Action plan for safety of journalists

THREATS and violence against journalists and media workers had persisted for sometime now. This, despite constitutional provisions and laws on freedom of the press. From 1986 to 2018, the Center for Media Freedom and Responsibility (CMFR) had documented 157 work-related cases of journalist killings. cyberbullying, hacking of social media accounts and websites continue, creating a climate of impunity. International media monitoring groups had ranked the country among the top unsafe countries to practice the profession and the 5th in the 2018 Global Impunity Index.

These are some of the challenges that had prompted the need to set up the Philippine Plan of Action on the Safety of Journalists (PPASJ), based on the UN-wide plan that aims for a free and safe environment for media workers in both conflict and nonconflict situations.

A multi-stakeholder approach, the program is spearheaded by the Asian Institute of Journalism and Communication (AIJC) and Copenhagen-based International Media Support (IMS) which subsequently forged partnerships with these media organizations: CMFR, the Center for Community Journalism and Development (CCJD), the National Union of Journalists in the Philippines (NUJP), and the Philippine Press Institute (PPI) to form the Journalist Safety Advisory Group

The 4Ps framework on “Safety” includes protection, prevention, prosecution, and partnership. Forum speakers (Red Batario of CCJD, Melinda de Jesus, CMFR, Ming Kuok Lim Unesco, Jakarta, NonoyEspina, NUJP, Ann Lopez, AIJC, and Lars Bestle, Head of International Media Support, Asia), using survey data, focus groups and other forms of observation, described the existing environment as one faced with challenges such as:

• Internal threats – stress, trauma, security of tenure, lack of safety equipment, insurance coverage.

• Lack of media safety policies and protocols.

• Hazardous coverage of local politics, criminality, war on drugs, corruption.

• Biggest threats consist of cyber attacks, harassment, trolling, low wages, and what is considered the No. 1 threat – poor working conditions.

• Lack of awareness of killings, which perhaps explain why.

• Most killings are perpetrated with impunity. A survey had shown that 69.9% believes it exists.

Except for preventive mechanisms, the legal framework is considered adequate. What is lacking is adequate enforcement of laws, a problem attributed to lack of funding.

Civil society groups and the academe are actively involved but lack of institutional funding has likewise hampered them from providing a more adequate response. There are no courses offered in schools except for a recent initiative by the Commission on Higher Education in producing an integrated curriculum on safety education. It was suggested that media owners be made more accountable for the protection of their workers, especially those in the provincial areas who are most vulnerable. A Presidential Task Force on Media Security has been set up, and like other groups, it considers working within the coalition of multistakeholders is the best approach in addressing the problem.

An example of an effective response is the coalition of civil society networks in countries like Colombia, Mexico, Nepal, where mechanisms for protection and prosecution had been set up. Press clubs and safety shops which maintain hotlines to educate the public have been organized in Indonesia, Afghanistan, and Pakistan. The UNESCO Observatory has been a useful mechanism for monitoring and awareness-building.

The concern with “safety” started some 30 years ago when UNESCO and several international organizations of journalists sounded the alarm over the growing impunity and violence against journalists. Thus, the creation of a broad-based coalition consisting of state- led and nongovernment networks to address the problem – from upgrading working conditions, compensation, safety equipment, legal remedies, and research that would safeguard the rights of media workers and address impunity. The multi-stakeholder response is essential, especially since impunity is a great threat that can be addressed only through a multi-disciplinary and holistic approach. Like climate change and initiatives that address social and income inequities, it demands from all stakeholders, political will and resources. In a sense it is a consequence of unequal distribution of power and resources and the ineffective working of our democracy that had allowed the concentration of wealth and power in a few. Hence, the threats of elitism and extreme capitalism that threaten our society, and which justify the need to re-focus efforts towards strengthening social justice, participatory democracy, and closing the social gaps.

Some 80 representatives from the government, media, research organizations, and civil society participated in the consultation. Findings from regional consultations that will be held throughout the country will be utilized in crafting the final draft in 2019.

Messages delivered by Mr. Enrico Strampelli, head of Development Section, EU Delegation to the Philippines, HE Jan Top Christensen, ambassador of Denmark to the Philippines, and Asec Lila Ramos Shahani, secretary-general of the Philippines National Commission for UNESCO underscored the importance of tapping the experiences of the various stakeholders in preparing a road map that would safeguard press freedom. Mr. Ramon R. Tuazon, AIJC president, gave the project overview, the synthesis, and Way Forward and Call for Action. The Philippine Plan of Action is the first of its kind in Asia.

For further information, please email safeguardingpressfreedom@ gmail.com or visit www.mediasupport.org