The Diplomat
The Association of Media Editors of the European Union, Latin America and the Caribbean, EditoRed, has published a letter in which it condemns the death of journalists in the war in Gaza and demands respect for freedom of information.
The statement says verbatim: “The Association of Media Editors of the European Union, Latin America and the Caribbean, EditoRed, repudiates the crimes against at least 53 journalists who have died while covering the war unleashed since October 7, 2023 in Gaza, between Israel and Hamas. They are 46 Palestinian, four Israeli and three Lebanese journalists. In addition, 11 journalists have been wounded, three have disappeared and 18 have been arrested. All according to the figures handled by the Committee to Protect Journalists, CPJ.
“At least 53.” Actually, journalists do not like to say “at least”. They like to say precisely the number, to quote the exact statement, to present the statistics, the testimony. They like to show the photographs, the videos, the audios. They like to contrast the official report, to go to the site of the facts to verify what a source has told them. That is what journalism is all about. Because that is what nourishes quality information that allows the population to make decisions and understand the world in which they live.
Certainly, neither the journalist nor anyone else can accurately reflect reality, but reporters search for the truth and in that search they find crucial stories and tell them with the professional objectivity and human empathy inherent to journalistic work that puts people at the center of their daily activity. The more journalists, the more visions and better understanding of reality. Today, however, we can only say “at least 53” to account for the journalists killed in the course of their work in Gaza. But, “at least 53” is the figure provided by a permanent count developed by the Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ), a non-profit organization, which has just presented its most recent report on November 22, 2023.
These are crimes that threaten the right to life of social communicators and the right to freedom of information of the population. A society that does not receive quality information is a manipulable society. Thus, its capacity for analysis and decision making about its destiny and that of its community is limited, which is why democracy itself is at risk.
EditoRed also condemns the death of all the people who have died in the conflict and who now number around 1,200 plus 5,500 wounded in Israel, according to the Israeli authorities, and 12,700 dead and 30,000 wounded on the Palestinian side, according to the Gaza authorities.
We remind the parties to the conflict that the killing of civilians – including journalists – in an armed conflict is considered a war crime within the parameters of Article 8(2)(b) of the Rome Statute. Crimes that can and should be prosecuted and punished by the International Criminal Court.
Article 79 of the Geneva Convention also establishes that: “Journalists in war zones must be treated as civilians and protected as such, provided they do not take part in hostilities”.
Attempting to kill journalists is the most egregious way to impede the right to freedom of information, but not the only way. Restrictions on the entry of media correspondents and special envoys into Gaza, restrictions imposed by the Israeli and Egyptian governments, undermine the possibility of access to direct sources, to on-site verifications. They also promote a wave of disinformation that positions itself in favor or against the parties in conflict, allow the creation of false news that are disseminated without control by propagandistic means, including social network accounts, spaces that take sides with one side or the other, that serve their warlike interests.
Free and independent journalism continues to strive for the best possible information; however, the restrictions and risks of a war that does not discriminate between combatants and civilians make it difficult to present more reliable news.
For all these reasons, EditoRed demands respect for the right to life, to quality information, to the international norms that regulate wars. It advocates for the war in Gaza to come to an end soon and for the population to stop suffering the constant drama they are now experiencing. We welcome the fact that a truce has been reached today, which will benefit, in particular, the release of people held by the parties to the conflict. We hope that this will be the opportunity for information to be freer, allowing journalists to enter the areas where the news events are taking place, guaranteeing them respect for their lives and their right to inform.
Peace can be found in the search for truth”.
