Aali Jah’s Post

Today, on World Press Freedom Day (May 3rd), we celebrate the courageous journalists and media workers who hold the powerful accountable and shed light on the truth. 𝙏𝙤𝙜𝙚𝙩𝙝𝙚𝙧, 𝙬𝙚 𝙘𝙖𝙣 𝙚𝙣𝙨𝙪𝙧𝙚 𝙖 𝙬𝙤𝙧𝙡𝙙 𝙬𝙝𝙚𝙧𝙚 𝙟𝙤𝙪𝙧𝙣𝙖𝙡𝙞𝙨𝙩𝙨 𝙘𝙖𝙣 𝙬𝙤𝙧𝙠 𝙛𝙧𝙚𝙚𝙡𝙮 𝙖𝙣𝙙 𝙨𝙖𝙛𝙚𝙡𝙮. #WorldPressFreedomDay #PressFreedom #Journalism #TruthMatters #StandWithJournalists #AaliJah #ArshadSharif #ImranRiazKhan #AALIMINATI 

On #WorldPressFreedomDay, we resoundingly condemn antidemocratic attacks against free and independent media and call for the immediate release of all media workers unjustly behind bars. Reporters Without Borders reports that over 500 journalists were arbitrarily imprisoned at the end of 2023. Leaders like Vladimir Kara-Murza, truth seekers like Evan Gershkovich, documentarians like Tsi Conrad, anticorruption advocates like José Rubén Zamora, & many others who speak truth to power deserve their freedom. Data from the International Federation of Journalists further shows that 120 media workers were killed in 2023, marking the deadliest year on record for journalists since 1992. 75% of these deaths were a result of the Israel-Hamas war in Gaza. But efforts to silence independent voices go beyond jail cells and battlefields. Foreign agents laws, state capture of public media, and disinformation all take aim at journalists’ democratic duties and have had a chilling effect on press freedom worldwide. #WPFD2024 is a prime opportunity for all of democracy’s advocates to redouble our efforts to create a world where free and independent media can safely report the truth.

Direct attacks on the media by the government are less common in modern democracies. However, legal harassment and accusations, even frivolous ones, are used to drain a media outlet's resources and discourage critical reporting. Additionally, accusations of spreading misinformation, spying, and surveillance are leveraged to intimidate journalists. Moreover, state-sponsored trolls and bots spread disinformation online, attacking journalists and media outlets, and discrediting them by labeling them as "biased" or "foreign agents" to undermine public trust. Nepal is being the latest example of this!

The United States is deeply concerned by reports of recent actions taken by the government of the Kyrgyz Republic against independent media outlets and journalists. These actions contribute to a pattern of government activity that appears aimed at stifling public debate and free expression. We encourage the Kyrgyz authorities to ensure journalists can operate without undue pressure or harassment. A free and independent press is essential for protecting human rights, maintaining effective democratic institutions, and promoting peace and security.

On #WorldPressFreedomDay, we find ourselves at a particularly critical moment: Attacks on press freedom and #CivicSpace continue to threaten our democracy, both at home and abroad. Since 1992, 2186 media workers have paid the ultimate price in direct connection to their work—a sobering reminder of the perils faced by those dedicated to speaking truth to power. Reporters like The Wall Street Journal's Evan Gershkovich, who has faced intimidation, harassment, and unjust detention for simply doing his job as a journalist in #Russia, and Vladimir Kara-Murza, who has survived multiple poisoning attempts and has been imprisoned since April 2022 for speaking out against the war on #Ukraine, symbolize the dangers #journalists confront merely for doing their jobs. The incidents in Russia are not isolated; they echo a broader trend of escalating risks faced by journalists worldwide. In 1961, my father pointedly chose to give his first speech as Attorney General to the American Society of Newspaper Editors. “In a world where peace is our great endeavor and where we are fighting continuously for the good will of all mankind, it is tremendously important the American public get an accurate picture of what is happening,” he said. “And I don’t know of any better way than by newspapers digging into the government, finding out what is going on, and reporting it accurately.” The challenges faced by journalists not only endanger individual reporting but also erode the fundamental right to #FreeSpeech and access to information. Journalism is not a crime, and the relentless attacks on press freedom must end NOW! #ProtectOurJournalists

Today, IFEX marks the fourth anniversary of the fraudulent 2020 presidential election in #Belarus. Since then, the Lukashenka regime has waged an unrelenting assault on the country’s #CivicSpace: • 𝗛𝘂𝗻𝗱𝗿𝗲𝗱𝘀 𝗼𝗳 𝗰𝗶𝘃𝗶𝗹 𝘀𝗼𝗰𝗶𝗲𝘁𝘆 𝗼𝗿𝗴𝗮𝗻𝗶𝘇𝗮𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻𝘀 𝗵𝗮𝘃𝗲 𝗯𝗲𝗲𝗻 𝘀𝗵𝘂𝘁 𝗱𝗼𝘄𝗻, silencing countless voices that had long fought for civil liberties/defended civic space. • 𝗡𝗲𝗮𝗿𝗹𝘆 𝟰𝟬 𝗷𝗼𝘂𝗿𝗻𝗮𝗹𝗶𝘀𝘁𝘀 𝗮𝗿𝗲 𝗰𝘂𝗿𝗿𝗲𝗻𝘁𝗹𝘆 𝗶𝗺𝗽𝗿𝗶𝘀𝗼𝗻𝗲𝗱 𝗳𝗼𝗿 𝘁𝗵𝗲𝗶𝗿 𝘄𝗼𝗿𝗸. The crackdown has now even reached the regime's own propaganda outlets, showing its desperation to control all narratives. • 𝗣𝗼𝗹𝗶𝘁𝗶𝗰𝗮𝗹 𝗽𝗿𝗶𝘀𝗼𝗻𝗲𝗿𝘀 𝗲𝗻𝗱𝘂𝗿𝗲 𝗶𝗻𝗵𝘂𝗺𝗮𝗻𝗲 𝗰𝗼𝗻𝗱𝗶𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻𝘀, with at least 6 having died due to neglect. Letters from these prisoners reveal the brutal reality they face daily. • 𝗘𝘅𝗶𝗹𝗲𝗱 𝗷𝗼𝘂𝗿𝗻𝗮𝗹𝗶𝘀𝘁𝘀 𝗮𝗿𝗲 𝗮𝗹𝘀𝗼 𝘂𝗻𝗱𝗲𝗿 𝘁𝗵𝗿𝗲𝗮𝘁. In June and July alone, Belarusian police reportedly conducted at least 21 raids on the homes of journalists who fled abroad. Our latest 𝘊𝘩𝘳𝘰𝘯𝘰𝘭𝘰𝘨𝘺 𝘰𝘧 𝘙𝘦𝘱𝘳𝘦𝘴𝘴𝘪𝘰𝘯 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘙𝘦𝘴𝘪𝘴𝘵𝘢𝘯𝘤𝘦 𝘪𝘯 𝘉𝘦𝘭𝘢𝘳𝘶𝘴 provides a detailed account of these worrying trends and more. We also spoke with the 𝗕𝗲𝗹𝗮𝗿𝘂𝘀 𝗔𝘀𝘀𝗼𝗰𝗶𝗮𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻 𝗼𝗳 𝗝𝗼𝘂𝗿𝗻𝗮𝗹𝗶𝘀𝘁𝘀 (𝗕𝗔𝗝), who offered crucial insights into the ongoing challenges faced by Belarusian journalists and civil society and the critical efforts needed to defend press freedom in such a repressive environment. 👉 𝗥𝗲𝗮𝗱 𝗼𝘂𝗿 𝗺𝗼𝗻𝘁𝗵𝗹𝘆 𝗰𝗵𝗿𝗼𝗻𝗼𝗹𝗼𝗴𝘆: https://lnkd.in/eH7syj-v 👉 𝗥𝗲𝗮𝗱 𝗼𝘂𝗿 𝗤&𝗔 𝘄𝗶𝘁𝗵 𝗕𝗔𝗝: https://lnkd.in/dv9XZVkD Standing in solidarity with the fight for an open civic space in Belarus is more crucial than ever. Support journalists and political prisoners by joining the campaign and following BAJ’s efforts. #BecauseTheJournalist: https://lnkd.in/ewBs58D9 #СвабодуЖурналістам

PLEASE read and share. There a reason why Israel doesn’t allow journalists into Gaza, and assassinats any that are already inside. Our government is helping Israel commit a genocide that has now killed over 12,000 Palestinian children in under 5 months, has orphaned over 25,000 more children, & has made over 900,000 children homeless during winter. And Israel is still blocking aid to these children, killing them with starvation, dehydration, & disease, in addition to U.S. supplied bombs. I also cry for the 36 innocent Israeli children killed on October 7th, but this horrible conflict did NOT start on that day. The proof is the nearly 2300 Palestinian children Israeli soldiers & settlers killed between the year 2000 & October 2023, including 43 children during the 9 months just before October 7th (all names & details documented on BTselem.org). Israel has also imposed a brutal 57 year occupation/apartheid on Palestinians, as well as a brutal blockade of Gaza since 2005. Both are illegal under international law, immoral, and ongoing acts of war. And what would you do if someone stole your house & livelihood, killed some of your family, & left the rest of you with nothing to live in the squalor of a refugee camp, where your children were still not safe from Israeli bombs, bullets, and boots? Because that is what Israel did to over 750,000 Palestinians in 1948, over 300,000 in 1967, & over 250,000 since then, & more every year. Most of the families in Gaza owned homes & farms where Israeli cities & towns now stand, which Israel literally stole from them. Many still even have the keys to their homes, & some homes still stand with Jewish immigrants living in them today. Palestinians have been trying to protest peacefully for decades, but when they do, Israeli soldiers shoot them in the knees, kill them, or at least imprison & beat them. If you don't believe it, please google this 2020 Haaretz article titled: '42 Knees in One Day': Israeli Snipers Open Up About Shooting Gaza Protesters. It describes how IDF snipers would shoot many peaceful protesters in the kneecaps and ankles to cripple them, while shooting and killing many others, including journalists and medics. PLEASE WRITE & CALL YOUR REPRESENTATIVES & the White House to demand they stop helping Israel kill & starve children, commit war crimes, & maintain its brutal & racist apartheid, with our tax dollars. And if you still believe that this indiscriminate cruelty by Israel is the only way it can beat Hamas & ensure its security, please read this article that explains the much more effective way that it has been ignoring: https://lnkd.in/gY98T9mc And if you still believe that Israel has offered Palestinians many generous peace deals that they keep rejecting, please read this article: https://lnkd.in/g2_EV6dV

The P@lest!n!an Journalists’ Syndicate reports that Israel has claimed the lives of over 100 P@lest!n!an journalists in G@ z@ in less than 100 days. This shocking toll surpasses the number of journalists killed during the entire six-year duration of World War II, which saw 69 journalists lose their lives. The data suggests that, on average, Israel has been responsible for more than one P@lest!n!an journalist’s death each day for over three months. The victims, undeterred by personal losses inflicted by I5r@el, continued to report on the dire situation in their communities. Despite facing the loss of loved ones, city-wide starvation, and the reduction of their neighborhoods to rubble, these journalists aimed to shed light on the horrors I5r@el was imposing on their communities, hoping that global awareness would prompt intervention. Read More: https://lnkd.in/dVdTt5YG #MediaFreedom #JournalistCasualties #HumanRights #PressFreedom #StopTheViolence #EndTheOccupation #WorldWarIIComparison #JournalismHeroes #JusticeForJournalists #ProtectJournalists #MediaUnderFire #HumanitarianCrisis #FreePress #StopMediaTargeting #WarCrimes #EndTheSilence

Attacks on press freedom around the world are intensifying, index reveals In the past year, in virtually every region, journalists and independent media outlets faced increasing repression #freepress #pressfreedom #WorldPressFreedomDay