to journalists are major obstacles to freedom of expression and a free press; and that safety of journalists is closely tied to press freedom, free flow of information and freedom of expression, which are the basis of a healthy democracy, good governance, peace and stability;

RECOGNISING that guaranteeing the safety of journalists requires cooperative action and assistance on the part of journalists, media owners, governments, media development organisations, civil society ,inter-governmental organisations and the wider international community;

FIRMLY CONVINCED that the urgency of securing the safety of journalists and combating impunity for crimes committed against them is essential to strengthen the fundamental right of freedom of expression;

CALL ON:

Members States of the African Union (AU) to:

1.      Condemn in the strongest terms the attacks against journalists and the suppression of the right to freedom of expression and press freedom in line with the African Charter of Human and People Rights and the Universal Declaration of Human Rights.

2.      Investigate actions of violent behaviour against journalists and associated media personnel and to bring to justice the perpetrators of these criminal acts.

3.  Remove status limitation from criminal legislations in relations to crimes committed against journalists and associated media personnel as a direct consequence of their work.

 4.  Release all journalists in detention because of their work and decriminalise  press offences.

5.      Provide practical and prompt protection for journalists and other media personnel whose safety and security are endangered for carrying out their media work.

6.      Ensure that their military and security forces recognise, respect and promote the safety of journalists, and guarantee that journalists are able to work in full security and independence on their territory.

7.      Adhere to the commitments of UNESCO Resolution 29 to promote legislation with the intention of investigating and prosecuting the killers of journalists and to combat impunity.

8.      Adopt the African Union resolution on Safety and Protection of African Journalists in the upcoming summit as a continental policy framework and to show African ownership and leadership on the safety of journalists.

Journalists’ Trade Unions, Media Organisations and the International Community to:

1. Develop safety of journalists programmes throughout the continent in partnership with the Federation of African Journalists, the International Federation of Journalists, the African Union Commission, and news media organisations as well as human rights organisations and Trade Union movement with the aim to nurture a culture of safety for journalists in Africa, including regular reviews of journalists’ safety issues.

2. Carry out strong and well-targeted action to ensure the safety of journalists and associated media personnel working in hostile environment and to guarantee respect for their professional freedom.

3. Promote awareness of the safety of journalists among the media community by providing safety training for journalists, raising the awareness of media owners/managers about the risks journalists face while working in danger zones and developing safety guidelines based on African realities, culture and values.

4. Support, organise and coordinate extensive campaigns on unpunished crimes against journalists and other acts of violence to generate news coverage of all violations of press freedom and rights of journalists.

5. Promote better working and living conditions for journalists and other media personnel in order not to risk their lives in dangerous assignments and to raise awareness of managers/owners on journalists’ right to freedom of conscience.

6. Support the efforts of the African Union Commission and the Federation of African Journalists in media development in Africa and the promotion of a favourable safe environment for journalists and associated media personnel.

The African Union Commission (AUC) to:

1. Pay particular attention to the Safety of African Journalists and Respect for Freedom of Expression and press freedom;

2. Impress upon African governments that the safety of journalists and associated personnel and their protection  in situations of armed conflict are of paramount importance to assuring freedom of the press, freedom of expression and democratic governance;

3. Strongly advocate for the respect for journalists’ rights, particularly their independence and safety, in its programmes aimed at improving the social, economic and political life of societies in the process of development and political post conflict transition;

4. Support the Federation of African Journalists in its advocacy initiative for the decrimilisation of press offences>

5. Promote a dialogue between peacekeeping African Union Troops in different parts of the continent and journalists’ representatives over the issue of protection of journalists in danger zones.

6. Monitor closely the security situation of Somali journalists and call for urgent and global action to condemn violence and provide practical assistance to victims of aggression.