Unesco Calls For Protection Of Journalists In Iraq

Thursday, 28 April 2005, 4:56 pm
Press Release: United Nations

UNESCO CALLS ON ALL SIDES TO PROTECT JOURNALISTS IN IRAQ AFTER NEW DEADLY ATTACK
New York, Apr 27 2005 11:00AM

Describing the number of media workers killed, injured or kidnapped in Iraq as “shocking,” the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) has called for measures to improve the safety of journalists after a new attack brought the death toll to a reported 55 in the last two years.

“Journalists working in Iraq have shown impressive courage in carrying out their professional duty to collect and disseminate information,” UNESCO Director-General Koïchiro Matsuura said after the shooting death of a cameraman and the wounding of another.

“I call on the authorities and on all the warring factions in Iraq to respect the safety of journalists. The public’s right to continue receiving information is crucial for the exercise of their democratic rights,” he added.

According to the non-governmental organization (NGO) Reporters without Borders, 55 journalists and media assistants have been killed in Iraq since the start of fighting with the United States-led invasion in the country in March 2003.

In the latest case, Saleh Ibrahim and Mohammed Ibrahim, who both worked for the Associated Press news agency, were injured by unidentified gunmen as they arrived at the scene of an explosion in Mosul, northern Iraq, on 23 April. Saleh Ibrahim died shortly after reaching hospital while Mohammed Ibrahim was treated for shrapnel wounds in the head.

Mr. Matsuura’s statement was the latest in a long series of condemnations he has issued recently over attacks on journalists around the world. UNESCO’s mandate includes the defence of freedom of expression and press freedom.

Yeah, the insurgents in Iraq are all about protecting innocent people. I'm sure they'll take better care in teh future to only kill regular Iraqi civilians, not journalists.

Unfortunately journalists are also killed by coalition forces.

Yeah, I know. They should be more careful. But honestly, I can't have too much sympathy because this is a danger of the job. They're not covering a hockey game, it's a war, and people get killed, even noncombatants. Most noncombatants run AWAY from the fighting, these guys run towards it. What can they expect?

You're absolutely right, buth the incident when a US tank opened fire on the Palestine hotel, where many journalists were known by the US to be staying, causing the death of several journalists, is still a bit difficult to understand, but once again you're right it is a hazardous profession.

Or how about the bombings of three television networks covered in Control Room by coalition troops? That was a blatant act of attempting to silence journalists.

The U.S. Government learned from Vietnam, they knew the way to keep American public support or a lack of all out backlash was too keep the public in the dark about the realities of war. Which means keep journalists out from viewing the horrific truths of what we are doing. Just look at Falluja, how many journalists have been killed or gone missing by trying to report on the mass slaughter that took place in that one town.

As I recall from Control Room, there was no direct evidence that the bombings were intentionally done to silence journalists, with the exception of a strong suspicion by the folks over at Al Jazeera. The same folks who were shocked and nearly crying when the Hussein statue got toppled. As far as keeping journalists in the dark, at the begining of the war the journalists were following us from battle to battle, and were all over Iraq. This was probably the most well document begining of a war in history, and the journalists were actually entrinched with our forces, and 100's more were out on their own.

Well, let's not fool ourselves now. The purpose of "embedding" journalists is to make sure that they see only what the army wants them to see. If the journalists see everything from the perspective (literally) of the American troops, then they will write stories sympathetic to the American troops. If they are allowed to roam freely, as they have in other wars, they might see something they're not supposed to see or, God forbid, they might write a story that doesn't show the American troops in the best light.

No I agree. I know there was a strategic reasoning behind it. But there were also many journalists roaming around on their own accord. It was only in the later parts of the war where we made a more concentrated effort to keep them out of certain hot zones such a fallujah. Of course any journalist with a half brain would have stayed clear of that mess with the heads rolling around in backrooms.

There is a big difference between an 'embedded reporter' and an independent reporter who does not travel with the military and is more likely to have an independent view of the situation but unfortunately is also more likely to be killed.