New charter on journalist working conditions adopted: IFJ

A new journalism ethical charter has been adopted on Friday during the 30th International Federation of Journalists congress in Tunis.

The charter jointly adopted by the IFJ, 187 trade unions and over 600,000 journalists, is targeted at sharpening reporting skills on contemporary issues.

According to the IFJ General Secretary, Anthony Bellanger, accelerating the flow of information raises ‘‘ethical and content issues’‘ which must be addressed.

The new document includes professional duties established in 1954, but it also includes rights, in a world where journalists’ rights are being abused.

Article 3 emphasizes that “the journalist will only report facts of which he/she knows the origin” and “will be careful in the use of comments and documents published on social media”.

An attempt to clamp down on the emerging fake news on social media.

At the congress, which is the first to be held on the African continent, issues of good working conditions and encouraging journalists’ salaries were also raised.

The General Secretary also encouraged healthy social dialogue in organizations’s as that promotes productive outcomes.

The IFJ, is an organisation that today boasts of over 600,000 members from more than 180 affiliated unions in 140 countries