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Phnom Penh Municipal Police engage in discussions with women journalists to foster collaboration and strengthen their safety
Thirty officers from the Commissariat of Phnom Penh Municipal Police engaged in an interactive workshop organized by the Women Media Centre (WMC) and UNESCO to foster collaboration between the law enforcement body and media professionals and build mutual understanding and trust.
The meeting, which was held in Phnom Penh on 15 December 2023, included a variety of panel discussions and presentations on the role of journalists in a democratic society, the challenges that women journalists face in their work, and the critical role of law enforcement officers in ensuring the protection of press freedom, with a focus on the safety of women journalists. Guest speakers and facilitators included representatives from UNESCO, OHCHR and senior reporters from journalists鈥 associations and organizations.
The workshop was opened by the Major General Choun Narin from the Commissariat of Phnom Penh Municipal Police, who highlighted that 鈥渢his meeting is a rare opportunity, but an important one, to allow the police talk with the journalists, so that we can understand better each other, and overcome together the challenges ahead of us鈥. The Major General, concluded by saying that 鈥渢hrough these dialogues, I hope that we can help create an environment where women journalists feel safe to do their work without any fear鈥.
UNESCO representative to Cambodia, Mr Sardar Umar Alam, appreciated the important step forward taken by Phnom Penh Municipal Police to engage and collaborate with UNESCO and the Women Media Center to jointly strengthen freedom of expression and the safety of women journalists. He emphasized that 鈥渃ollaboration between law enforcement actors and media professionals is critical to continue advancing access to information and freedom of expression in Cambodia, and to work together on promoting safety of journalists, particularly, women journalists, in line with the UN Plan of Action on the Safety of Journalists and the Issue of Impunity.
This meeting is the second in a series of workshops which kicked-off in Kandal province in October 2023. In that occasion, 32 officials from the Kandal Police Commissariat participated in the meeting.
As the leading agency in the implementation of the UN Plan of Action on the Safety of Journalists and the Issue of Impunity, UNESCO and its partners have engaged with more than 11,500 security forces globally, equipping them with practical and theoretical tools to carry out their mission of maintaining public order, while respecting international human rights standards on freedom of expression and the safety of journalists.
In Cambodia, UNESCO is working to advance the Safety of Journalists in collaboration with national organizations and the authorities, and with the support of Sweden , Australia and the Global Media Defence Fund.
