IFJ celebrates the courage of women journalists and their fight for press freedom

From upper left to right: Claudia Duque Colombian journalist Claudia Duque was kidnapped and still lives under state protection for her investigations into the murder of her fellow journalist Jaime Garzón Forero, killed in 1999. She testified against a former DAS Deputy Director for his alleged part in psychological torture she suffered for many years under the regime of ex-President Alvaro Uribe Velez. Füsun Erdogan Füsun Erdogan was first arrested and given a life sentence and convicted in November 2013 on charges that she was a leading member of a Marxist organisation banned under the Turkish Anti-Terror Law. Released in May 2014 pending trial, she is now living in the Netherlands as asylum seeker. Her trial at the appeal court in Ankara will be reopened in March 2016. Füsun is known for her articles defending minorities' rights in Turkey.(photo credit E.O/IFJ) Anuška Delić Anuška Delić is a Slovenian investigative reporter for Delo, a leading Slovenian daily. She was accused of publishing classified state intelligence after she uncovered alleged connections between the Slovenian neo-Nazi group Blood & Honour and members of the Slovenian Democratic Party (SDS). In April 2015 all charges were dropped and she was acquitted. Inday Espina Varona Inday Espina Varona is a veteran writer and editor, and the former chair of the National Union of Journalists of the Philippines. She has won awards for her in-depth reportage, opinion columns and social media output. Inday has campaigned for the rights of women journalists in the Philippines, noting the ‘boys club’ of the Filipino media as one of the key challenges for female journalists. Rima Al Jamrah Rima Al Jamrah is a Palestinian journalist working on radio and television programmes for Palestine TV. She is an international trainer accredited by the International Federation of Journalists and the Palestinian Journalists Syndicate. Specialised in gender safety trainings, she has implemented a series of safety trainings in the Arab world. Dilrukshi Handunnetti Dilrukshi Handunnetti is one of the IFJ Asia-Pacific gender coordinators and a multi-award winning journalist, who contributes to Al Jazeera, Reuters, and a number of local and regional media outlets. She is a lawyer by training, specialising in investigative reporting and international affairs. Dilrukshi has experienced a number of challenges while reporting, including during her time with the Sunday Leader, where she experienced defamation lawsuits and threatening letters. In 2012 she was threatened with death if she continued her reports. Nadia Sharmeen Nadia Sharmeen is a crime reporter in Bangladesh, who won the 2015 US Department’s International Women of Courage Award. In 2014 Nadia was attacked while covering a rally in Bangladesh. She was severely injured in the attack and required hospitalisation. Today she continues to work in Bangladesh’s challenging media environment. Solange Lusiku Nsimire Solange Lusiku Nsimire is the editor in chief of independent monthly newspaper Le Souverain, based in Bukavu, in the eastern part of the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC). She defied death threats and attacks on her family for her articles about government corruption and financial malpractices. She won an IWMF award “Courage in Journalism” in 2014 with which she financed 6 months publication of her newspaper. “We report for future generations” she says in a determined tone when asked about possible fear in working as a journalist in one of the most dangerous countries in the world.(photo credit IWMF)