21 Jan 2010 | Uncategorized
Nominations close on the 15 February for the 2010 UNESCO/Guillermo Cano World Press Freedom Prize which rewards journalists who have made a notable contribution to the defence of press freedom anywhere in the world can be nominated. The winner will be presented with US$25,000.
Professional and non-governmental organizations working in the field of journalism and freedom of expression can nominate candidates and provide information on how they have contributed to the promotion of freedom of information over the years.
The prize, named in honor of Guillermo Cano Isaza, a Columbian journalist who was killed while reporting in 1986, will be presented on May 3 in Australia, during the World Press Freedom Day conference.
Deadline: 15 February 2010
21 Jan 2010 | Events
Reuters and Global Voices launch a new award to recognise campaigners for freedom of expression online.
The Breaking Borders Award will reward the use of online tools by individuals, campaign groups and government groups to promote and protect freedom of expression.
Prizes of US$10,000 will be handed out in three categories: advocacy, which will recognise an activist or group that has used online tools to promote free expression; technology, which will rewarded the creators of a tool enabling free expression and increased access to information; and a policy prize aimed at policy makers, non-governmental organisations and government officials.
Free societies and prosperity are fundamentally based on freedom of expression, both offline and online,” says David Drummond, Google’s senior vice president of corporate development and chief legal officer, in a press release.
“The internet is providing once unimaginable possibilities for political participation, free exchange of information and democratic movements around the world.”
The deadline for the awards is 15 February. Details here
21 Jan 2010 | Uncategorized
Zimonline carries the heartbreaking testimony of Index on Censorship contributor Stanley Kwenda, who was forced to flee Zimbabwe after receiving threats last week:
Friday began with the normal routine, which means grabbing all the newspapers I can lay my hands on just to check what’s happening around.
I had just received a copy of British-based Index on Censorship 2009 Review. From the moment I flipped open the first chapter, I could never put the book down.
The stories told in the book of how some journalists elsewhere in the world have stood up to tyranny — with some even getting killed in the process — in order to be able to practise their profession are encouraging.
Although, I must admit, there is something quite disturbing about knowing that someone could order your death simply because you dared tell a story.
Somewhere, on one of the pages of the Index, there was a long list of journalists who have either been harassed, incarcerated or lost their lives in the line of duty. Interestingly, some of them were from Zimbabwe — and little did I know that by end of that day, I would be part of the statistics.
Read the rest here.
And read Stanley Kwenda’s Index article on Zimbabwean censorship here
21 Jan 2010 | Comment
The new coalition government in Zimbabwe has so far failed to deliver on its promise of greater media freedom, says Stanley Kwenda
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