Dutch journalists, through their editors-in-chief and together with the Dutch Association of Journalists and Free Press Unlimited, are calling for political action to protect Palestinian journalists. They are doing so in a letter that will be presented to outgoing Minister Caspar Veldkamp (Foreign Affairs) on Wednesday.
Palestinian journalists have to do their work under extreme circumstances, the letter states.
Since October 2023, according to the Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ), at least 184 journalists and media workers have been killed. It is the deadliest period ever for journalists. “Our colleagues in the occupied Palestinian Territories are paying an indescribably high price for practicing their profession,” the letter reads.
In addition, foreign media are denied access to Gaza, and the work of international and local journalists is systematically obstructed.
“Access to reliable information is a human right. Journalists ensure the documentation of war crimes and human rights violations with which those in power can be held accountable. It makes the safety of Palestinian journalists vital. They are the eyes and ears of the world,” the organizations write, speaking of a serious and systematic violation of international law.
In addition to action for the protection of journalists in Gaza and the West Bank and the access of international journalists to the areas, Minister Veldkamp is also called upon in the letter to conduct an independent investigation into the deaths of Palestinian journalists.
Organizations previously called attention to the situation
Previously, the Society of Editors-in-Chief, the NVJ and the European Federation of Journalists, on behalf of sixty journalistic organizations and human rights organizations, already called attention to these violations of press freedom and the safety of journalists by Israel.
The letter to Veldkamp is signed by, among others, the editors-in-chief and journalists of NU.nl, Trouw, RTL Nieuws, NOS, AD, de Volkskrant, De Correspondent, Vrij Nederland and ANP.