Attacks Against Journalists and Media Workers Must Stop | Opinion

Journalists are under attack all over the world. This year, the number of journalists jailed for their work is at a global high, and already more than 70 journalists and media workers have been killed in carrying out their work. On average, every five days a journalist is killed for bringing information to the public. Perhaps just as worryingly, according to UNESCO, in the past 15 years, 87 percent of cases of killed journalists remain unresolved or unreported.

This Nov. 2, the U.K. is joining UNESCO and the international community in marking the International Day to End Impunity for Crimes Against Journalists. Attacks against journalists and media workers must stop. Until they do, all countries need to work hard to make sure that where they are attacked, these cases are investigated, and those who are responsible brought to justice.

The U.K. has a long history of a vibrant and independent media, underpinning the values of our democracy. The U.K. has long supported media freedoms, both at home and in supporting the development of a strong and independent media in countries overseas. We believe that people must be able to discuss and debate issues freely, to challenge their governments, and to make informed decisions, supported by access to information provided by a strong, robust and independent media. We remain committed to raising violations of media freedom across the world at all levels. We believe those abusing or restricting media freedom must be held to account.

That's why in 2019, we launched the Media Freedom Coalition alongside our partners. The coalition now has over 50 members. A truly global coalition with members ranging from Japan to Ghana and Estonia to Costa Rica. Its aim is to defend media freedom. It has issued 29 statements, including in countries and situations where media freedom has been declining in some cases, highlighting situations of individual journalists being targeted, or calling out on more general attacks against the media. The coalition is also working tirelessly on the ground through our diplomatic network and with civil society figures, to support journalists and independent media under threat.

The U.K. has also provided over £500 million of official development assistance to support the media and free flow of information in the past five years. This includes work to train journalists, to help media organizations produce high quality content and become more financially resilient in difficult times. It includes our support for media working in terrible conditions in Ukraine, providing them with protective gear and medical equipment to help them work as safely as possible. And it also includes our support for the BBC World Service, a powerful voice in independent and impartial broadcasting across the world, which is operationally independent of the U.K. government.

As part of our effort to create the Media Freedom Coalition, the U.K. helped establish the Global Media Defence Fund (GMDF) and we continue to support its fundamental work to enhance media protections and bolster the legal protection of journalists at threat. To date the fund has raised approximately $8 million through the donations of 16 donors. The fund is supporting more than 80 projects globally with over 3,000 journalists worldwide directly benefitting. Ongoing projects range from supporting legal clinics, lawyers' networks and other pro-bono media defense mechanisms to fostering strategic litigation against laws and judicial practice curtailing media freedom.  In 2022, the U.K. donated a further £250,000 to the GMDF's Crisis Response Mechanism to help bolster efforts supporting journalists in Ukraine. UNESCO has run two calls for partnerships and received over 250 proposals from around the globe.

The GMDF has supported the High Level Legal Panel of Media Freedom Experts which works independently to produce best practices and model laws for states seeking to improve media freedom and advises governments on legislation to improve media freedom.

Finally, the U.K. also recognizes its responsibility to protect media freedom at home. The U.K. may not face the same challenges as some other states, but it is clear that journalists operating in the U.K. still face threats to their personal safety, largely through online abuse. We introduced our first National Action Plan for the Safety of Journalists last year. Our aim is to ensure that journalists operating in the U.K. are as safe as possible, reducing the number of attacks on and threats issued to journalists and ensuring those responsible are brought to justice.

Today and every day, the U.K. remains committed to promoting and protecting media freedom and celebrating the vital work of journalists and media workers around the world.

Toby Usnik is head of communications at the British Consulate General, New York and is a former executive director of public relations at The New York Times Company.

The views expressed in this article are the writer's own.