Why safety of journalists is Government's responsibility

Kenyan journalists took to the streets on September 8 to demonstrate against what they called continued and increased harassment, threats, assault and intimidation.

Waving placards and chanting solidarity slogans, the journalists marched through various streets in Nairobi, Nakuru, Murang’a nd Nyeri.

On September 21, they did the same in Mombasa and presented their petitions to various duty bearers.

Since then, journalists have continued to present their case loudly and clearly that indeed, the profession is under siege due to a number of factors.

First, there is lethargy from the State when it comes to resolving reported hostile incidents targeting journalists.

Such incidents include criminal intimidation, stalking, physical harassment, aggressive bullying, physical assaults, death threats and even targeted assassinations that have been on the increase since 2013.

Despite the fact that all this attracts various convictions within the Criminal Procedure Code, they have unfortunately dragged on and in some cases, no convictions have been obtained due to shoddy investigations.

Second, the protests sought to sensitive the public that every attack on a professional journalist is an attack not just against the profession but the fundamental freedoms protected by the Constitution.

Third, the protests directed attention to the Government to take action and ensure that journalists are free and safe to practice without intimidation, coercion or any form of physical threats.

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Fourth and most important, journalists sought to remind the collective Kenyan conscience that the normalization of violence, especially against scribes, ushers in impunity as there will no longer be a watchdog in the form of media.