Stop restrictions on media access, Editor's guild tells government

Kenya Editor's Guild President Zubeidah Kananu making her remarks. [Courtesy Twitter] The Kenya Editor's Guild has called on the government against what it said is 'a deliberate move' to control what the public should know. Through its president Zubeidah Kananu, the guild said it has noted concerns about increasing attempts by both state and non-state actors to impose restrictions on what information journalists can access. Kananu spoke today during the World Press Freedom Day themed 'Shaping the Future of Rights - Freedom of Expression as a driver for all other human rights'. Kananu said these attempts are largely affecting the connection between the rights of citizens to freely consume media content, and the rights of journalists to freely access information and make it available for public consumption. "There are deliberate attempts to stop the media from pursuing certain stories. The latest instance in Kenya is the recent decision by the government to deny journalists access to the horror scene in Shakahola village in the Coast region, where more than 100 bodies have been exhumed in suspected cult deaths," she said. According to her, the Bill of Rights in the Constitution of Kenya is explicit on the entrenched right of the media to operate without hindrance, along with rights to freedom of expression and the right to receive and impart information granted to all in Kenya. On media sustainability, Kananu said a majority of the newsrooms are facing serious revenue challenges, some bordering on the extreme. "Unfortunately, journalists are taking the brunt of this unfortunate situation, which has seen salaries delayed for months. There is a need to find new regulatory levers to encourage innovation, and beat off the exportation of advertising revenue while serving the public interest," she said. She said apart from the glaring financial challenges, many journalists have endured threats both physically and in the digital space as they carry out their work in the public interest. She said in the past year, scores of journalists have been injured while going about their duties perpetrated by both state and non-state actors. "We call for an immediate stop to these violations. Journalists must be allowed to exercise their constitutional right to do their professional work," she said adding, "We remain vigilant, well aware that the enemies of media freedom are not asleep and are determined to interfere with this fundamental freedom." Kananu said interfering with this important freedom means interfering with other freedoms that are key to the survival of Kenya as a nation, as a democracy built on the rule of law, respect for human rights, and freedom of expression. Her sentiments were echoed by Interior CS Kithure Kindiki who said although freedom of the media is the cornerstone of credible democracy around the World, it is badly threatened by the serious rise of fake news, deliberate disinformation, and clear hate speech. Kindiki said in modern society, one is more likely to land on made-up stories largely on social media and online platforms as opposed to truthful information as was before. "This threat attacks the crust of press freedom by turning upside down the media currency thus leaving us with a thin line between facts and fiction, destroys science and promotes conspiracy and negative imagination. This represents a threat to our general security and therefore we take it very seriously," he said. The CS further said Kenyan media has faced increased disruption from the effects of Covid-19 which ravaged global economies and led to loss of lives and livelihoods. According to him, journalists from across the country lost their jobs, with the media companies downsizing their human capital and even slashing their earnings. "Most of these media companies are yet to reinstate the contractual obligations that existed before the Covid pandemic. It is pretentious of us to expect independent media and unbiased information from reporters when journalists go for months without pay and others cannot sustain themselves because the pay is too little," he said. He said there must be an urgent review of the payment terms of journalists for them to get some remuneration commensurate with their day's work and today's cost of living. Kindiki said the financial independence of an individual journalist is equal to the overall independence of the media and thus media freedom that we are celebrating today. The CS said his department will continue protecting journalists to do their job online and offline and punish those who threaten the safety of reporters in their line of work. He however said the increasing number of quacks penetrating the media space for their own reasons has led to cases of extortion making it difficult for security officers to offer protection. "The media through self-regulation and accreditation by relevant agencies including the Media Council of Kenya must safeguard this space by ensuring the upsurge in numbers of people masquerading as journalists commonly called quacks is stemmed. To this end, our security agencies will work with the media players to help protect the freedom and integrity of the media," he said.

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