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International Federation
of Journalists/
Friedrich Ebert Foundation
South Asia Media Solidarity
Network
Representatives of journalists' trade unions,
press freedom organizations and journalists and experts from Pakistan,
India, Afghanistan, Nepal, Sri Lanka and Bangladesh, met in Kathmandu,
Nepal, from September 26-28 in the second biennial colloquium
on human rights and conflict reporting in South Asia and, having
discussed the role of journalism in South Asia:
Agree to carry on working together in support
of change through a continuing South Asia media Solidarity Network.
This network of journalists unions and press
freedom organizations at this meeting will enable the ongoing
exchange of information on press freedom
and rights of journalists, particularly through email and web
usage.
It will:
- Continue to document attacks on press freedom
and journalists rights
- Provide information for the annual IFJ
report on press freedom in South Asia
- Encourage coordination between journalists
unions and press freedom organizations at a national and regional
level
- Develop a standardized format for documenting
press freedom violations and attacks on journalists
- Develop a training program to build capacity
to support this work
- Seek to convene a third biennial meeting
of the network in two years time
The IFJ will coordinate this networking through
its offices in Delhi, Colombo and Sydney.
The network will seek to build on the annual
publication of the IFJ South Asia Press Freedom report and its
distribution.
Organizations will nominate someone responsible
for follow up support through the solidarity network to issue
country protests.
Plan for further action
We further agree to adopt the following framework
and elements for an urgent programme of action and assistance
to media:
1. A safe environment for journalists
- To provide safety training for journalists
in the region, through national courses, building on the models
currently being developed by journalists' unions and safety
training institutions through the IFJ safety programme,
- To translate and adapt to local
conditions and need the basic safety booklets and training
materials into major languages of the region;
- To ensure that every newsroom has
a basic safety kit which will be available for the use of
journalists and news gatherers;
- To look at new ways of uniting journalists
and others supporting press freedom into national networks
- To demand that the issue of safety
- as set out in the guidelines developed by the IFJ - is included
in collective agreements.
- Fund-raising for journalists in
industrial disputes.
2. A fair workplace
- To unify the profession through
structural support and political recognition of the need for
representative journalists' associations and trade unions;
- To establish the structures for
cross-border co-operation and regional networks of media centers,
training institutes and journalists' unions and associations,
including through national and regional egroups;
- To promote common standards of editorial
independence and minimum editorial statutes in state-owned,
public and private media in the region through initiatives
of the IFJ and its member organizations;
- To organize meetings for journalists'
organizations and media in each country to promote co-operation
and solidarity among media professionals;
- To promote trade union development
in each country and to seek minimum standards of social and
professional conditions of service for journalists and to
ensure that all journalists and media staff are adequately
paid for their work;
3. Human rights, diversity and conflict
- To launch broadly-based campaigns
supported by coalitions of groups within civil society and
journalism in defence of media freedom (for instance: campaigning
for laws guaranteeing access information and campaigning against
criminal defamation and other restrictive laws);
- To develop joint initiatives of
journalists' organizations and other groups in civil society
in support of fundamental human rights;
- To continue and expand professional
training programmes covering conflict reporting and tolerance
as developed by the IFJ, it's union and other media interest
groups which should also promote the values of citizenship
and diversity in media;
- To examine new ways and methods
of working on the issue of journalism and conflict in order
to widen the scope of reporting which will create new options
for reporters and editors and ensure professional access to
all relevant sources of information and interests involved;
- To prepare a publication on journalism
and conflict in South Asia and resources for trainers on this
issue.
- To develop and strengthen independent
systems of self-regulation under the jurisdiction of media
professionals which can act as media observatories to monitor
media performance paying particular attention to issues of
diversity in the media and violations of press freedom.
- To recognize outstanding journalism
in the area of conflict, diversity and tolerance through an
annual journalism award for journalists in the region;
4. Assistance programmes and follow-up
work
- To insist that
a comprehensive plan of action for the support and development
of media and independence journalism in south Asia is included
within the international programmes being developed for the
region including the allocation of substantial funding to
achieve these aims;
- To provide a swift response to media
in crisis through a fast-track process of support to media
directly affected by violent conflict and social dislocation.
- To hold a
follow-up regional conference to review progress in the implementation
of this programme of work at a national and regional level
within two years.
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