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They Silence Journalists Without Killing Them

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  • They Silence Journalists Without Killing Them

    THEY SILENCE JOURNALISTS WITHOUT KILLING THEM

    A1+
    [05:39 pm] 02 May, 2006

    "No one can suppress the truth for ever, but some people never stop
    trying. It is journalists who pay the price" said Terry Davis on the
    occasion of the 2006 World Press Freedom Day.

    "Restrictions on freedom of expression are widespread, often violent
    and sometimes lethal. In 2005 more than 150 journalists around the
    world died carrying out their profession, and more than half of them
    were murdered. Hundreds, if not thousands, have been deprived of their
    freedom being either kidnapped or put in prison, and there are no
    reliable statistics for those who have been threatened or persecuted.

    As a rule, journalists in the 46 Council of Europe member states are
    no longer tortured or killed, but that does not mean that they are
    always free to do their work. The European Convention on Human Rights,
    calling on public authorities to refrain from interfering with freedom
    of expression, is frequently ignored. Some journalists may be silenced
    through intimidation, others may be bought into compliance, but the
    end result remains the same because democracy cannot properly function
    without media which is genuinely free of governmental interference
    and control.

    A particularly insidious form of intimidation is the threat of
    prosecution for libel. In fact, more than two thirds of the Council
    of Europe member states maintain criminal sanctions for defamation,
    and these laws are often used to stifle criticism. I call on all
    Council of Europe member states to review their legislation, abolish
    criminal provisions and prevent disproportionate damages in civil
    cases against journalists. Progress in the protection of journalists
    is the only credible way to mark the World Press Freedom Day. "
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