World Press Freedom Day

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World Press Freedom Day
Date May 3
Next time 3 May 2024 (2024-05-03)
Frequency annual

The United Nations General Assembly declared May 3 to be World Press Freedom Day[1][2] or just World Press Day to raise awareness of the importance of freedom of the press and remind governments of their duty to respect and uphold the right to freedom of expression enshrined under Article 19 of the 1948 Universal Declaration of Human Rights and marking the anniversary of the Declaration of Windhoek, a statement of free press principles put together by African newspaper journalists in 1991.

UNESCO marks World Press Freedom Day by conferring the UNESCO/Guillermo Cano World Press Freedom Prize on a deserving individual, organization or institution that has made an outstanding contribution to the defence and/or promotion of press freedom anywhere in the world, especially when this has been achieved in the face of danger. Created in 1997, the prize is awarded on the recommendation of an independent jury of 14 news professionals. Names are submitted by regional and international non-governmental organizations working for press freedom, and by UNESCO member states.

The Prize is named in honour of Guillermo Cano Isaza, a Colombian journalist who was assassinated in front of the offices of his newspaper, El Espectador, in Bogotá, on 17 December 1986. Cano's writings had offended Colombia's powerful drug barons.

UNESCO also marks World Press Freedom Day each year by bringing together media professionals, press freedom organisations and UN agencies to assess the state of press freedom worldwide and discuss solutions for addressing challenges. Each conference is centred on a theme related to press freedom, including good governance, media coverage of terrorism, impunity and the role of media in post-conflict countries.

The 2011 World Press Freedom Day celebration was held in Washington, D.C., USA on May 1–3. It was the first time the United States had hosted the World Press Freedom Day celebration. The theme of the event was 21st Century Media: New Frontiers, New Barriers. The event affirmed fundamental principles of media freedom in the digital age—the ability of citizens to voice their opinions and access diverse, independent information sources—20 years after the original declaration was made in Windhoek, Namibia.

World Press Freedom Day and the themes [3]

  • 2014 : Paris, France - "Media Freedom for a Better Future:Shaping the post-2015 Development Agenda"
  • 2013 : San José, Costa Rica - "Safe to Speak: Securing Freedom of Expression in All Media"
  • 2012 : Tunis, Tunisia - "New Voices: Media Freedom Helping to Transform Societies"
  • 2011 : Washington D.C., USA - "21st Century Media: New Frontiers, New Barriers-"
  • 2010 : Brisbane, Australia - "Freedom of information: the right to know".
  • 2009 : Doha, Qatar - "Dialogue, mutual understanding and reconciliation."
  • 2008 : Maputo, Mozambique - "Celebrating the fundamental principles of press freedom."
  • 2007 : Medellín, Colombia - "The United Nations and the freedom of press."
  • 2006 : Colombo, Sri Lanka - "The media as drivers of change."
  • 2005 : Dakar, Senegal - "Media and Good Governance".
  • 2004 : Belgrade, Serbia - "Who decides how much information?".
  • 2003 : Kingston, Jamaica - "The Media and Armed Conflict."
  • 2002 : Manila, Philippines - "Covering the War on Global Terrorism."
  • 2001 : Windhoek, Namibia - "Combating racism and promoting diversity: the role of free press." Held jointly with the commemoration of the 10th Anniversary of the Windhoek Declaration. The occasion was marked by the signing of the African Charter on Broadcasting.
  • 2000 : Genève, Switzerland - "Reporting the News in a Dangerous World: The Role of the Media in conflict settlement, Reconciliation and peace-building."
  • 1999 : Bogota, Colombia - "Turbulent Eras: Generational Perspectives on Freedom of the Press."
  • 1998 : London, England - "Press Freedom is a Cornerstone of Human Rights."

See also

References

  1. United Nations General Assembly Session 48 Verbatim Report 85. A/48/PV.85 page 29. {{{date}}}. Retrieved 2008-07-15.
  2. United Nations General Assembly Session 48 Document 624. Report of the Economic and Social Council - Draft Decision II A/48/624 page 22. 17 December 1993. Retrieved 2008-07-15.
  3. Previous celebrations

External links