Dear friends,
All too often in recent years, pessimism has overtaken those who believe in a free and independent press. And yet, although our campaigns require considerable effort and are not immediately crowned with success, in this year 2024 we have won victories for the freedom to inform and to be informed.
I am thinking in particular of these heroes of information who have been freed and were among our priority cases:
- congolese journalist Stanis Bujakera who was released after six months of arbitrary detention and who thanked RSF with this sentence: ‘I left prison thanks to your efforts’.
- Our years of campaigning for Julian Assange's release culminated in June. He was facing up to 175 years in prison for the publication of leaked classified military and diplomatic documents by WikiLeaks in 2010. It was our argument, centred on his contribution to journalism, that eventually prevailed in the public debate and legal wrangling.
- Ihsane El Kadi, the courageous Algerian press owner, founder and director of the independent media Maghreb Émergent and Radio M, was released from prison this autumn and only a few days ago told us of his determination to continue his work.
I could also mention the Russian-American journalist Alsu Kurmasheva, who, after a campaign by RSF, was included in the vast exchange of prisoners with the Russian Federation this summer; the Burundian journalist Floriane Irangabiye, who, thanks to RSF's advocacy, was freed after serving two years in prison for ‘undermining the integrity of national territory’; or the Gazan Ali al-Attar, cameraman for Al-Jazeera, who was able to be evacuated after RSF appealed to the Israeli authorities.
We could never have achieved these victories without your support. It is your donations that make it possible for Reporters Without Borders to carry out its daily work in support of press freedom and the defence of journalists. That's why I would be very grateful if you could renew your commitment to us today by making a donation.
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