RES/39/6 The safety of journalists

GE.18-16414(E)



Human Rights Council Thirty-ninth session

10–28 September 2018 Agenda item 3

Resolution adopted by the Human Rights Council on 27 September 2018

39/6. The safety of journalists

The Human Rights Council,

Guided by the purposes and principles of the Charter of the United Nations,

Reaffirming the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, and recalling relevant

international human rights treaties, including the International Covenant on Civil and

Political Rights and the International Convention for the Protection of All Persons from

Enforced Disappearance, and the Geneva Conventions of 12 August 1949 and the

Additional Protocols thereto of 8 June 1977,

Recalling all General Assembly and Human Rights Council resolutions on the safety

of journalists, in particular Assembly resolution 72/175 of 19 December 2017 and Council

resolution 33/2 of 29 September 2016, as well as Security Council resolutions 1738 (2006)

of 23 December 2006 and 2222 (2015) of 27 May 2015, on the protection of civilians in

armed conflict,

Taking note with appreciation of the report of the Office of the United Nations High

Commissioner for Human Rights on the safety of journalists,1

Recalling all other relevant reports of the Secretary-General, the Office of the High

Commissioner and the special procedures of the Human Rights Council on the safety of

journalists,

Recalling also the options put forward in the outcome of the multi-stakeholder

consultation on strengthening the implementation of the United Nations Plan of Action on

the Safety of Journalists and the Issue of Impunity,

Welcoming the decision of the Secretary-General to appoint a designated official on

the safety of journalists in his Executive Office and to mobilize a network of focal points

throughout the United Nations system to propose specific steps to intensify efforts to

enhance the safety of journalists and media workers,

Welcoming also the important work of the United Nations Educational, Scientific

and Cultural Organization for the safety of journalists, including its role in monitoring

developments in this area, as reflected in its Global Report 2017/2018 entitled World

1 A/HRC/39/23.

United Nations A/HRC/RES/39/6

Trends in Freedom of Expression and Media Development, and expressing concern at the

increase in violence against and harassment of journalists described therein,

Welcoming further the initiatives taken by States, media organization and civil

society relevant to the safety of journalists, and taking note in this regard of the Freelance

Journalist Safety Principles and the International Declaration on the Protection of

Journalists presented at the World Congress of the International Press Institute, held in

March 2016 in Doha,

Mindful that the right to freedom of opinion and expression is a human right

guaranteed to all, in accordance with article 19 of the Universal Declaration of Human

Rights and of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, and that it

constitutes one of the essential foundations of a democratic society and one of the basic

conditions for its progress and development,

Recognizing the importance of freedom of expression and of free, independent,

plural and diverse media, online as well as offline, in building and supporting the

functioning of inclusive and peaceful knowledge societies and democracies, an informed

citizenry, the rule of law and participation in public affairs, in holding public institutions

and officials accountable, including by exposing corruption, and in fostering intercultural

dialogue, peace and good governance, as well as mutual understanding and cooperation,

Underlining the importance of voluntary professional principles and ethics

developed and observed by the media,

Recognizing the crucial role of journalists and media workers in the context of

elections, including to inform the public about candidates, their platforms and ongoing

debates, and expressing serious concern that attacks against journalists and media workers

increase during election periods,

Recognizing also the importance of public trust in and the credibility of journalism,

in particular the challenges of maintaining media professionalism in an environment where

new forms of media are constantly evolving and where targeted disinformation and smear

campaigns to discredit the work of journalists are increasing,

Recognizing further that the work of journalists often puts them at specific risk of

intimidation, threats, harassment and violence, including the targeting of their family

members, which often deters journalists from continuing their work or encourages self-

censorship, consequently depriving society of important information,

Deeply concerned by all human rights violations and abuses committed in relation to

the safety of journalists and media workers, including killing, torture, enforced

disappearance, arbitrary arrest and arbitrary detention, expulsion, intimidation, harassment,

threats, including of a physical, legal, political, technological and economic nature, and acts

of other forms of violence,

Deeply alarmed at the specific risks faced by women journalists in relation to their

work, and underlining in this context the importance of taking a gender-sensitive approach

when considering measures to address the safety of journalists, including in the online

sphere, in particular to effectively tackle gender-based discrimination, including sexual and

gender-based violence, threats, intimidation, harassment, inequality and gender-based

stereotypes, and to enable women to enter and remain in journalism on terms of equality

and non-discrimination while ensuring their greatest possible safety, and to ensure that the

experiences and concerns of women journalists are effectively addressed,

Alarmed at instances in which political leaders, public officials and/or authorities

denigrate, intimidate or threaten the media, including individual journalists, which increases

the risk of threats and violence against journalists and undermines public trust in the

credibility of journalism,

Expressing serious concern at attacks and violence against journalists and media

workers in situations of armed conflict, and recalling in this regard that journalists and

media workers engaged in dangerous professional missions in areas of armed conflict shall

be considered civilians and shall be protected as such, provided that they take no action

adversely affecting their status as civilians,

Expressing deep concern at the growing threat to the safety of journalists posed by

non-State actors, including terrorist groups and criminal organizations,

Recognizing that national legal frameworks consistent with States’ international

human rights obligations and commitments are an essential condition for a safe and

enabling environment for journalists, and expressing deep concern about the misuse of

national laws, policies and practices to hinder or limit the ability of journalists to perform

their work independently and without undue interference,

Recognizing also the important role that national human rights institutions can play

in promoting and protecting human rights, including the right to freedom of expression, and

in addressing human rights violations against journalists through monitoring, educating and

awareness-raising activities, as well as through the examination of complaints, and

recognizing further the contribution that national mechanisms for reporting and follow-up

can play in the prevention of human rights violations against journalists,

Emphasizing the role of international cooperation in support of national efforts to

prevent attacks and violence against journalists and in raising the capacities of States in the

field of human rights, including in preventing attacks and violence against journalists,

including through the provision of technical assistance, upon the request of and in

accordance with the priorities set by the States concerned,

Emphasizing also the particular risks with regard to the safety of journalists in the

digital age, including the particular vulnerability of journalists to becoming targets of

unlawful or arbitrary surveillance and/or interception of communications, hacking,

including government-sponsored hacking, and denial of service attacks to force the

shutdown of particular media websites or services, in violation of their rights to privacy and

to freedom of expression,

Bearing in mind that impunity for attacks and violence against journalists constitutes

one of the greatest challenges to the safety of journalists, and that ensuring accountability

for crimes committed against journalists is a key element in preventing future attacks,

Stressing the need for greater emphasis on prevention measures and the creation of

enabling legal frameworks for freedom of expression to ensure a safe and enabling

environment for journalists and media workers,

1. Condemns unequivocally all attacks and violence against journalists and

media workers, such as torture, killings, enforced disappearances, arbitrary arrest and

arbitrary detention, expulsion, intimidation, threats and harassment, online and offline,

including through attacks on or the forced closure of their offices and media outlets in both

conflict and non-conflict situations;

2. Also condemns unequivocally the specific attacks on women journalists and

media workers in relation to their work, such as gender-based discrimination, including

sexual and gender-based violence, threats, intimidation and harassment, online and offline;

3. Strongly condemns the prevailing impunity for attacks and violence against

journalists and expresses grave concern that the vast majority of these crimes go

unpunished, which in turn contributes to the recurrence of these crimes, and calls upon

States to develop and implement strategies for combating impunity for attacks and violence

against journalists, including by using, where appropriate, good practices such as those

identified during the panel discussion held by the Human Rights Council on 11 June 2014

and/or compiled in the report of the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for

Human Rights thereon, 2 inter alia (a) the creation of special investigative units or

independent commissions, (b) the appointment of a specialized prosecutor, and (c) the

adoption of specific protocols and methods of investigation and prosecution;

4. Urges States to ensure accountability through the conduct of impartial,

prompt, thorough, independent and effective investigations into all alleged violence, threats

and attacks against journalists and media workers falling within their jurisdiction, to bring

2 A/HRC/27/35.

perpetrators, including those who command, conspire to commit, aid and abet or cover up

such crimes to justice, and to ensure that victims and their families have access to

appropriate remedies;

5. Urges the immediate and unconditional release of journalists and media

workers who have been arbitrarily arrested or arbitrarily detained, taken hostage or who

have become victims of enforced disappearance;

6. Condemns unequivocally measures in violation of international human rights

law aiming to or that intentionally prevent or disrupt access to or dissemination of

information online and offline, which undermine the work of journalists in informing the

public, including measures to unlawfully or arbitrarily block or take down media websites,

such as denial of service attacks, and calls upon all States to cease and refrain from these

measures, which cause irreparable harm to efforts at building inclusive and peaceful

knowledge societies and democracies;

7. Expresses concern about the spread of disinformation and propaganda,

including on the Internet, which can be designed and implemented so as to mislead, to

violate human rights, including the right to privacy and to freedom of expression, and to

incite violence, hatred, discrimination or hostility, and emphasizes the important

contribution by journalists in countering this trend;

8. Urges political leaders, public officials and/or authorities to refrain from

denigrating, intimidating or threatening the media, including individual journalists, and

thereby undermining trust in the credibility of journalists as well as respect for the

importance of independent journalism;

9. Urges States to do their utmost to prevent violence, intimidation, threats and

attacks against journalists and media workers, including by:

(a) Increasing and accelerating efforts to create and maintain, in law and in

practice, a safe and enabling environment for journalists to perform their work

independently and without undue interference;

(b) Giving full support to and raising public awareness of the importance of an

independent, plural and diverse media, online as well as offline;

(c) Publicly, unequivocally and systematically condemning violence,

intimidation, threats and attacks against journalists and media workers;

(d) Establishing or enhancing information-gathering and monitoring mechanisms,

such as databases, to permit the collecting, analysis and reporting of concrete quantitative

and qualitative disaggregated data on threats, attacks or violence against journalists;

(e) Establishing an early warning and rapid response mechanism to give

journalists and media workers, when threatened, immediate access to authorities competent

and adequately resourced to provide effective protective measures;

(f) Supporting capacity-building, training and awareness-raising in the judiciary

and among law enforcement officers and military and security personnel, as well as among

media organizations, journalists and civil society, regarding States’ international human

rights and international humanitarian law obligations and commitments relating to the

safety of journalists;

(g) Putting in place safe gender-sensitive preventive measures and investigative

procedures in order to encourage women journalists to report offline and online attacks

against them, and providing adequate support, including psychosocial support, to victims

and survivors;

(h) Ensuring better internal coordination and sharing of information, in particular

within and between relevant ministries, law enforcement and the judiciary at the local and

national levels;

(i) Signing and ratifying the international and regional human rights instruments

relevant to the safety of journalists;

(j) Implementing more effectively the applicable legal framework for the

protection of journalists and media workers, relevant resolutions adopted by United Nations

bodies and regional intergovernmental organizations, as well as the recommendations made

by the treaty bodies, the special procedures and in the context of the universal periodic

review relating to the safety of journalists;

(k) Integrating the safety of journalists and media freedom into national

development frameworks under the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development;

10. Also urges States to bring their laws, policies and practices fully into

compliance with their obligations and commitments under international human rights law,

and to review and where necessary repeal or amend them so that they do not limit the

ability of journalists and media workers to perform their work independently and without

undue interference;

11. Calls upon States to ensure that measures to combat terrorism and preserve

national security or public order are in compliance with their obligations under international

law and do not arbitrarily or unduly hinder the work and safety of journalists, including

through arbitrary arrest or detention, or the threat thereof;

12. Also calls upon States to ensure that defamation and libel laws are not

misused, in particular through excessive criminal sanctions, to illegitimately or arbitrarily

censor journalists and interfere with their mission of informing the public, and where

necessary to revise and repeal such laws, in compliance with States’ obligations under

international human rights law;

13. Further calls upon States to protect in law and in practice the confidentiality

of journalists’ sources, including whistle-blowers, in acknowledgement of the essential role

of journalists and those who provide them with information in fostering government

accountability and an inclusive and peaceful society, subject only to limited and clearly

defined exceptions provided for in national legal frameworks, including judicial

authorization, in compliance with States’ obligations under international human rights law;

14. Emphasizes that, in the digital age, encryption and anonymity tools have

become vital for many journalists to exercise freely their work and their enjoyment of

human rights, in particular their rights to freedom of expression and to privacy, including to

secure their communications and to protect the confidentiality of their sources, and in this

regard calls upon States to comply with their obligations under international human rights

law and not to interfere with the use of such technologies, and to refrain from employing

unlawful or arbitrary surveillance techniques, including through hacking;

15. Calls upon States to tackle gender-based discrimination, including sexual and

gender-based violence, threats, intimidation, harassment and incitement to hatred against

women journalists, online and offline, as part of broader efforts to promote and protect the

human rights of women, eliminate gender inequality and tackle gender-based stereotypes in

society;

16. Encourages States and all other relevant stakeholders to take the opportunity

of the proclamation of 2 November as the International Day to End Impunity for Crimes

against Journalists to raise awareness regarding the issue of the safety of journalists and to

launch concrete initiatives in this regard;

17. Emphasizes the important role that media organizations can play in providing

adequate safety, risk awareness, digital security and self-protection training and guidance to

journalists and media workers, in particular for journalists on dangerous assignments,

together with protective equipment and insurances, where necessary;

18. Recognizes the important contribution of the promotion and protection of the

safety of journalists in the realization of target 16.10 of the Sustainable Development Goals,

and calls upon States to strengthen national data collection, analysis and reporting on the

number of verified cases of killing, kidnapping, enforced disappearance, arbitrary detention,

torture and other harmful acts against journalists and associated media personnel, in

accordance with Sustainable Development Goal indicator 16.10.1, and to do their utmost to

make these data available to the relevant entities, in particular the Office of the High

Commissioner and the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization;

19. Stresses the need to ensure better cooperation and coordination at the

international level, including through technical assistance and capacity-building, with

regard to ensuring the safety of journalists, and encourages national, subregional, regional

and international human rights mechanisms and bodies, including the relevant special

procedures of the Human Rights Council, treaty bodies and national human rights

institutions, in the framework of their mandates, to continue to address the relevant aspects

of the safety of journalists in their work;

20. Invites United Nations agencies, funds and programmes, other international

and regional organizations, Member States and all relevant stakeholders, when applicable

and in the scope of their mandates, to cooperate further in promoting awareness of and

implementing the United Nations Plan of Action on the Safety of Journalists and the Issue

of Impunity, and to this end calls upon States to cooperate with relevant United Nations

entities, in particular the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization,

relevant special procedures of the Human Rights Council and international and regional

human rights mechanisms;

21. Invites States to share information on a voluntary basis on the status of

investigations into attacks and violence against journalists, including in response to requests

by the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization through the

mechanism operated by its International Programme for the Development of

Communication;

22. Encourages States to continue to address the issue of the safety of journalists

through the process of the universal periodic review;

23. Decides to continue its consideration of the safety of journalists in

accordance with its programme of work.

39th meeting

27 September 2018

[Adopted without a vote.]