The International Federation of Journalists
(IFJ) has today hailed the outcome of a Regional Conference on Peace and
Safety for Somali Media, held in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia.
"It is crucial that we remember at all times the plight of
journalists in Somalia suffering at the hands of Al-Shabbab and other
rebel groups," said IFJ President Jim Boumelha. "The journalist
community has been repeatedly targeted and many journalists have paid
for their lives in their effort to keep their citizens informed. This
must stop. In calling for peace, this conference could not have come at a
better to also call for justice for journalists and their families."
The IFJ has applauded the Inter-Governmental Authority on Development
(IGAD) and the Eastern Africa Journalists Association (EAJA) for taking
the initiative to support Somalia's endangered media, in collaboration
with the IFJ's Somalia affiliate, the National Union of Somali
Journalists (NUSOJ).
At the end of the meeting, the participants from Somalia's mainstream
media adopted a strong declaration setting out that they want to do and
their true expression of the current situation in country.
The IFJ has endorsed this declaration from the regional conference
and has stated that it is a true manifesto of what the media in Somalia
wants to be done. "We call for the true implementation of this
declaration by all concerned associates and we will do everything in our
power to support a safe working environment for Somali and freedom of
expression for journalists," added Boumelha.
The National Union of Somali Journalists (NUSOJ), an IFJ affiliate,
said the meeting was very successful. "We need peace so that we can have
an environment that is conducive for journalists to work in," said Omar
Faruk Osman, NUSOJ Secretary General. "Journalism is being used by
those who want to put forward their own political agenda in the
country's conflict. They are using it to eliminate journalists and their
media organisations."
The conference, which brought together leading journalists from
different areas of Somalia, attracted participants from Somalia's
neighbours including Djibouti, Ethiopia, Kenya, Sudan, Rwanda, Burundi
and Uganda.
For more information, please contact IFJ on + 221 33 867 95 86/87
The IFJ represents more than 600.000 journalists in 134 countries