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Time to End Impunity is Now: Cambodia calls for joint actions to protect journalists’ safety
A free press is fundamental to human rights, democracy, and the rule of law. Yet journalists around the world are prevented from doing their job and often face threats, violence, and even death in their mission to bring truth to light and hold the powerful to account. As we enter the 10th anniversary of the International Day to End Impunity for Crimes against Journalists (IDEI) proclaimed by the UN General Assembly in , Cambodia has joined the global commemoration calling for continued joint actions from all stakeholders to protect and promote the press freedom and the safety of journalists.
Building Trust in Cambodian News: Ethical Journalism as a Public Good
On 30 October 2024, CamboJA and other media partners, in collaboration with UNESCO, organized a full-day conference to discuss the importance of upholding ethical journalism and media professional standards in building public trust, and to raise public awareness of the challenges in maintaining these standards. The event gathered over 150 participants, with 53 journalists from all provinces across Cambodia, and other key stakeholders in the media development sector in Cambodia.
Engaging discussions were held between journalists and digital content creators on how they could collaborate in combatting the spread of disinformation and misinformation on social media, and in developing compelling storytelling methods while ensuring information credibility and trustworthiness in media content. With the participation of journalists and media organizations in Cambodia and the President of the Timor Leste Press Council, the event shed light on the important role of independent press councils in promoting a thriving independent media and maintaining the media’s editorial independence and financial sustainability, and the different modalities for its establishment in Cambodia.
Conference on International Day to End Impunity for Crimes against Journalists
On 1 November 2024, UNESCO and OHCHR jointly organized a Conference with the participation of over 180 representatives from the media, authorities, judiciary, security forces, and civil society organizations to raise awareness and sensitize them to the global legal structure concerning freedom of expression and how it applies to the media and legal practices in Cambodia, with particular attention to the safety of journalists.
Human rights experts highlighted the importance of compliance with international human rights standards in preventing, protecting, and prosecuting crimes against journalists and the role of the judiciary and security forces. Journalists underscored the necessity for greater legal and safety protection mechanisms when facing significant safety challenges, including the impact of digital tools and technologies.
Within the framework of the UN Plan of Action on the Safety of Journalists and the Issue of Impunity, UNESCO and OHCHR, as part of the UN in Cambodia, have been spearheading its implementation in partnership with media and civil society organizations, the authorities, judicial actors and security forces, to advocate for continued awareness, capacity and efforts to the protection of journalists’ safety while doing their work.
The generous support of Sweden, Australia, and the EU made the organization of both conferences and dialogues possible.
Read more about UNESCO’s work in promoting the safety of journalists in Cambodia.
Global Context
As part of UNESCO’s global monitoring of SDG 16.10.1 on killings of journalists, the UNESCO Director General’s Report, published every two years, is a unique mechanism within the UN system for monitoring the killings of journalists. According to its Observatory data, between 2006 and 2024, more than 1,700 journalists have been killed around the world, with close to 9 out of 10 cases of these killings remaining judicially unresolved, including environmental journalists as highlighted during the World Press Freedom Day this year.
However, impunity for crimes against journalists encompasses not only killings of journalists but also legal harassment, charges and financial allegations.
As identified by UNESCO’s 2022 Global Trends on Freedom of Expression and Media Development Report, the global trend in the use of criminal defamation offences to restrict online expression has increased with 160 states still not decriminalizing defamation. New laws or legal provisions have been harshened or reintroduced on libel, defamation and insult, often in relation to criticism of public institutions/officials, to address cybersecurity, “fake news” and hate speech. These often have a chilling effect on freedom of expression, including the increased vulnerability of journalists, artists, bloggers and even social media users.
In addition, a recent UNESCO report highlights an alarming increase in instances of allegations of financial wrongdoing, designed to pressure, intimate and silence independent journalists and media outlets in the last three years. Of 120 cases reviewed by UNESCO globally dating from 2005-2024, 60% occurred between the last five years.
Unlike in libel and defamation cases, financial charges can often be brought without establishing any connection between the editorial content produced by the journalist or media outlet, and the charge itself. The use of financial allegations tends to freeze a journalist or media outlet’s assets, reducing their livelihoods and impeding their ability to continue reporting while they await trial. This can lead to the closure of media altogether, when key staff are detained or have their assets frozen. The threat of bankrupting individual journalists or media organizations can also lead to further self-censorship.
When a journalist is attacked for his or her work, not only is the journalist's individual right to freedom of expression violated, but also the collective rights of society to access information. On this International Day to End Impunity for Crimes Against Journalists, let’s change the story. It's time to end impunity.
