Dec 06, 2008 04:30 AM
Kathy English
Within every great journalist I know beats the heart of a passionate
idealist who lives to tell stories that make a difference.
Whether reporting from the streets of Toronto or the corridors of
political power, the best journalists are driven by a need to know and
the need to communicate what they learn. Indeed, the best can be
unstoppable in the face of obstacles.
Of course, the obstacles that Canadian journalists face are relatively
insignificant compared to the conditions that journalists in other
countries face. In Canada, journalists don't expect to be jailed for
reporting the news. In Canada journalists don't expect to be killed for
doing their jobs.
In our Canadian democracy, freedom of expression is a right enjoyed by
citizens and journalists alike. And while journalists here implicitly
understand this Charter right, it's fair to say we take this freedom for
granted.
I'm reminded of this each year when the International Press Freedom
Awards are announced by the Canadian Journalists for Free Expression, an
association committed to preserving free expression and media freedom in
Canada.
This year's awards, which recognize "the strength and bravery of foreign
journalists who overcome obstacles in order to deliver the news" and
"outstanding commitment to freedom of expression" will be presented
Monday night at a gala gathering in Toronto. Underscoring the
celebratory tone of the evening are dire facts that should give pause to
all journalists: So far in 2008, an estimated 76 journalists have been
killed around the world and another 58 were kidnapped or imprisoned.
The countries in which global journalists are imprisoned include, not
surprisingly, Afghanistan, Iraq, China, Cuba, Eritrea, Burma and
numerous other authoritarian nations. Of most significance to me was the
inclusion last year of the United States for the imprisonment at
Guantanamo Bay of Al Jazeera reporter Sami al-Haj, one of this year's
CJFE honourees.
Al-Haj was released from Guantanamo last May after being held for six
years as an "enemy combatant." He was never formally charged or brought
to trial for any crime after being apprehended in 2001 while on
assignment for Al Jazeera covering the aftermath of the Taliban's flight
from Kandahar.
During his imprisonment, U.S. authorities tried to convince al-Haj to
become an informant against Al Jazeera, offering him freedom and a U.S.
passport in exchange for information. He refused and went on a hunger
strike for a year before his release. His commitment to journalism
somehow survived all this – al-Haj is now based in Sudan covering human
rights and civil liberties for Al Jazeera.
This year's second foreign honouree is Shakeman Mugari, a Zimbabwean
journalist with the Zimbabwe Independent and stringer for the Globe and
Mail who has risked his life by openly criticizing his country's corrupt
government and its human rights violations. Mugari is strongly committed
to the power of journalism to make a difference to the people of his
country even though his financially ailing newspaper can no longer pay
him. "I believe most journalists still working in Zimbabwe are doing it
for the love of it and not for a salary," Mugari said in an interview
published online last month.
The third honouree this year is the Hamilton Spectator's Jim Poling, a
passionate, idealistic journalist who will receive a new CJFE award for
a Canadian who has shown outstanding commitment to the principles of
free expression. Poling, the Spec's managing editor/news, is being
honoured for his role in creating an internship program for
foreign-trained journalists now living in Canada. He is also chair of
the advisory committee of Sheridan College's unique Canadian Journalism
for Internationally Trained Writers program.
Both initiatives seek to broaden diversity within Canadian newsrooms and
provide job and training opportunities to foreign journalists who come
to Canada seeking the right to freedom of expression this country offers.
Many of those journalists have fled countries in which freedom to tell
stories does not exist. They truly understand the concept of freedom of
the press, says Poling. "They've learned it through beatings and
bullets," he says. "I've heard many stories from internationally trained
journalists who have been hurt, detained and sanctioned for being
truth-tellers."
In an ideal world, telling truths would never result in imprisonment or
death of journalists – or citizens. Until that's so, we rightly honour
these fearless journalists and the important stories they tell.
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