On the 2nd of December 2016, Sweden celebrates the 250th anniversary of the Freedom of the Press Act – the first of its kind in the world, and a precedent to be followed by all democracies.
In the spirit of the Swedish Freedom of the Press Act, the Swedish Ministry for Foreign Affairs, the Fojo Media Institute/Linnæus University, the Swedish Institute and the Swedish National Commission for UNESCO will celebrate this historic event by paying tribute to all women journalists who defy hate speech and threats, pursuing their mission of providing citizens with the information needed to make enlightened decisions about their lives, their communities, their societies and their governments.
Women investigative reporters are often subjected to hate speech and threats, not only because they report on abuse of power, but because they are women. Undemocratic governments, religious organisations, organised crime and extremist political organisations and individuals use threats and hate speech to silence the women who are making their voices heard. This constitutes not only a threat to qualitative journalism, but also to equality and ultimately to democracy itself.
Prominant journalists including Barkha Dutt (India), Laura Castellanos (Mexico), Galina Timochenko (Russia/Latvia), Jessikka Aro (Finland), Anita Sarkeesian (Canada/USA), Miranda Patrucić (Bosnia), Jamela Alindogan (Philippines), Fatuma Noor(Somalia) and Baria Alamuddin (Lebanon) have been invited to an event in support for the safety of women journalists worldwide in Stockholm on December 2nd, 2016.
The seminar will be introduced by Margot Wallström, Swedish Minister for Foreign Affairs and attended by Dunja Mijatović, Representative on Freedom of the Media for the Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe (OSCE) and Frank la Rue, Assistant Director-General of Communication and Information at UNESCO.
The seminar is based on storytelling, using the stories of the invited journalists and representatives as a point of departure on how to find strategies to counter hate speech, threats and disinformation.
Venue: The Swedish Government’s Conference Center at Rosenbad
Day: 2 December
Time 1.30 – 4.30 PM Seminar (including intermission)
4.30 – 6.30 Reception
More information is available at http://fojo.se/journosafety
