Khartoum, March 23(Darfur24) The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization, UNESCO revealed increasing threats to journalists, as about 445 journalists were killed around the world during the past five years while performing their work.
According to a recent report, UNESCO recorded, from 2016 to the end of 2021, the killing of 455 journalists, including those who died because of their jobs, and some of them were targeted while on the job.
Approximately 9 out of 10 killings remain unsolved. The global rate of impunity for killings of journalists fuels a cycle of violence, with a dire impact on all journalists. Attacks against journalists covering protests, demonstrations and riots are also alarmingly common.
UNESCO documented this type of attack in at least 60 countries between January and August of 2021. Since 2015 we have seen at least About 13 journalists while covering the protests. The report said that widespread violence against journalists on the Internet is one of the new growing trends, and it affects women journalists disproportionately in different parts of the world.
A 2021 paper by UNESCO shows that more than 7 out of 10 female journalists surveyed have experienced online violence. One-fifth of female journalists reported having experienced violence offline in relation to online threats.
According to the report, many countries’ laws do not adequately protect journalists from these threats. In fact, the legal framework puts them at greater risk at times. Since 2016, 44 countries have adopted or amended new laws that contain veiled language or threaten to impose varying penalties for acts involving the dissemination of “fake news,” “rumour,” or “electronic defamation,” which leads to self-censorship.