As UN member states gather in Geneva this week to celebrate the 75th anniversary of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights (UDHR), the IPI global network calls on states and the international community to take urgent and concrete action to protect freedom of the press and journalists’ safety — and to recommit to upholding the fundamental human rights and principles enshrined in the UDHR.
This anniversary comes at an especially dark time for journalists around the world. An unprecedented number of journalists have been killed in Gaza as a result of Israeli airstrikes and ground raids into the territory over the last eight weeks, while Israeli strikes have also targeted journalists in southern Lebanon.
Nearly everywhere we look, journalism, and journalists, are at risk, as wars and authoritarian crackdowns spread, and as governments fail to uphold their obligations to protect journalists and to hold to account those responsible for attacks on the press.
As Russia’s war on Ukraine rages on, journalists continue to risk their lives on the frontlines, with at least 12 journalists killed since February 2022, while Russia ramps up its campaign to eliminate independent journalism inside its borders as well as in occupied Ukrainian territory.
At least 20 journalists have been killed in Mexico in the last two years — the deadliest period on record in a country where journalist killings were horrifyingly routine. From Afghanistan to Iran to Myanmar, regimes are brutally targeting the press to silence criticism and preserve power. And journalists even in established democracies face increased harassment and pressure on their work.
