IFJ Welcomes Bahrain Pledge over Threats to Media as Journalists Launch an Ethics Committee

 

The International Federation of Journalists today welcomed two significant developments for Bahrain journalism during yesterday’s World Press Freedom Day Celebrations.

 

The Bahrain Journalists Association (BJA) announced the creation of a media self-regulatory body to promote journalists ethics as an alternative to the government controlled model contained in the draft media law. On the same day, the King of Bahrain, Hamad ibn Isa Al Khalifah, said, in a public statement, that he will not accept any journalist to be imprisoned nor any newspaper closed down for exercising their constitutional rights to free expression.

 

“This is very good news for Bahrain journalists and an important achievement for the Bahrain Journalists’ Association that has been working tirelessly over recent years for improved rights of journalists and better media standards,” said Aidan White, IFJ General Secretary.

 

Earlier this year, a new draft media law that included provisions for a media regulatory body that would be closely controlled by the government. The plans were roundly denounced by the IFJ, the BJA and the Bahrain Ethical Journalism Initiative Committee, which set about preparing counter proposals that guaranteed its independence from government.

 

The new Media Support Committee (MSC) launched as a part of the BJA, has the following goals:

 

1.    To advocate  and campaign for press freedom and good governance in media,

2.    To contribute to education within society on the role of free media in democracy,

3.    To mediate problems that arise between media and their audience,

4.    To promote access to public information and to information technology that will ensure the full participation of citizens in democratic society.     

 

The MSC is made up of representatives of the media community and key civil society groups including representatives of the Journalists’ Association, the Publishers, the Workers’ Union, the Women’s Union, the Bar Association and Human Rights Activists. Within the MSC will be a Media Complaints Commission (MCC) to deal with public complaints about media content and to mediate potential disputes. 

 

The BJA further called on the government and parliament to declare support to the initiative and to co-operate with the media community and civil society to raise media standards.

 

“Creating an environment to ensure free media and independent journalism, without any form of legal or political pressure, must be a priority for government and the parliament” said Isa Al Shaiji, BJA chairman. 

 

The King’s commitment to upholding the constitutional guarantees of freedom of expression will give further confidence to a journalists’ community that its concerns are finally being listened to and that journalists’ rights will be properly protected in the parliamentary deliberations over the draft media law.

 

In a separate development the BJA expressed regret over the decision to close of one of Bahrain’s biggest newspapers, ALWAQT, for financial reasons. In its closing statement, ALWAQT said that it fought hard for its independence and was eventually defeated by the loss of advertising revenue.The BJA further expressed solidarity with the employees and demanded that the Directors respect the rights of editors and staff to receive their full entitlement.

 

For more information contact the IFJ at   +32 2 235 2207       

The IFJ represents over 600,000 journalists in 125 countries worldwide