Addis Ababa Declaration adopted by participants at the #WorldPressFreedomDay in Ethiopa

As a conclusion of the 2019 World Press Freedom Day, held at the African Union Headquarters in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, the participants of the event have adopted the Addis Ababa Declaration on press freedom.

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We, the participants at the UNESCO World Press Freedom Day International Conference, held in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, 1-3 May 2019,

Recalling Article 19 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights (UDHR), which states: “Everyone has the right to freedom of opinion and expression; this includes freedom to hold opinions without interference and to seek, receive and impart information and ideas through any media and regardless of frontiers”;

Further recalling Article 21 of the UDHR, which states: “The will of the people shall be the basis of the authority of government; this will shall be expressed in periodic and genuine elections which shall be by universal and equal suffrage and shall be held by secret vote or by equivalent free voting procedures”;

Reaffirming Aspiration 3 of Agenda 2063: The Africa We Want, which envisions “An Africa of good governance, democracy, respect for human rights, justice and the rule of law”;

Further reaffirming that UN Member States are responsible for organising, conducting and ensuring transparent, periodic and genuine electoral processes, and that in the exercise of their sovereignty, Member States should involve all electoral stakeholders including the media throughout all electoral operations;

Cognisant of Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) Target 16.10 which calls on States to “ensure public access to information and protect fundamental freedoms, in accordance with national legislation and international agreements”;

Acknowledging the “Joint Declaration on Freedom of Expression and “Fake News”, Disinformation and Propaganda” adopted by the UN, the OAS, African and OSCE special rapporteurs on freedom of expression in March 2017, that called attention on the use of public statements to denigrate, intimidate and threaten the media, which increases the risk of threats and violence against journalists, undermines public trust and confidence on journalism as a public watchdog, and may mislead the public by blurring the lines between disinformation and media products containing independently verifiable facts;

Reaffirming the fundamental importance of election processes to the integrity of democracy and the fact that both rest upon a free flow of information and ideas, as well as uninterrupted means of communication, as guaranteed by Article 19 of the UDHR;

Recognising that respect of fundamental freedoms, including the right to freedom of expression, including press freedom, is a necessary element to a safe, inclusive and conducive environment for electoral participation;

Reaffirming the central importance of freedom of expression, a free, independent, pluralistic and safe media, and respect for democratic principles, to promoting peace and reconciliation, including in societies suffering from conflict;

Emphasising that informed citizens, who have access to diverse and independent media sources and who benefit from Media and Information Literacy skills, are more likely to feel empowered to exercise their democratic rights and to accept the outcomes of credible, free and fair elections;

Recalling that free, independent and pluralistic journalism – both online and offline – serves an essential role in democracies by strengthening accountability, by facilitating peaceful, credible, inclusive, transparent, free and fair elections, and by ensuring that citizens are informed about issues of public interest, including those being debated in elections;

Convinced that respect for the public’s right to information, the expansion of Media and Information Literacy, and ensuring the safety of journalists, with cognisance of the particular threats to women journalists, and others exercising their right to freedom of expression, are key to addressing current challenges to elections;

Further recognising the tension between, on the one hand, the enormous potential of ICT innovations to deepen and broaden electoral processes and, on the other hand, the increasing threat posed by malicious actors’ efforts to collect and manipulate data – and use social media and social messaging, to interfere with citizens’ capacity to make informed decisions and undermine the fairness of elections;

Concerned about the growing prevalence of disinformation as well as hate speech, which may undermine elections, as well as the challenges in finding appropriate regulatory and other means of addressing such speech while respecting the right to freedom of expression;

Recalling that the State’s responsibility to prevent any advocacy of national, racial or religious hatred that constitutes incitement to discrimination, hostility or violence, as well as the “Rabat Plan of Action on the prohibition of advocacy of national, racial or religious hatred that constitutes incitement to discrimination, hostility or violence” adopted on 5 October 2012.

Now therefore:

Call on each UNESCO Member State, including their Electoral Management Bodies, to:

  • Create, strengthen and/or implement, as agreed in various conventions, an enabling legal and policy framework in line with international standards to guarantee respect for freedom of expression and privacy, to foster a diverse, independent media sector, and to ensure that relevant officials are properly trained so as to abide by that framework in practice;
  • Adopt and/or implement right to information laws and policies and the required mechanisms to give effect to them, as per Sustainable Development Goal 16.10;

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