In light of ongoing wars and rising geopolitical tensions, defending and protecting media freedom is more crucial than ever. As an integral part of the right to freedom of expression and access to information, media freedom can be fundamental even to the safety and survival of civilians in armed conflicts. Irene Khan, the UN Special Rapporteur on the Promotion and Protection of Freedom of Opinion and Expression, has emphasized that the right to information is a “survival right on which people’s lives, health, well-being, safety and security depend in times of crisis and conflict.”

This year, the Annual World Press Freedom Index, produced by Reporters Without Borders, identified a global decline in press freedom, highlighting that “press freedom around the world is being threatened by the very people who should be its guarantor—political authorities.” This decline in press freedom is most visibly manifested in the growing threats to journalists, including their safety and access to information.

In response to the growing concerns in the field, IPI and the Norwegian Ministry of Foreign Affairs cohosted the annual Trygve Lie Symposium on September 26th focusing on media freedom as a fundamental right and human right. Presentations at the event examined strategies for how the UN and member states can better promote media freedom and outlined actionable steps to enhance the protection of journalists and their access to crises and ongoing armed conflicts.

Speakers:
H.E. Espen Barth Eide, Minister of Foreign Affairs, Norway
H.E. Irene Khan, UN Special Rapporteur on the Promotion and Protection of Freedom of Opinion and Expression (virtual)
Jodie Ginsberg, CEO, Committee to Protect Journalists
Andrea Cairola, Advisor, Section for Freedom of Expression and Safety of Journalists at UNESCO
Rafa Renas, Producer based in Sudan who focuses on civil society, integration, and gender issues (virtual)
Hazem Balousha, Journalist with more than two decades of experience covering security, politics, and culture in the Gaza Strip and the West Bank (virtual)

Moderator:
Zeid Ra’ad Al Hussein, President and CEO of the International Peace Institute