On May 3rd: World Press Freedom Day.
May 3rd was proclaimed World Press Freedom Day by the United Nations General Assembly in 1993. Every year, this date is an opportunity to recall the fundamental principles of press freedom, assess press freedom around the world, defend media independence, and pay tribute to journalists who have lost their lives in the exercise of their profession.
What is the origin of World Press Freedom Day?
World Press Freedom Day is celebrated on May 3, the day of the adoption of the Windhoek Declaration. This global day celebrates its 30th anniversary in 2023.
This day was proclaimed "World Press Freedom Day" by the United Nations General Assembly in December 1993, following the recommendation adopted by UNESCO in 1991 during the Seminar for the Development of an Independent and Pluralistic African Press in Windhoek, Namibia.
This seminar led to the adoption of the Windhoek Declaration on the promotion of independent and pluralistic media.
Note: Although World Press Freedom Day has been celebrated since 1993, this right is already included in Article 19 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights of 1948: "Everyone has the right to freedom of opinion and expression; this right includes freedom to hold opinions without interference and to seek, receive and impart information and ideas through any media and regardless of frontiers."
Why celebrate a World Press Freedom Day?
Every May 3rd, World Press Freedom Day is an opportunity to:
• inform citizens about attacks on press freedom (censorship and violence against journalists, editors, and publishers)
• support media that are subject to restrictions or whose freedom of expression is silenced
• evaluate the state of press freedom worldwide
• remind states to respect their commitments to press freedom
• encourage and develop initiatives in favor of press freedom
• pay tribute to journalists who have lost their lives in the course of their profession.
It is the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) that coordinates the program for May 3rd each year.
Note: To defend freedom of expression and press freedom around the world, UNESCO has also established a consultative group on press freedom consisting of media professionals from around the world and created the UNESCO/Guillermo Cano World Press Freedom Prize in 1997.
Edition 2023 translates to "2023 Edition" in English.
World Press Freedom Day celebrates its 30th anniversary on May 3, 2023. This event is particularly important this year and has the theme: "Shaping an environment for freedom: Media freedom as a cornerstone of human rights."
The 30th anniversary of the proclamation of this day by the United Nations General Assembly will be an opportunity to take stock of the global progress made by UNESCO and its partners in terms of press freedom, but also to examine the new threats facing the journalism profession in the digital age.
In France, the association Reporters Without Borders or RSF will unveil its traditional World Press Freedom Index on that day, which is the reference for the conditions of journalism in 180 countries or territories.
The ceremony for the awarding of the UNESCO/Guillermo Cano World Press Freedom Prize is scheduled for the evening before, on May 2. Created in 1997, this prize rewards a person, organization or institution that has made a notable contribution to the defense and/or promotion of press freedom.
