Washington — Journalists from around the world have converged on Washington to survey the state of their profession in recognition of World Press Freedom Day, officially marked on May 3.
A Washington conference in honor of the occasion began May 1 with a speech from Under Secretary of State Judith McHale saluting the conferees for their “tireless efforts to safeguard journalists and their ability to work around the world.”
The theme of this year’s events, as designated by UNESCO, is “21st Century Media: New Frontiers, New Barriers.” The new communication technologies of social media and text messaging have been instrumental in the organization of public demonstrations for freedom and liberalization that have swept North Africa and the Mideast in 2011, so these events will also be shaping the discussions.
McHale cited her recent travel to Tunisia to meet with activists leading the reform movement. “They are embracing the blessings of a free press, of freedom of association and of free expression as vital components of an open, democratic society,” she said.
McHale said new communications technologies have made it “nearly impossible for authoritarian governments to contain and control information as they once did.”
At the Washington conference, bloggers and Internet journalists from North Africa and the Middle East, as well as media professionals from elsewhere in the world, are participating.
In her World Press Freedom Day statement, UNESCO Director-General Irina Bokova expressed concern about reported attacks on journalists covering the events in North Africa and the Middle East that have collectively come to be known as the Arab Spring. She also welcomed the liberalization of press restrictions. “But I also urge other governments in the region to step up their efforts to meet the aspirations of their citizens and open the way for the full enjoyment of the basic human right of freedom of expression,” she said.
On May 3 Bokova is recognizing jailed Iranian journalist Ahmad Zeidabadi as the recipient of the 2011 UNESCO/Guillermo Cano World Press Freedom Prize. He is a former editor-in-chief of the Azad newspaper, a contributor to other media outlets and a professor of political science.
Zeidabadi is one of many Iranian journalists targeted in the aftermath of the 2009 election. The government accused him of plotting to overthrow the government in a “soft revolution,” and he is now serving a six-year prison term. He has been in and out of prison several times since he began a media campaign for greater civil rights for Iranians in 2000.
An independent panel of journalists from around the world selected Zeidabadi for the honor. In endorsing the panel’s selection, Bokova said, “Throughout his career Ahmad Zeidabadi has courageously and unceasingly spoken out for press freedom and freedom of expression, which is a fundamental human right that underpins all other civil liberties, a key ingredient of tolerant and open societies and vital for the rule of law and democratic governance.”