Received from: NUJ
Congress notes records held by the International Federation of Journalists (IFJ) indicate the killings of at least 122 media professionals globally in 2024.
Around the world, journalists carrying out their professional duties have been targeted for their reporting and efforts exposing truths and injustices despite committing no crime. Palestinian journalists reporting from Gaza where no foreign media access has been granted by the Israeli authorities, continue to inform the world through their bravery in unimaginable conditions.
Congress believes the trade union movement must continue to be vocal in its solidarity for journalists worldwide, whether in Iran, Hong Kong, Afghanistan, Ukraine or elsewhere. This must extend too, to women journalists working under oppressive regimes in the face of abuse and hostility.
Attacks on journalists and journalism at home or abroad must never be accepted, and data-gathering of incidents help build an evidence base to lobby for change.
Congress notes the NUJ’s Journalists’ Safety Tracker collating anonymous submissions of abuse, harassment, legal threats and proceedings brought against journalists to stymie their reporting, aims to capture incidents and counter the perception that abuse is simply part of a journalist’s job.
Congress instructs the General Council to:
i. continue to stand in solidarity with journalists globally, condemning attacks against media workers wherever they occur
ii. support the proposal of a UN convention on the safety and independence of journalists and other media professionals developed by the IFJ and backed by the NUJ.
National Union of Journalists