UNESCO - United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization

06/04/2021 | Press release | Distributed by Public on 06/04/2021 07:17

Media Support Desk for legal aid for journalists launched in Cambodia

The Media Support Desk, a new mechanism to provide support to journalists, was launched by the Cambodian Center for Independent Media (CCIM) with the support of the Global Media Defence Fund(link is external), which is administered by UNESCO and funded by the United Kingdom among other countries.

The new mechanism will strengthen coordination among other organizations providing legal-aid services to improve their response and ensure that those who need assistance can access it. The project implemented by CCIM will also advocate for a national mechanism for legal protection of journalists and persons involved in reporting public interest information.

CCIM's media support desk was presented in an online meeting held on 2 June and attended by reporters and citizen journalists from across the country, lawyers, legal-aid organizations, and the UN. The Director of CCIM, Pa Ngoun Teang said that 'journalists need further protection as many of them are practicing self-censorship due to the fear for reprisals for their reporting', referencing a recent report produced by his organization.

At the online event, UNESCO Representative to Cambodia Mr. Sardar Umar Alam congratulated CCIM for their initiative, which was selected by UNESCO through a competitive process in which 110 proposals from 50 countries were reviewed, and 40 projects got funding for their implementation. Mr. Alam explained that the GMDF is a UNESCO Multi-Partner Trust Fund established in 2020 within the framework of the Global Campaign for Media Freedom and under the overall umbrella of the UN Plan of Action on the Safety of Journalists and the Issue of Impunity. The project will further complement the legal aid provided by human rights organizations and government entities to journalists and media professionals.

The fund has been established with initial funding from the United Kingdom. The British Ambassador in Cambodia said that 'The UK strongly believes in freedom of expression as an essential part of achieving good governance, democracy and prosperity. In Cambodia, the British Embassy is actively engaging and supporting independent media and journalists to enhance media freedom in the country'.

Administered by UNESCO, the Fund is a responsive and effective mechanism to support not-for-profit organizations working on the ground at the local, regional, and international level in the undertaking or upscaling of projects that bolster journalists' legal protection and/or enhance media freedom through investigative journalism or strategic litigation. The Fund is set to be implemented over 5 years (2019-2024), with annual or biannual competitive calls for partnerships around the world open to relevant stakeholders willing to undertake or upscale local, regional, and/or global initiatives that contribute to the objective of the funds.