Editorial

Freedom is tenuous and relative. Press freedom is often a reflection of the society within which it exists. Yet does the profusion of media indicate that a society is more free than a society that relies on outsiders for news about what is going on within its borders?

Last Friday journalists around the globe celebrated World Press Freedom Day. Here in Malta we had the BPC Award to Journalists (see below) and on Friday morning President Guido de Marco met officials of The Malta Press Club. It is an clear indication of how strong the respect for press (for which read media) freedom is in the highest institution in the land.

On the international scene, Reporters without Frontiers (RSF) in its 2002 report on Freedom of the Press throughout the World said that with the exception of reporters killed, all the figures increased sharply in 2001: 489 journalists were arrested (up 50 per cent); 716 were threatened and attacked (up 40 per cent); and there were 378 incidents of censorship (up 28 per cent).

"More and more journalists went to jail for denouncing embezzlement, criticising officials or simply expressing concern of any kind - in other words, for doing their job, which was enough for even the most cautious journalist to be sued for harming the reputation of a leader or even national morale," RSF said. "The number of journalists in prison at the end of 2001 was 110, compared with 74 a year earlier, an increase of almost 50 per cent."

The New York-based Committee to Protect Journalists marked World Press Freedom Day by naming the world`s ten worst places to be a journalist: the West Bank, Colombia, Afghanistan, Eritrea, Belarus, Burma, Zimbabwe, Iran, Kyrgystan and Cuba.

Top of the list in the places where the dangers and restrictions journalists face represent the full range of current threats to press freedom is the West Bank where Israel has used extraordinary force to keep journalists away from the areas the have witnessed military incursions - and prevent coverage in the absence of their physical presence. All factions in the civil conflict in Colombia, the worst in the Western hemisphere, have targeted the media and dangers persist in Afghanistan, where eight journalists were killed in the line of duty in late 2001.

Although press freedom in Malta is rock solid in comparison, we too have seen `darker` days, so there is no room for complacency. We must look to improving educational opportunities for journalists, creating better conditions for which journalists to work through the strengthening of the individual media and journalists themselves must play their part to act with the dignity that their position in society imposes on them. The media is changing but the principle of press freedom is immutable and has to be fought for every working day.

Truly deserved Gold Award

From these columns we associate ourselves with great pride with the sentiments of the judging panel of the 2002 journalism lifetime Gold Award presented to former Editor of The Sunday Times, Anthony G. Montanaro, KM, last week, during the BPC Award to Journalists. If there is a tradition which the Allied Newspapers Limited have prided themselves on throughout their history from their earliest years in 1935, it is the quality of their journalists.

Mr Montanaro has throughout his long and distinguished career provided clear-minded leadership, consistency and an unfailing ability to focus on the issues that were of value to the national interest - even though some administrations may have thought otherwise. Our congratulations also go to the finalists and the other award winners: Herman Grech and Darrin J. Zammit Lupi, both of Allied Newspapers, who won the Print Journalism and Press Photography categories respectively; Reno Bugeja of TVM, who won the Broadcast Journalism category; and Sandro Micallef/John Busuttil of Net TV for the Sports Journalism category.