[ad_1]
Russia has used "disinformation weapons" to spread the Kremlin's version of the events that occurred during the attack on the neurotoxic agent of Salisbury last year, Jeremy Hunt said.
The Foreign Minister used a speech in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, to target personalities like RT, formerly Russia Today, during the retransmission of the Russian state's "official story" on Sergei Skripal's poisoning. of his daughter Yulia.
In a speech on World Press Freedom Day, Hunt defended the benefits of press freedom and warned that the authoritarian model of development is "ultimately flawed".
He said at a conference held Thursday morning at the headquarters of the African Union that to prevent journalists from reporting a problem "did not make it go away," and said the closing of newspapers and the suppression of the media could create problems for the future.
Mr. Hunt, who recently launched a global campaign for the protection of journalists with Amal Clooney, a human rights lawyer, as a special envoy, said he wanted to "shine a spotlight" on the abuses and "drive up the price "for those who kill, arrest or detain journalists. to do their job.
"At the same time, we should not forget the international context. Channels like RT, better known as Russia Today, want their viewers to believe that the truth is relative and that the facts will always match the Kremlin's official narrative. Even when this story keeps changing.
"After the Russian state conducted a chemical attack in the British city of Salisbury last year, the Kremlin has presented more than 40 separate accounts to explain this incident. Their disinformation weapons have tried to spread these stories to the world.
"The best defense against those who deliberately sow lies are independent and trustworthy media outlets."
Mr. Hunt announced support of 15.5 million pounds for the elections in Ethiopia in 2020 to help the National Electoral Council organize a free and fair contest.
He also launched a call for applications for the creation of a new Chevening Africa Media Freedom Scholarship, which will allow 60 African journalists, over the next five years, to gain experience in newsrooms. British.
Ethiopia has climbed 40 places in the World Press Freedom Index faster than any other country after the appointment of Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed last year.
Ninety-nine journalists were killed last year in the world and 348 were locked up, but Mr Hunt said some of the "brightest points" of press freedom are found in Africa, particularly in The Gambia and Namibia.
"Whether it's the editors who publish independent newspapers against all odds, the journalists who brave threats and intimidation, or the bloggers who vigilantly watch over their leaders: all know better than anyone that live and free media provides the best possible guarantee against corruption and bad rules, "he told the conference.
"Today, my argument is simple: the freedom of the media is not a" Western "value, much less a colonial style imposition, but a force of progress that benefits everyone."
Before the speech, Mr. Hunt – who is on a one-week trip to Africa after already seeing him travel to Ghana, Senegal and Nigeria – told reporters, "In the last decade, Russia seems to be very disappointed to be engaged in a foreign policy. their main purpose is to sow confusion and division and to destabilize our democracies.
"They seem particularly fond of doing this through manipulative media, false information, and I'm afraid that Russia Today is part of that effort." And as funny as it was when we had the interview with the suspects of Salisbury, there is actually a much darker objective behind all this.
Hunt declined to say whether RT should be closed, saying it was the responsibility of the Ofcom regulator.
[ad_2]
Source link
