15 December 2004
IFEX MEMBERS MARK INTERNATIONAL HUMAN RIGHTS DAY
On 10 December 2004, IFEX members around the world marked International Human Rights Day by promoting the right to freedom of expression and by calling attention to violations in some of the world's most troubled hotspots.
The Writers in Prison Committee of International PEN (PEN) launched a global letter-writing campaign aimed at releasing jailed "cyber-dissidents" in China, Vietnam and the Maldives. The campaign focuses on the cases of six imprisoned individuals - Huang Jin-qiu, Pham Hong Son and the Saandhaanu Four - who are serving lengthy jail sentences for distributing information using the Internet.
PEN says the majority of cyber-dissidents serving long jail terms are in Asia, a region that is seeing "a worrying crackdown of alarming proportions."
Read more about the PEN campaign here: http://www.pen.org/freedom/asia2004.html
In the Democratic Republic of Congo, Journaliste en danger (JED) launched its seventh annual press freedom report, which includes an analysis of conditions in eight other Central African countries - Burundi, Cameroon, Republic of Congo, Gabon, Equatorial Guinea, Central African Republic, Rwanda and Chad.
This year marks the first year that JED has begun monitoring press freedom on a regional level through its partnerships with the Central African Media Organisation (Organisation des Médias d'Afrique Centrale OMAC) and the Association of Central African Newspaper Publishers (Association des Editeurs des Journaux d'Afrique Centrale).
The report is available (in French) at: http://www.jed-congo.org/list_rapport.php
Freedom House marked Human Rights Day by calling attention to areas of the world that continue to lack basic freedoms, including free speech and freedom of the press. The organisation singled out Central Asia, Cuba, Sudan, Burma, Zimbabwe and North Korea.
According to Freedom House's global survey of political rights and civil liberties, 2.3 billion people live in countries rated Not Free (see: http://www.freedomhouse.org/research).
Reporters Without Borders (Reporters sans frontières, RSF) put the spotlight on Syria by urging President Bashar al-Assad to end attacks on press freedom in his country. "For the past 30 years, state security agents have intimidated and cracked down on journalists and turned Syria into a very bleak place for the media. News is controlled by the ruling Baath Party and the government," said RSF.
In October 2004, Syria was rated 155th out of 167 countries in RSF's third annual worldwide index of press freedom (see: http://www.rsf.org/article.php3?id_article=12042).
The International Federation of Journalists (IFJ) urged governments to take immediate action to defend journalists and media personnel. According to the group, 2004 is turning out to be the worst year on record for the number of journalists and media personnel killed worldwide, with 120 recorded deaths. IFJ considers translators, drivers, camera operators and other support staff to be media personnel.
See: http://www.ifj.org/default.asp?Index=2843&Language=EN)
International Human Rights Day commemorates the founding of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, which was adopted by the UN General Assembly in 1948. (http://www.un.org/Overview/rights.html)
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For more information on International Human Rights Day, visit: http://www.un.org/events/humanrights/2004/index.htm
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