Netherlands: International mission on the safety of Dutch journalists - Article

As part of the Media Freedom Rapid Response (MFRR), Free Press Unlimited (FPU) and the European Center for Press and Media Freedom (ECPMF) are organising an international media freedom mission to the Netherlands. With the mission, the consortium members want to map the decreasing security of journalists in the country, but also highlight the existence of security mechanisms for journalists such as the PersVeilig (Press Safe) established in 2019. The mission will be held at the beginning of 2022

Germany: MFRR expresses concern over rising attacks against journalists covering protests - Article

The undersigned partners of the Media Freedom Rapid Response (MFRR) today express their concern about the increasing number of attacks against journalists across Germany, particularly in the context of anti-vaccine demonstrations. We call for better safety measures and protection as well as thorough investigations of attacks against journalists covering such demonstrations. Moreover, preventative measures are needed to stop such attacks from happening. Finally, we encourage media workers to report press and media freedom violations

Netherlands: MFRR concerned by a Molotov cocktail attack on the home of a journalist - Article

Several Molotov cocktails were thrown through the window of Willem Groeneveld, founder and editor-in-chief of the Groningen city blog Sikkom, last night. MFRR partners express concern over the increase in attacks against Dutch journalists

IPI Podcast: Anti-press sentiment in The Netherlands - Article

Second episode of ‘The Press Freedom Files’ looks into case of Dutch journalist Clarice Gagard and motives behind the growing attacks against the media

Shelter City - Support Centres

Shelter City is a nationwide initiative of Justice and Peace Netherlands to protect human rights defenders, in cooperation with a growing number of Dutch cities and local organizations.

Human rights defenders defend the rights of themselves and of others. Through their work they play an important role in the promotion of democratic values, political freedoms, and civil rights. This is a challenging and dangerous fight: they are often silenced, threatened, arrested, tortured and sometimes they disappear.

Justice and Peace established Shelter City in 2012 on the request of their network of international human rights defenders. After the first Shelter City in The Hague, Middelburg joined in 2014, followed by Nijmegen, Maastricht, Utrecht, and Amsterdam in 2015, Tilburg and Groningen in 2016 and Zwolle and Haarlem in 2017. In 2018 Deventer also joined the Shelter City network. Rotterdam followed in 2020. Tbilisi & Batumi (Georgia), Dar Es Salaam (Tanzania), Cotonou (Benin) and San José (Costa Rica) have joined the network as International Shelter City Hubs. The expectation is that other cities (in or outside the Netherlands) will join in the future as well. The growing number of applications from Human Rights Defenders under threat shows that new Shelter Cities are strongly needed.

In every Shelter City the municipality, local organizations, universities, and Justice and Peace provide the shelter and take care of the program for the human rights defender. Together with the human rights defenders they organize meetings and workshops that contribute to the raising of awareness about human rights issues among the inhabitants of the Shelter Cities.

Shelter City is affiliated with the EU Human Rights Defenders Relocation Platform

Netherlands: Journalists’ safety increasingly under attack - Article

The European Federation of Journalists is concerned by the situation and calls on the authorities to do the utmost to protect journalists and investigate all attacks

Safety of Journalists and the Fighting of Corruption in the EU - Reports

A study commissioned by the European Parliament’s Policy Department for Citizens’ Rights and Constitutional Affairs at the request of the LIBE Committee (Committee on Civil Liberties, Justice and Home Affairs) examines the chilling effect of crimes and threats against media workers, exploring regulatory and other measures to counter the phenomenon

Safety of Journalists: Recommendations to the UK Government - Article

The Media Freedom Rapid Response (MFRR) outlines examples of good practice from across EU Member States and Candidate caountries that can be incorporated into the approach of the UK National Committee and Action Paln for the Safety of Journalists. Here the full text

Press Cartoonists in Europe must be protected - Article

Media Freedom Rapid Response (MFRR) partners call for press cartoonists to be protected to ensure they can realise their right to free expression across Europe

Last Despatches - Monitoring tool

BIRN’s Last Despatches series tells the stories of some of the reporters killed during and after the 1990s war in the Balkans, and highlights how attempts to secure justice for them have not yet succeeded