UN Human Rights Council 50: UK statement on Freedom of Expression
The UK's Human Rights Ambassador, Rita French, delivered a statement during the Interactive Dialogue with the Special Rapporteur on Freedom of Expression .
Thank you Mr President.
We welcome the Special Rapporteur’s latest report.
Independent media is essential to a functioning society, but the media faces unprecedented threats. We pay tribute to journalists who risk their lives reporting in war zones and on frontlines. We are concerned about closures of news outlets and we condemn laws enacted in Russia that make it an offence to report on the war in Ukraine as well as measures which create a total information blackout that severely restricts media freedom in the country.
The UK is taking action to defend the role of independent media at home and abroad. Together with Canada, we established the Media Freedom Coalition in 2019, which has now grown to include over 50 countries and which advocates globally for media freedom and the safety of journalists. Like other Coalition members, we are also committed to improving the environment for media at home. In 2021, we launched a National Action Plan for the Safety of Journalists and we are also considering reforms to tackle the chilling effect on freedom of expression resulting from ‘Strategic Lawsuits Against Public Participation’.
Special Rapporteur,
What more can states do to defend independent media online and offline?