THE International Press Institute (IPI) Executive Board, including Nobel Peace Prize laureate Maria Ressa, has declared supports for journalists around the world over what it described as an unprecedented global assault on press freedom.
In a joint statement released on Thursday, April 10, the IPI board expressed solidarity with journalists and media professionals facing growing threats, harassment, and censorship around the world.
The statement came as the institute celebrates its 75th anniversary.
Comprising leading editors, journalists, and publishers from 21 countries, the board said the role of the media in safeguarding democracy and holding the powerful accountable is more critical than ever, especially amid rising authoritarianism and global instability.
“We are in an unprecedented moment of geopolitical instability and change. Authoritarianism is on the rise and the institutions of free society — including the rule of law and fundamental human rights principles — are under tremendous strain. At this moment, the work that journalists and media do is more critical than ever.
“IPI was founded 75 years ago, also at a time of great global uncertainty and division, in the aftermath of the Second World War and as the Cold War loomed. IPI was founded on the belief that freedom of the press and quality, fact-based journalism helps build a better, freer, and more peaceful world,” the statement said.
The board further reaffirmed IPI’s founding mission of defending press freedom and supporting journalists wherever their rights are threatened.
The board stated that for over seven decades, the IPI has stood with journalists reporting from war zones, confronting dictatorship, and resisting censorship in some of the world’s most hostile environments.
“We have stood with journalists seeking to report the truth from behind the Iron Curtain, with those fighting censorship in apartheid-era South Africa, with reporters braving dictatorships in all corners of the globe, and with those risking their lives to document the truth in wars past and present.
“Throughout these decades, IPI has remained steadfast to its mission of defending press freedom and the rights of journalists wherever they are threatened,” the statement added.
The board commended journalists who continue to work in difficult environments despite efforts by governments and powerful interests to discredit, intimidate, or silence them.
They also pledged continued support for journalists under threat and called on democratic governments, institutions, and civil society to stand firm in defending press freedom.
In Nigeria, concerns over press freedom have escalated in recent years. Journalists have faced arrests, physical assaults, and threats over their reporting, particularly on issues involving security agencies, corruption, and human rights violations.
Laws such as the Cybercrimes Act have been wrongly used to clamp down on dissenting voices, including journalists.
The 2024 data by Reporters Without Borders (RSF) placed Nigeria as one of West Africa’s most dangerous and difficult countries for journalists.
By this, Nigeria ranks 112th out of 180 countries where journalists are regularly monitored, attacked and arbitrarily arrested.
In 2020, The ICIR reported that 160 journalists were attacked in two years, as the country was ranked 115th out of 180 countries on the Global Press Freedom Index.
Also, The ICIR reported that 63 journalists and three media houses experienced various attacks in 2022. According to The ICIR findings, at least 39 Nigerian journalists were harassed across the country by state and non-state actors in 2023.
Mustapha Usman is an investigative journalist with the International Centre for Investigative Reporting. You can easily reach him via: musman@icirnigeria.com. He tweets @UsmanMustapha_M