The roundtable discussion on “Justice and Freedom of the Press: How to Prevent Impunity for Crimes against Journalists” was hosted by the Siracusa Institute on 3 November in the presence of a number of journalists and prosecutors from Denmark, Italy, Greece, and Malta, as well as representatives from UNESCO and the International Association of Prosecutors (IAP). Promoted by Ossigeno per l’Informazione, on behalf of UNESCO, the roundtable was attended by a large audience connected remotely.
Opening remarks were delivered, among others, by Giovanni Salvi, Attorney General at the Italian Supreme Court, and by Tawfik Jelassi, UNESCO’s Assistant Director-General for Communication and Information, who emphasized how <<the level of impunity of these killings has remained extremely high and with an impunity rate of 87%: close to 9 out of 10 killings of journalists in the world remain unpunished>>. Among the numerous speakers, Eugenio Albamonte, deputy prosecutor in Rome, called for a higher competence in the field of crimes against journalists among the judiciary, while the Italian National anti-Mafia and anti-terrorism prosecutor Federico Cafiero de Raho spoke about his proposal of new rules for the protection of journalists.
Jean-François Thony, President of the Siracusa Institute, stated that <<Statistics are frightening. Whilst the number of journalists killed each and every year remain steady, it appears that these killings occur more and more outside conflict zones. More than 60% are non-conflict related, and for most of them, it means that journalists were executed by criminal organizations. It must be said that in most cases, the killing of a journalist, especially in local media, do not always attract public attention. >>
Click here to re-watch the event (English or Italian).
