Threat to African journalists addressed

The Federation of African Journalists (FAJ), together with journalism unions and associations across the continent, have called on the AU to make the immediate cessation of targeted hostilities against journalists a top priority in order to ensure the safe practice of journalism in Africa under the AU’s campaign on ‘Silencing the Guns: Creating Conducive Conditions for Africa’s Development’. Reacting to the decision of the AU’s Peace and Security Council to endorse the call by the AU Commission chairperson Moussa Faki Mahamat to put an end to conflicts and the cessation of all hostilities in the continent, the organisations stressed that it is also a clarion call against the killing of journalists with impunity. FAJ President Sadiq Ahmed said ‘this is a powerful statement from representative voices of journalists across the continent about the consistent hostilities against journalists. Our message is simple and clear: if we want to silence the guns and end hostilities, we must first start by ending the unwarranted attacks against journalists and media workers'.