The Athens Declaration 2001

The Athens Declaration 3rd CONFERENCE OF MEDITERRANEAN REGION JOURNALISTS ATHENS 12-13 JANUARY 2001 Fifty professional journalists representing 15 Mediterranean countries and 28 trade unions conferred in Athens on 12th and 13th January 2001, consistent with the Conferences of Milano (1993-5), Zagreb and Florence (1998) and Rabat (1999) adopt this final declaration restating the following principles: - Democracy and editorial independence are fundamental principles in practising journalism. - Observe in certain countries of the Mediterranean basin obstruction in freedom of expression and the right to information. - Journalists express their grave anxiety over the "Balkan Syndrome". Demand to be fully informed on consequences from the bombardment of Yugoslavia. Therefore, the pressure being exerted on Portuguese journalists by their country's Armed Forces restrict their right to free and complete information as required in all democratic societies. - Journalists' health and that of civilian population, require our constant attention. - Denounce all forms of censorship exerted by political authorities or international conglomerates profiting by the introduction of digital technology to reinforce their market shares. - Information quality and credibility determined by entirely commercial criteria undervaluing information in a stereotype form. - In the domain of information the effects of globalisation are destructive and irreversible: Depreciation of creative improvisation, decrease of actual information, deontology threatened by the market, editorial output commercialised and whole sectors of the industry taken over by commerce. - Committed to struggle against media ownership concentration, demand an end to the communication sectors' deregulation. Aiming to fortify the audio-visual industry's public sector, by providing all means for information and competitive quality programs. - Denounce the exaggerated influence of economic groups on information and absence of transparency in their entire activities. - Remind that globalisation is voluntarily deregulating the trade union movement all over the world. Demand the IFJ to vigorously associate in common action with international trade unions (to control profiteering by introducing a tax on capital flow world-wide, strict international control over financial markets, social dialogue of syndicates and employers etc). - Note approaching certain objectives as set a year ago in the Rabat Conference. If RAI (Italian TV) would soon air a two-hour news programme subtitled in Arabic we restate our demand to create a Mediterranean public service TV chain. - Restate that only durable and genuine solidarity, in all its forms, will allow survival of the Mediterranean Unions group being enlarged every year. Solidarity is to be reinforced and activated on every occasion, especially by the use of new technology developing a common plan of action. - Solidarity is to be exerted on several levels: that of information exchange on media concentration as well as trade union training, within a plan of action on claims (authors' rights, labour rights, social rights, permanent training…) - Participants are committed to act against suppressive mechanisms in the future so that all unions are represented. In fact this year Palestinian journalists were obstructed by Israeli authorities and could not attend the Conference. - Decided to hold the 4th Mediterranean Conference in Cyprus, following the Union of Cyprus Journalists invitation - Renew the term of office for the entire Conference Committee and their functions were renewed as follows: Antonio Velluto: Federazione Nazionale della Stampa (FNSI), Coordinator; Younouss M'jahed: Syndicat National de la Presse Marocaine (SNPM), Assistant Coordinator; Fani Petralia: Journalists' Union of the Athens Daily Newspapers (JUADN), member; Juan Antonio Prieto: Federacion de asociaciones de la Prensa (FAPE), member; Mario Guastoni: Syndicat National des Journalistes (SNJ), member of the IFJ executive committee, member; The IFJ's regional office in Algers: member; A representative of the Journalists Union of Cyprus: member. Athens, 13th January 2001 MOTIONS 1st MOTION Journalists from 15 countries participating at the 3rd Conference of Mediterranean Region Journalists, condemn violations of human rights and freedom of speech in Turkey as well as violent practices against journalists in Palestine and the occupied part of Cyprus, obstructing journalists in practising their profession. 2nd MOTION Journalists from 15 countries participating at the 3rd Conference of Mediterranean Region Journalists underlined the need to support all journalists working in former Yugoslavia and the need to include in the IFJ the "Federation of Yugoslavian Journalists", "Press Association of Serbia" and "Press Association of Montenegro". 3rd MOTION The 3rd Conference of Mediterranean Journalists concerned with fundamentalist phenomena being intensified in several Mediterranean countries proposes to form a permanent committee to study thoroughly problems women journalists confront. The committee's main task will be to organise seminars on this subject in order to examine problems of women journalists overall.