November 2022 in Asia-Pacific: An impunity-themed special issue brief, produced by IFEX's regional editor Mong Palatino, based on IFEX member reports and news from the region.
Impunity persists across Asia, as states fail to provide adequate protection to journalists.
This was the common message of Asia-based civil society groups that marked the International Day to End Impunity (IDEI) for Crimes Against Journalists on 2 November by highlighting the efforts of so many stakeholders to counter attacks against the media and hold the perpetrators of violence accountable.
In the Philippines, the site of the worst recorded attack against media – which came to be known as the Ampatuan Massacre, when 32 journalists and media workers were killed in a politically motivated attack that left 58 dead – the issue of impunity continues to resonate. Two journalists have been killed since the Marcos government came to power in July. Authorities have since charged a former prison warden as the mastermind in the killing of a radio journalist. But the number of unresolved media killings remains high, according to the monitoring of IFEX member Center for Media Freedom and Responsibility.
Just three days after IDEI, an editorial cartoonist who had won awards for his works criticizing corruption and social injustice was killed after receiving online threats. The young artist-teacher Benharl Kahil was gunned down in Mindanao, a few weeks before the nation will mark the anniversary of the Ampatuan Massacre.
As threats and attacks against journalists continue, the National Union of Journalists of the Philippines has signed partnership agreements with the Integrated Bar of the Philippines and three other networks of lawyers to provide a hotline and legal services to journalists in need of immediate protection.
Over to Pakistan, where a new report released by IFEX member Pakistan Press Foundation (PPF) on IDEI warned against the “alarming lack of justice (for) crimes against the media.” It welcomed the passage of a law at the federal level and in the province of Sindh that institutionalizes the protection of journalists, but warned that the measure hasn’t stopped attacks against journalists, including the harassment of critical reporters by some political leaders.
“While the creation of new laws or the issuance of statements of solidarity are welcome steps, they are empty promises when there is no progress in the overall situation regarding impunity,” PPF said.
To address the worsening misogynist attacks against women journalists, IFEX member Digital Rights Foundation and the National Commission for Human Rights have initiated a hotline dedicated to receiving complaints and providing quick assistance to reporters facing gender-based violence.
If there are mechanisms available for journalists to seek help or justice in countries like the Philippines and Pakistan, national remedies are sorely missing in Myanmar and Afghanistan.
In Myanmar, four journalists have been killed since the February 2021 coup, based on the monitoring of the Myanmar Journalists Network. Of the 159 arrested journalists, 59 are still behind bars.
Free Expression Myanmar said that “the frequency and seriousness of crimes committed against journalists show that these are not individual isolated cases but rather part of the military’s gross and systematic human rights violations.”
It marked IDEI by honoring the memory of the journalists who died under military custody.
“Remembering is a step towards ensuring that perpetrators will one day be held accountable for their crimes and brought to justice before the Myanmar people.”
International pressure and initiatives by civil society organisations are crucial to stop the ongoing global crackdown on media and dissenting voices, and defend civic space. There have been recent interventions in the region aimed at protecting the human rights of Myanmar citizens. In Indonesia, IFEX member Aliansi Jurnalis Independen signed a petition asking the court to allow the prosecution of Myanmar’s military government for committing crimes against humanity. A week before the East Asia Summit, more than 500 civil society groups released a statement urging the Association of Southeast Asian Nations to “take concrete actions to end all inhumane acts committed by the military junta”, as they reminded state leaders that Myanmar’s human rights crisis is no longer an internal matter but a threat to regional stability.
In Afghanistan, Amu TV journalist Lotfullah Najafizada enumerated recommendations for the international community on how to protect local journalists who are struggling to survive under the Taliban government:
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- The safety and freedom of Afghan journalists, including female journalists, has to be a key item on the agenda for diplomatic engagement with the Taliban;
- The international community must identify and punish individuals in Afghanistan, according to international law, who have turned guns on defenseless journalists;
- The UN must establish a task force, including Afghan journalists, to monitor the situation and provide support in their hour of need;
- There has to be a swift mechanism in place to relocate Afghan journalists at high-risk;
- The international community should work with Afghan journalists to enable them to keep reporting on Afghanistan for the sake of not only Afghans, but the world.
In Cambodia, civil society groups noted that “harassment and crimes against journalists remain worryingly high this year”. IFEX member Cambodian Center for Human Rights has rolled out a three-week campaign aimed at sustaining public awareness about IDEI and holding the state accountable for its failure to end impunity.
“To date, no effective, independent, and transparent investigations have been conducted in order to bring the perpetrators of these egregious crimes to justice, leaving these cases unresolved and the victims denied the justice they long deserve while their perpetrators continue to enjoy impunity,” CCHR said in a statement.
As part of its information campaign, it asked several stakeholders to answer this question: “What would you do to protect journalists?”
It also promoted a video animation titled “Nak Bantor Ven” (“The Successor”), which is based on a true story about a murdered journalist and his family’s quest for justice.
Check out IFEX’s impunity hub page for related news from around the globe, the No Impunity campaign page, our recent Editorial marking IDEI and the 10th anniversary of the UN Plan of Action on the Safety of Journalists and the Issue of Impunity, and a joint call for States to take action.
