FAIR statement on World Press Freedom Day 2008

The Forum for African Investigative Reporters (FAIR) greets all organizations and individuals gathering in Maputo to celebrate World Press Freedom Day.

The need for a continued struggle for Press Freedom and Access to Information as expressed by the Maputo organizers is indeed urgent. There is a long way to go before we will be able to sit back and enjoy true World Press Freedom.

Like many of our colleagues worldwide, African journalists still struggle everyday with the obstacles that stand in the way of a truly free press in many of our countries. Access to information is still severely limited in Africa. In some countries it is impossible to access any records, be they from the state or the private sector. This greatly hampers journalists' ability to service the information needs of the public.

Without access to information legislation and implementation, journalists can't tell the public what it needs to know, because the information is kept hidden. Other scourges of the profession arise from this. For example, sources are able to pressurize journalists to pay them for information or documents. They know they can do this, because journalists have no other way to access the needed information. As a result, the battle for media ethics is impacted on negatively by the lack of legal access to information in many countries.

Press Freedom can't be true Press Freedom if media can not access important information. If not important information, what then are the media free to publish?

FAIR therefore welcomes the singling out of Access to Information by the organizers as a feature theme of this World Press Freedom Day.

FAIR also salutes all diligent supporters of media and press freedom who have battled again throughout the year against censorship and self-censorship by media and media workers. Many stories do not see the light of day because they dare to question the actions of powerful forces in society, who exercise pressure on media houses to 'spike' these stories.

As the only continental organization of investigative journalists, whose aim it is to serve the African public's information needs in the interests of transparency and democracy, FAIR pledges to continue to support, practically and daily, all efforts by journalists, members or non-members, to access information and to then publish it, in their endeavour to properly service the information needs of their readers and audiences.

FAIR itself will conduct, in 2008, a Transnational Investigation such as the one conducted last year, by a team composed of investigative journalists from 5 to 7 African countries. Like last year, a FAIR team will interrogate a pressing issue simultaneously in all these countries. Like last year, access to information will be the main battle to wage in this investigation, and FAIR will work to assist its team members in all participating countries to pressurize for such access, so that, like last year, a complete dossier will result.

FAIR will continue to work together, and build new partnerships, with all, here present, in our joint endeavour for true World Press Freedom.