This week, the Justice for Journalists Foundation awarded a hefty grant to a still unnamed journalist to carry out an investigation into the murder of journalist Daphne Caruana Galizia.
The grant was announced on the occasion of this week’s World Press Freedom Day, and this is the first year in which JFJ will distribute grants of up to $80,000 to professional and citizen journalists who conduct investigations into violent crimes against media workers.
Among a raft of accepted pitches was one entitled ‘17 Black, dirty money and the killing of Daphne Caruana Galizia’. A grant of up to $80,000 has been awarded to a still unnamed individual for the project.
JFJ said it will also extend its support to Reporters Without Borders for its long-term campaign against the impunity of those involved in the murder of Daphne Caruana Galizia.
JFJ’s co-founders – Mikhail Khodorkovsky and Leonid Nevzlin – said: “In these times of increasing pressure against independent opinions, it is crucially important to support professional and citizen journalism, especially when it opposes authoritarian governments.
“Justice for Journalists Foundation gives media workers a chance to pursue their investigations with our financial and safety support. We hope it becomes a vital tool in strengthening press freedom and fighting against impunity all over the world.”
The Caruana Galizia investigation is one of nine projects selected for funding.
The Justice for Journalists Foundation is a London-based, non-governmental organisation for the international investigation of crimes against the media. It funds journalistic investigations into violent crimes against media workers and raises risk awareness and preparedness among professional and citizen journalists.
Malta has failed to hold those responsible accountable - UN
Also on World Press Freedom Day, which was marked on Friday, the United Nations Special Rapporteur on Freedom of Opinion and Expression, David Kaye, remarked that: “To date, Malta has failed to hold accountable those responsible for the assassination of Daphne Caruana Galizia.
“The past year has highlighted just how much insecure governments – those that fear the truth – ‘shoot the messenger’ rather than grapple with the message.
Saudi Arabia’s murder of Jamal Khashogghi has resulted in virtual impunity for those who conceived, planned, and carried it out. The Philippines continues to harass Maria Ressa and Rappler, the independent news outlet she founded and leads. Myanmar has forced two Reuters reporters, Wa Lone and Kyaw Soe Oo, to pay with their freedom for their investigative reporting that uncovered evidence of military complicity in the killings and ethnic cleansing of Rohingya. Dozens of journalists (if not more) remain behind bars in Turkey, and basic rights to seek, receive and impart information hardly exist in China.
“To date, Malta has failed to hold accountable those responsible for the assassination of Daphne Caruana Galizia, and the crisis of threat and impunity remains critical in Mexico. Sadly, this is representative only, for many other dire situations could be identified.
“In this environment of threat, we continue to hear politicians, so fearful of criticism and investigation, denigrate the press as enemies. We see governments shutting down the internet and blocking online media to protect themselves from the sunlight of reporting.
“We read of investigations and prosecutions of journalists and their sources for blowing the whistle or exposing wrongdoing. We learn of government surveillance of journalists across borders. We observe waves of disinformation, including in broadcast media, and the struggle of social media companies to deal with it – and yet also the proposal and adoption of legislation to fight ‘fake news’ but which is, in fact, designed to limit criticism.”