UK Embassy to lead active crusade on media freedom

FILE: Delighted to sign the @ukinphilippines #Respect pledge. Everyone here will sign it as part of our collective effort to ensure this Embassy is a #GreatPlaceToWork (Photo: @DanielPruce/Twitter)

MANILA — Throughout 2019, the British Embassy in Manila would be leading Britain’s global campaign on media freedom in the Philippines.

“In the coming months, you will see us in the Embassy very active on this issue,” British Ambassador to Manila Daniel Pruce told reporters during a reception at his residence in Makati on Thursday.

“You will see us standing up for media freedom where we see it under threat. You will see us sharing our experience of how free media is an essential element of any genuine democracy,” he added.

Among the activities lined up in 2019 are lectures on media literacy, and events focused on supporting professional journalism and encouraging exchange of views on media regulation.

The envoy said 2018 was one of the “deadliest years ever for journalists,” where at least 348 media workers were detained, and 80 killed, “including six from the Philippines.”

Around the world, Pruce noted that journalists and media organizations are targeted and harassed, “often under the thin veneer of due process.’

He noted that supporting a free media “means countering the incoming tides of disinformation.”

“While it has never been easier to publish and receive information, it has also never been easier to spread lies and conspiracy theories. So the professional standards of courageous, objective, fact-based journalism have never been more important,” Pruce said.

In July, the UK will be hosting an international conference in London, which seeks to gather countries and individuals to mobilize a consensus behind the protection of journalists.