Foreign Minister Abdullah Shahid says it is crucial to protect journalists in the face of increasing threats owing to the COVID-19 pandemic.
He made the comments in a pre-recorded video statement at the Ministerial Roundtable on the Safety of Journalists on the margins of the World Press Freedom Conference 2020. The event, hosted by the Minister of Foreign Affairs of the Netherlands Stef Blok produced an outcome document - The Hague Commitment - that emphasized the need to address the importance of the safety of journalists and media workers.
In his statement, Minister Shahid stressed the pivotal role played by the free press in connecting a diverse and polarised world through continuous discourse. He expressed concern over the repercussions faced by journalists as agents of vibrant and free press, in holding governments accountable and when upholding democratic ideals throughout the world.
Minister Shahid also emphasized the crucial need to protect journalists in the face of increasing threats owing to the COVID-19 pandemic.
He provided an overview of the history of press freedom in the Maldives and noted that the culture of impunity and repression against journalists in the Maldives ended abruptly when President Ibrahim Mohamed Solih assumed office in 2018.
He attributed the progress achieved in the field of press freedom, to the abolition of the Anti-Defamation Act of 2016, the establishment of the Presidential Commission on Murder and Enforced Disappearances, and the re-constitution of the Maldives Broadcasting Commission, among other notable initiatives of this administration.
Minister Shahid further reiterated that freedom of speech and expression is a fundamental human right recognized throughout the course of history.
