World’s Press Calls on the United Kingdom to Address Press Freedom Concerns

(WAN IFRA, 2019)

Challenges in Brazil, Mexico, Mozambique, Rwanda, Tanzania, Venezuela and Nicaragua

• The Board called on the new leaders and their respective administrations in Brazil and Mexico to take urgent, resolute action to end the cycle of violence that continues to target journalism and make decisive steps in prioritising the safety and security of journalists
• In Mozambique, the Board condemned a spate of arbitrary arrests and attacks on independent media, notably a systematic campaign by the authorities to muzzle the press by limiting the ability of local and foreign journalists to report on the insurgency in the coastal province of Cabo Delgado.
• In Rwanda, the Board denounced the government’s stifling of critical voices through a combination of brazen and covert tactics of censorship.
• In Tanzania, the Board denounced a systematic campaign by the government to attack and intimidate the press as a means of preventing critical and opposition voices, as well as controlling information available to the Tanzanian public.
• In Venezuela and Nicaragua, the Board called for the authorities to end the cycle of censorship that targets journalism in both countries and commit to guaranteeing the free-flow of information to citizens.