The undersigned organisations address Brazilian society to express their deep indignation and sadness at the confirmation of the deaths of indigenous expert Bruno Araújo Pereira and British journalist Dom Phillips, in the Javari Valley, State of Amazonas, and whose bodies are currently under expert analysis.
Members and partners of the Global Forum for Media Development, of which WAN-IFRA is part, have launched a declaration at the International Journalism Festival in Perugia in solidarity with media and journalists in Ukraine. The declaration has already been signed by over 60 organisations.
September 2021 in the Americas: A free expression round up produced by IFEX's Regional Editor Paula Martins, based on IFEX member reports and news from the region.
In Brazil, a push for pluralism
“Awareness of the profound relationship between the health of the people and the right to information materialized the need to advocate for democracy.”
The political and public health crises Brazilians faced in 2020 have made journalism stronger. Public agents’ erratic and irresponsible management of efforts against the spread of the coronavirus helped the press claim its role as a key player in defense of people’s lives. When it became clear that trustworthy information was a matter of life and death, journalism guaranteed access to data that governments could not manage or would not publicize. Awareness of the profound relationship between the health of the people and the right to information materialized the need to advocate for democracy. That need reaffirmed the importance of journalism even when under attack by the federal executive power and parts of society.