Media forums on rights, safety and security of journalists held in Kenya

“Over the last three years, there has been increased cases of intimidation, attacks and threats to journalists in Kenya and this has mainly been exacerbated by powerful actors within government, security agencies and politicians in Kenya. These incidences have significantly undermined press freedom and access to information in Kenya,” says William Oloo Janak, Chairman of the Kenya Correspondence Association (KCA).

It is in this regard that UNESCO provided support to KCA to hold three media forums on rights, safety and security of journalists in Kenya: on 08 July 2016 in Machakos County, on 15 July 2016 in Mombasa County, and on 21 July 2016 in Nakuru County. The forums aimed at sensitizing journalists about their rights and the need for basic safety and security awareness at work, given the increasing patterns of conflicts and threats against journalists in Kenya.

According to a new study report commissioned by UNESCO titled: Supporting Safety of Journalists in Kenya: An assessment based on UNESCO’s Journalist Safety Indicators, more than 60 journalists, seven of them women, were assaulted, attacked, harassed and intimidated in the course of their work last year in Kenya.

As a continued measure to mitigate on the increased threats to the rights, safety and security of journalists in Kenya, Mr Janak indicated that the Kenya Correspondence Association (KCA) would continue to monitor and intervene in cases where any political or other actors threatened journalists. He further cautioned journalists against forging alliances with various competing political camps as this will expose them to a lot of danger, especially in the wake of the forthcoming elections in August 2017.

The forums were attended by 75 journalists working in print and broadcast media from Machakos, Mombasa Nakuru Counties in Kenya. During forums, participants were introduced to the following topics:

• policy and legal measures/instruments governing the media sector;
• emerging challenges faced by journalists in the 21st century; and
• safety and security measures to consider when reporting in volatile and conflict zones and situations during elections.

This activity was organized within the framework of UNESCO’s Main Line of Action to promote an enabling environment for freedom of expression, press freedom and journalistic safety, and to generate knowledge and awareness of freedom of expression and media development in Kenya.