» SubscribeMain section
-
Top story
IFEX handbook on free expression campaigns
IFEX is a network of 64 non-governmental organisations that monitors free expression violations worldwide and facilitates information sharing and campaigning among its members.
2/5/05: Toronto - The International Freedom of Expression eXchange (IFEX) has launched a new publication aimed at equipping human rights activists around the world with essential tools to campaign more effectively for freedom of expression and press freedom."Campaigning for Free Expression: A Handbook for Advocates" is a 120-page manual that provides a toolbox of tips, best practice case studies and resources for campaigning. The manual showcases a variety of campaign tools, including investigative missions, coalition-building, legal advocacy and Internet-based actions, such as blogging, e-mail protest letters and SMS text messaging. It also gives activists important tools for mounting campaign strategies and doing power analyses of their local situations.
"This handbook gives us vivid examples of how a variety of campaign techniques have been used to persuade governments to act in less repressive ways," says Luckson Chipare, IFEX Convenor and Regional Director of the Media Institute of Southern Africa.
"By doing skilful, tactical and strategic campaigning, free expression advocates can maximise their resources to become even more powerful agents of change," he adds.
With threats to journalists, writers, Internet users and human rights activists on the rise in many countries, the need for more concerted campaigning on free expression issues is increasingly urgent.
"Governments and other forces are employing more sophisticated methods to restrict freedom of expression," says Chipare.
Criminal defamation laws are being used to hinder proper scrutiny of the activities of public officials, business leaders and others. Internet censorship is spreading worldwide as governments find new ways of limiting citizens' expression and access to information on the World Wide Web.
And since September 11, 2001, many countries have passed sweeping anti-terrorism
laws that infringe on human rights.Former Greenpeace campaign director and founder of Selene consultancy Mats Abrahamsson says, "I hope that free expression campaigners will read this book and learn from their colleagues' mistakes and successes. But most of all I hope that it will inspire people to be creative in their campaigning,and to never give up the fight."
The IFEX handbook will be featured at UNESCO's World Press Freedom Day conference in Dakar, Senegal, from 1-3 May 2005.
The IFEX handbook can be downloaded from the IFEX website here:
http://www.ifex.org/download/en/IFEXCampaignHandbook.pdfFor further information, contact the IFEX Clearing House, 489 College Street, Suite 403, Toronto, Ontario M6G 1A5 Canada, tel: +1 416 515 9622,
fax: +1 416 515 7879, e-mail: campaigns@ifex.org
Internet: http://www.ifex.org
Last modified: Monday, May 2, 2005
Previous free speech & censorship stories
A message from the McLibel two
Using FoI
Freedom At Last?
Congratulations
Lobbying, FoI and News International
-
Notices
Events & Announcements
World Press Freedom Day
More reporters are currently imprisoned in Turkey than in any other country in the world. Only a matter of weeks ago lawyers failed to persuade a Turkish court to release a 76-year-old journalist from a Turkish internet news station.
World Press Freedom Day on Friday May 3, 2013 is being marked in Britain by a rally to highlight the dangers facing journalists in Turkey and in this podcast, Nicholas Jones speaks to Barry White, Organiser at the Campaign for Press and Broadcasting Freedom, and Sam Bamford, the TUC's policy officer for Eastern Europe and Africa about the importance of a campaign to highlight international press freedom.
The World Press Freedom Day rally is being staged by the National Union of Journalists at the NUJ head office, Gray’s Inn Road, London WC1 on Thursday May 2, 6pm-8pm.
DATELINE: 27/4/13
UK launch of EU media campaign
DATELINE: 13/3/13
The UK launch of a 'European Citizens' Initiative' calling for EU rules against concentration of media power will take place on Thursday March 21 from 11:00am – 12:30pm in Committee Room 4A at the House of Lords, London. Guest speakers will include actor and activist Hugh Grant (pictured), media consultant Claire Enders, Professor Steven Barnett, Barry McCall (President of the NUJ) and Marc Gruber (Director of the European Federation of Journalists).
A European Citizens' Initiative is an official petition, like a Downing Street petition. If it succeeds in gathering a million signatures across the EU, the Commission is obliged to respond.
This petition calls for the EU to act to protect media pluralism and press freedom.
CPBF Annual General Meeting
DATELINE: 1/3/13
Make a note in your diary
Saturday 13 July 2013 from 10.00am
NUJ HQ, 308/312 Gray's Inn Road, London WC1.
Leveson, media ownership, CPBF future work.
DOWNLOAD FREEPRESS NOW
DATELINE: 26/3/10
Download Freepress in PDF, ePub or mobi format. Issue 194 now available.
MEDIA FOR ALL CONFERENCE
DATELINE: 26/3/10
Papers from the Media for All Conference
MEDIA MANIFESTO
DATELINE: 26/3/10
The media’s job is to inform and entertain us but we rely on them too to tell us what our rulers and representatives are up to. In the run-up to the Iraq war the government used spin and disinformation in the media to create panic and mislead people. The truth is coming out now, but we need stronger, more independent media to be able to scrutinise governments and make informed choices.
-
Previous stories
Free Speech & Censorship
A message from the McLibel two
Using FoI
Freedom At Last?
Congratulations
Lobbying, FoI and News International
