IFJ Demands Government Action
The International Federation of Journalists (IFJ) has today demanded that the Iraqi government takes urgent action following attacks by a suspected Shiite militia on the offices of newspapers in Baghdad on Monday morning, 1st April 2013. The previous day newspapers had published a story on a Shiite cleric.
"We condemn this use of violence against the offices of journalists in Baghdad which shows the risks our colleagues in Iraq continue to face in their daily work," said IFJ President Jim Boumelha. "We call on the government in Iraq to take swift action to bring those people who are behind the attacks to justice".
According to some media reports, gunmen attacked the offices of four independent newspapers, smashing equipment and windows, attacking the staff and reportedly throwing one journalist off a roof.
The Iraqi Journalists' Syndicate (IJS) has also condemned the attacks and urged the Iraqi authorities to find and punish those who ordered the violent attacks.
The IFJ is marking the 10th anniversary of the war in Iraq next week with a series of events across the globe. "The latest incidents in Baghdad show that the violence against media shows no signs of abating," added Beth Costa, IFJ General Secretary.
"Iraq continues to be ranked among the most dangerous countries in the world to be a journalist. Further action is required to protect the safety of journalists there."
IFJ Demands Government Action Following Attacks on Newspaper offices in Baghdad
For more information, please contact IFJ on + 32 2 235 22 07
The IFJ represents more than 600.000 journalists in 134 countries
IFJ Condemns Killing of Female Journalist in Somalia
The International Federation of Journalists (IFJ) today condemned the killing of Rahmo Abdulkadir, a female radio journalist who was gunned down in the Somali capital, Mogadishu on Sunday 24 March 2013.
According to the National Union of Somali Journalists (NUSOJ), an IFJ affiliate, Rahmo Abdulkadir who worked for Radio Abudwaq was shot dead near her house by three young men armed with pistols. The shooting took place in the district of Towfiq in north Mogadishu.
"We urge the authorities to thoroughly investigate this murder and bring the killers to justice," said Gabriel Baglo, IFJ Africa director. «We are seriously concerned by the escalation of deadly violence targeting journalists killed in Somalia."
NUSOJ said that the motive behind the killing is unknown, adding that Rahmo Abdulkadir, who had recently arrived in Mogadishu for private reasons was working as journalist, producer and technician.
"We need the law enforcement agencies and the government at all levels to put a stop to the incessant and senseless killing of media practitioners," said Omar Faruk Osman, NUSOJ Secretary General.
Rahmo Abdulkadir is the second Somali journalist murdered in as many weeks, following the killing of Abdihared Osman Adan on 18 January, also in Mogadishu. She is also the third journalist killed in Somalia since the start of the year and the second female journalist murdered in the country in a decade.IFJ Condemns Killing of Female Journalist in Somalia
For more information please contact: +221 33 867 95 86/87
The IFJ represents more than 600.000 Journalists in 134 countries in the World
IFJ Deeply Concerned over Criminal Charges against Indian Investigative Reporter
Media Release: India January 15, 2013
The International Federation of Journalists (IFJ) is extremely concerned to learn of the criminal charges filed against investigative reporter K.K. Shahina by police in the southern Indian state of Karnataka.
Shahina, who currently works with the weekly magazine Open, faces charges under various sections of the Indian Penal Code, including criminal conspiracy and intimidation of witnesses with intent to commit a crime. The chargesheet filed in the sessions court in the district of Kodagu in Karnataka state, also indicts her under sections of the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act, which is most commonly invoked to deal with terrorist offences.
These charges stem from a story published under Shahina’s byline in the weekly magazine Tehelka in December 2010, which appeared to cast doubt on the prosecution of a prominent Islamic cleric and political figure on terrorism charges.
Shahina who then worked as correspondent for Tehelka in the state of Kerala, based her story on interviews with key witnesses in the case against Abdul Nasar Mahdani, an Islamic cleric who heads the Peoples’ Democratic Party, active mainly in the state of Kerala. Mahdani has since been arrested and charged by Karnataka police for conspiracy to detonate a series of low-intensity bomb blasts in the state capital city of Bengaluru (formerly Bangalore) in July 2008.
Shahina’s story cited several of the witnesses named by the Karnataka police as saying that their testimony has been misinterpreted or distorted in making out the charges against Mahdani.
In March 2011, Shahina was honoured with the Chameli Devi Jain award for outstanding woman media person. The awards citation mentioned her investigative work in defence of civil liberties, among other contributions.
Facing the possibility of arrest since January 2011, Shahina approached the district court in Kodagu for anticipatory bail, but was turned down. It was only in July 2011 that the Karnataka High Court granted her provisional immunity from arrest. With charges now formally registered in the sessions court, she will be required to appeal for renewal of her bail and also travel from her base of Kochi city in Kerala, to Madikeri in Kodagu district for every hearing.
The IFJ calls on the authorities in Karnataka state to reconsider their intent to prosecute Shahina, whose work has been an example of investigative journalism in the cause of civil liberties.
“We see this prosecution as an instance of seeking to silence fair and independent reporting through legal injunction. We fear that the process of the law, with the demands it makes on the time and energy of the defendant, is often punishment in itself and will severely impair this journalist’s professional effectiveness.”
For further information contact IFJ Asia-Pacific on +612 9333 0950
The IFJ represents more than 600,000 journalists in 131 countries
Indian Investigative Reporter K.K. Shahina
