International Day to End Impunity for Crimes against Journalists

November 2, by decision of the UN (resolution (A/RES/68/163), marks the International Day to End Impunity for Crimes against Journalists, and this event is long overdue Unfortunately, the specificity of this profession is such that it is associated with a certain risk, including including at the risk of lifeThis day can hardly be called a classic “professional holiday”, rather, it is a day of remembrance for the fallen reporters and journalists who fulfilled their professional duty in hot spots of the world and beyond This day was first held in 2013, and the basis for establishing the date was a tragic event Two French journalists were covering yet another military confrontation on the African continent (Mali), but on November 2 they were kidnapped by militants and killed, which came as a shock to all humanity This event also attracted attention because the helplessness of justice, including international organizations, became obvious In many cases, killers of reporters and media representatives remain unpunished Sometimes this is simply impossible to do for objective reasons, since media representatives die in hot spots where the work of law enforcement agencies is difficult or even impossible But this does not mean that injuries, injuries and even deaths of reporters can be considered just “costs of the profession” Everything should be aimed at identifying and punishing those responsible, as well as providing the journalists themselves with the safest possible working conditions There is not a single country in the world where there are no people who gave their lives covering certain political, military, and social events There were many such victims in the Soviet Union and Russia It can be stated with confidence that as long as such a profession exists, there will be a risk of people dying in the performance of their official duties Over the past few years, according to official data, more than a thousand reporters and media representatives have died around the world But in reality this figure is much higher Statistics also show that only 10% of the perpetrators were found and sentenced And almost 90% of such cases went unpunished As we know, impunity breeds violence In many hot spots, representatives of the press are a priori considered enemies, although they are not active participants in the conflicts The psychology of those in conflict is such that they direct their aggression even at unarmed people The international community calls not only to do everything possible to ensure that media representatives have the opportunity to work unhindered, but also to actively punish the perpetrators, bring them to justice, and impose harsh, fair sentences Traditionally, on this day it is customary to remember dead journalists and discuss pressing issues related to the problems associated with covering events in the world Charitable organizations often time their events to coincide with this date Thus, financial assistance is provided to the families of deceased journalists and their children This shows that society has not forgotten the value of their contributions to the profession Forums and round tables are organized where pressing issues are discussed Related topics are often raised, for example, strict censorship, lack of freedom of speech, criminal prosecution of journalists for “wrong” coverage of events, threats of physical harm to their families Such unjustified cruelty forces media representatives and bloggers to leave the country, since their professional activities under conditions of a total dictatorship are simply impossible Similar cases occur in any country, so the date of November 2 can be safely called international, relating to the entire world community, and not to any individual state