Professional Safety for Iraqi Journalists

كتبهاعالية طالب ، في 9 تشرين الثاني 2007 الساعة: 13:25 م

Professional Safety for Iraqi Journalists

And the role of the International Organizations

It is well known for the world Journalists, press and media People, and specially those related international Organizations, the amount of danger which confronts Journalists in Iraq, as a result of the complicated security circumstances, the responsibilities of which are born by the fighting parties or those armed groups, starting with the multinational forces, passing by the governmental forces and ending with the armed militias and kidnapping gangs aiming at obtaining ransom money.

Out of our knowledge with what has been offered, gratefully by the international organizations, for the journalists working in the Iraqi field, we see that the matter still needs a more serious work and active participation, which is not only limited to the issue of indignation statements, or those counting the number of those who fell dead or kidnapped, at the edge of conferences held here or there.

We must mention the magnificent efforts of the International Occupational Safety Institute which organized a series of sessions in this respect, attended by Iraqi journalists and media people, in spite of that we believe in the necessity of revising the content of such sessions programs in order to fit with the actual state of the circumstances in which journalists are kidnapped as well as finding a more effective plan to have room for the maximum number of Iraqi journalists in such sessions.

In participation in working on ending killing of journalists, mainly the Iraqi ones, we submit this collection of suggestions which may find acceptance by the concerned organizations, while they are informing us of what has already actually been implemented until today .

FIRST

Calling for an International Solidarity Week, in solidarity with the journalists and media people working in Iraq, whether Iraqis or foreigners, during such a week, the International Media means would mobilize to confirm the importance of the media people’s work and their neutrality, also calling the armed parties in Iraq to stop killing and kidnapping journalists as well as releasing the kidnapped ones who are still alive; this should be taking place through the application of the following ideas:-

1- The issue of a poster in several approved languages.

2- Calling the international press organizations to organize special programs or publish special pages in journals.

3- Calling the local press syndicate organizations, in every country, to organize activities or meetings in solidarity with the journalists working in Iraq, during that week’s days.

4- A visit, by an international delegation, requesting the international journalist, is to be paid to Iraq, may be in Kurdistan territory for safety reasons, in solidarity with the journalists.

5- The production of a documentary film about the journalists’ killing in Iraq and trying to show it in the satellites channels, international or Arab, in a special way and in different languages.

It is worth mentioning that calling the International Journalists Union to activate the 8^th of Nissan every year, which is under the auspices of the union, may not completely fulfill the required aim. We have an experience in this matter through our participation in the celebration or festival, held only once in Iraq in 2005.

SECOND

Directing an invitation to the Iraqi government and the multinational forces to bear their responsibility in protecting the journalists working in Iraq, while undertaking a just investigation in cases of murdering and kidnappings leading to the prosecution of the guilty persons, through a delegation that visits Iraq, meets the officials directly and invites the local media to call for putting an end to murdering journalists.

THIRD

Intensifying the courses for occupational safety, and changing their program, in which the international occupational safety institutions train the journalists, in accordance with the press working circumstances in Iraq, considering that the actual program does not comply with such circumstances anymore.

FOURTH

Carry on an international campaign and gather enough money for compensating the families of the journalists who were murdered while distributing it according to preset criteria which must be protecting this operation from any disposal not in proportion with its true and noble objectives.

FIFTH

The publication of a yearly documentary book, concerning the cases of murdering journalists in Iraq, which should include the presentation of the individual cases and the standpoints of the civil organizations, as well as the procedures undertaken by the Iraqi government and the multinational forces towards murder cases and distribute this book widely, whether in Iraq or abroad.

This will turn it into a source of information, with the stimulation of the international media means to invest it on reporting about cases of murdering and journalists killing cases in Iraq.

SIXTH

The provision of the maximum amount of necessities for the journalists working in Iraq.

The most important of which might be :

1- personal protection shields which can be used under ordinary clothes, because using them over the ordinary clothes makes them easy targets for the armed groups murdering journalists.

2- The providence of a number of medical kits to be distributed with the above mentioned shields.

Again we want to confirm that what has been undertaken by the international organizations as numbering the cases of killing, and issuing statements of indignation shall remain in vain in view of what is offered by the journalists and media people in Iraq, and that the profession’s sense of responsibility and the spirit of solidarity will remain lacking if the situation will continue to be the same as today.

Let this incentive be, if well clarified, a symbol of international human solidarity which is called for by all the international organizations and the calls and decisions defending the human rights issued by International Community.

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