This statement was originally published on GFMD. Sign the statement and join in advocating for a future where media freedom is safeguarded, journalists are protected, and access to information is upheld as a fundamental right.

The Summit of the Future is a high-level event billed as a “once-in-a-generation” opportunity that seeks to reaffirm existing Member State commitments, including the UN Charter, the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, and the 2030 Agenda, as well as address challenges such as extreme poverty, climate change, and new technologies. The Pact for the Future is the Summit’s primary outcome document, intending to boost the implementation of the Sustainable Development Goals as the roadmap for overcoming crises and securing a better future for all.

GFMD and the undersigned organisations welcome the second revision of the Pact, including its attention to the Sustainable Development Goals as well as strong language on human rights. We particularly applaud the explicit reference to protecting civic space (Action 13); a commitment to protecting journalists and media professionals during armed conflict (Action 14); and the inclusion of respecting the right to freedom of expression while addressing disinformation and misinformation (Action 36).

Given both the severity of challenges facing media and journalists around the world, which in many contexts nears an extinction-level event, and the utmost importance of access to information and freedom of expression in empowering people to address shared needs, we call on the UN and Member States to further strengthen their commitments, in line with Article 19 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights; the General Comment on Article 19: freedoms of opinion and expression; the 1991 Windhoek Declaration; and the 2021 Windhoek+30 Declaration: Information as Public Good, and in fulfilment of target 16.10 of the Sustainable Development Goals and the UN Global Principles for Information Integrity.

As underscored in a joint statement by the Presidents of the UN General Assembly, the General Conference of the UN Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO), the UN Economic and Social Council (ECOSOC), and the UN Human Rights Council on World Press Freedom Day 2024: “the media’s role as a watchdog, and a catalyst for action cannot be overstated.”

“Access to accurate and timely information, enabled by a free, independent, and pluralistic media, stands as a cornerstone for raising public awareness, fostering informed debate and decision-making, countering misinformation and disinformation, and ultimately galvanizing collective action towards the attainment of the Goals, in the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development… As we navigate the final years to achieve the Sustainable Development Goals, we call on Member States and all stakeholders to reaffirm their commitments to the fundamental rights of freedom of expression and access to information.”

We therefore urge the UN and Member States to incorporate the following language into the Pact for the Future:

In the Chapeau include: “We affirm that access to information, freedom of expression and media freedom, including the safety of journalists, the vibrancy and viability of public interest media, and the resilience of a healthy, autonomous information ecosystem, are fundamental for advancing the entirety of the Sustainable Development Goals”.

Under Action 7 add “Promote and protect media freedom and public-interest journalism, as no crisis or challenge – whether health, climate, economic, political, or humanitarian – can be addressed without access to reliable information and information integrity at its core”.

Under Action 18, paragraph 36(h), add “in accordance with the Global Principles for Information Integrity and its emphasis on the role of independent, free and pluralistic media”.

Under Action 24, paragraph 42(b), add “in accordance with international law” so that these measures are not abused to limit civic space.

Under Action 29, paragraph 47(b), add “access to information” before “delivery of public services”.

Under Action 47, paragraph 71, add “including journalists and activists” after “Human rights defenders”.

Incorporating the recommended language above will help ensure that the Pact for the Future reinforces existing commitments on access to information and media freedom and empowers public-interest journalism and resilient information ecosystems to play their vital role in delivering on the promise of a better future for all.

As UN Secretary-General António Guterres highlighted in his message for World Press Freedom Day: “Without press freedom, we won’t have any freedom.  A free press is not a choice, but a necessity.”

Signatories:

1. 2402 Foundation – Ukraine
2. Afghanistan Journalists Center (AFJC) – Afghanistan
3. Africa Freedom of Information Centre – Uganda
4. African Youth Cafe – Kenya
5. Agencia Mural de Jornalismo das Periferias – Brazil
6. Al-Jumhuriya Collective – Syria
7. Annapurna Post – Nepal
8. ARTICLE 19 – Mexico / United Kingdom
9. Asian American Journalists Association (AAJA) – United States
10. Asociación Nacional de Periodistas del Perú – Peru
11. Association for Media Development In South Sudan (AMDISS) – South Sudan
12. Association of Caribbean Media Workers (ACM) – Trinidad and Tobago
13. Bangladesh Center for Media Communications – BCMC – Bangladesh
14. Bangladesh NGOs Network for Radio and Communication – Bangladesh
15. BBC Media Action – United Kingdom
16. Beam Reports – Sudan
17. Belarus in Focus Information Office – Poland
18. Bytes for All – Pakistan
19. Cambodian Center for Human Rights – Cambodia
20. Cambodian Journalists Alliance Association – Cambodia
21. Canal France International (CFI) – France
22. Center for Independent Journalism – Hungary
23. Center for Journalism Studies (CEPER) at Universidad de los Andes – Colombia
24. Centre for Law and Democracy – Canada
25. Centre for Media Freedom – Morocco
26. Centro de Archivos y Acceso a la Información Pública – Uruguay
27. Comité por la Libre Expresión – Honduras
28. Commonwealth Journalists Association – United Kingdom
29. Community Media Network – Jordan
30. Dabanga – Radio TV Online – Netherlands
31. Daily Nawa-I-AhmedPurSharqia – Pakistan
32. Daily Rozan Gujrat – Pakistan
33. Digihub Africa – South Africa
34. Digital Media Foundation – Nepal
35. DW Akademie – Germany
36. European Journalism Centre – Netherlands
37. El Surtidor – Paraguay
38. Fiquem Sabendo – Brazil
39. Fondation Hirondelle – Switzerland
40. Forum on Information and Democracy – France
41. Free Press Unlimited – Netherlands
42. Freedom Forum – Nepal
43. Freedom of Expression Institute – South Africa
44. Freedom of Information center of Armenia – Armenia
45. Fundación para la Libertad de Prensa (FLIP) – Colombia
46. Gambia Press Union (GPU) – Gambia
47. Gender and Media Connect – Zimbabwe
48. GIBS Media Leadership Think Tank – South Africa
49. Global Forum for Media Development (GFMD)
50. Global Media Registry – Germany
51. Global Youth & News Media – France
52. Globe International Center – Mongolia
53. Group Siyabonga Gold – Benin
54. Home News Agency – Kenya
55. Human Rights Network for Journalists – Uganda
56. IFEX – Canada
57. Instituto de Prensa y Libertad de Expresión (IPLEX) – Costa Rica
58. International Center for Journalists – United States
59. International Fund for Public Interest Media (IFPIM) – France
60. International Media Support – Denmark
61. International Press Centre – Nigeria
62. International Press Institute – Austria
63. Internews – United States / United Kingdom
64. Madania news – Sudan
65. Maharat Foundation – Lebanon
66. Media Action Nepal – Nepal
67. Media Association of Puntland (MAP) – Puntland State of Somalia
68. Media Development Investment Fund – United States
69. Media Diversity Institute – United Kingdom
70. Media Foundation for West Africa – Ghana
71. Media Monitoring Africa – South Africa
72. Media Rights Agenda – Nigeria
73. Media Voice – Media and Communication Educational and Research Center – Georgia
74. Mizzima Media – Myanmar
75. Muwatin Media Network – United Kingdom
76. National Union of Journalists of Ukraine – Ukraine
77. New Narratives – United States
78. Palestinian Center for Development and Media Freedoms (MADA) – Palestine
79. Panos Institute Southern Africa – Zambia
80. Press Union of Liberia – Liberia
81. Public Media Alliance (PMA) – United Kingdom
82. Raseef22 – Lebanon
83. Roma Active Albania – Albania
84. R3D: Red en Defensa de los Derechos Digitales – Mexico
85. Radio Espace Guinée – Guinea
86. Reporters Without Borders (RSF) – France
87. Rural Media Network Pakistan – Pakistan
88. SAARC Journalist Forum – South Asia
89. Samir Kassir Foundation – Lebanon
90. SembraMedia – United States
91. Sifter – Ethiopia
92. Somali Media Women Association (SOMWA) – Somalia
93. Somaliland Journalists Association (SOLJA) – Somaliland
94. South East Europe Media Organisation (SEEMO) – Austria
95. Sudan Tribune – Sudan
96. Syrian Center for Media and Freedom of Expression (SCM) – France
97. Wattan Media Network – Palestine
98. WELTFILME – Germany
99. World Association for Christian Communication (WACC) – Canada / United Kingdom