The alarm bell regarding her begging journalism “In whole or in part” in more than 130 countries, reports the non-governmental organization Reporters Without Borders (RSF).
«The practice of journalism, the “main vaccine against misinformation”, is being hampered, as the health crisis has been added – either for real reasons or as a pretext – to serious obstacles in any attempt to cover the news.“Emphasizes the organization as broadcast by the Athens News Agency.
According to the annual world ranking of freedom of press published by the NGO on Tuesday (20/4), in 73% of the 180 countries evaluated, situations are recorded as “very serious”, “difficult” or “problematic” for the exercise of the profession.
Although the countries shown in black, red or orange on the world map have remained more or less the same compared to last year, only in 12 countries out of 180, or at 7%, compared to 8% in 2020, the situation is characterized as “good ». This “white zone” has “never” been so “reduced” in size since 2013, RSF emphasizes.
Besides the pandemic of the new coronavirus gave “opportunity” to states whose leaders sought to “restrict the freedom of the press” to proceed with the implementation of their plans, underlined to the French Agency Christophe Delouard, the general secretary of the NGO.
It has exacerbated repression in countries where journalism was already being silenced, such as Saudi Arabia (170th) or Syria (173rd, +1), according to the RSF.
The pandemic caused a “huge” block on “access”, both in the field and to sources for journalists, which was “partly legitimate”, as the reason is “health protection measures”, but in other cases unfair. In both cases, “the question is: will access be restored?”
The situation is even more worrying because journalism is the main breakwater of “rapidly spreading misinformation across borders”, spreading “through online platforms and social networking sites”, sometimes fueled by governments.
Decrees “against fake news”
Zaich Bolsonaro, president of Brazil (111th, -4) and Nicolas Maduro, president of Venezuela (148th, -1) “advertised treatments whose effectiveness has never been proven by the medical world,” the NGO said.
In Iran (174th, -1), authorities “multiplied the sentences of journalists” to downgrade “the number of deaths due” to COVID-19. Egypt (166th) “banned the publication of numbers for the pandemic other than those published by the Ministry of Health”.
In Malaysia, which is experiencing the most dramatic drop in rankings (119th, -18), a “decree against false news” was recently adopted, giving the government “the right to impose its own version of the truth.”
And in Hungary (92nd, -3) where Victor Orb τοn’s regime has been embraced “uncomplicatedly”, with the characteristic comfort of suppressing freedom of the press, information on the new coronavirus is “blocked” especially by emergency legislation , in force since March 2020, which criminalizes the “diaspora fake news».
At the bottom of the ranking are still China (177th), Turkmenistan (178th, +1), North Korea (179th, +1) and Eritrea (180th, -2).
At the top of the table, Norway retains the first place, for the fifth consecutive year, ahead of Finland and Sweden, which took third place from Denmark (4th, -1).
Brazil in the “red”
Germany’s exit (13th, -2nd) from the white zone is remarkable, as dozens of journalists were attacked “by protesters close to extremist and conspiracy movements during rallies against restrictive measures to protect public health.”
Europe remains the safest region, but attacks and abuses have increased, especially in France (34th) during protests against the draft law on “universal security”, in Italy (41st), in Poland (64th). –2), in Greece (70th, –5), in Serbia (93rd) and in Bulgaria (112nd, –1).
On the other side of the Atlantic, the situation remains “rather good” in the US (44th, +1), although the last year of Donald Trump’s term was marked by a record number of attacks (almost 400) and arrests (130) against journalists. ».
The red zone now includes Brazil, where “insults, stigmatization and the orchestration of public humiliation of journalists” have become a “trademark of the president” of the country, the far right Zaich Bolsonaro.
Russia (150th, -1) continues to be part of it, where the authorities try to “limit the coverage” of “demonstrations connected with the opposition Alexei Navalny”.
After all, although it remains the continent that is described as “the most violent” for journalists, Africa has recorded some cases of improvement or calm, especially in Burundi (147th, +13), Sierra Leone (75th, +10) and Mali (99o, +9), according to RSF.
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