GUWAHATI, Nov 21 � The Journalists� Union of Assam (JUA), an affiliate of International Federation of Journalists (IFJ) and Assam State Committee of Association of Small and Medium Newspaper of India (ASMNI), an association of the small and medium newspaper publishers of the Northeast, would observe November 23, as a �Day of Action Against Impunity.�
This global event is an opportunity to denounce the prevailing culture of impunity for crime committed against journalists in many countries of the world, and to demand strict and immediate action to end such practice.
�It is an occasion to remember journalists from the Philippines who were killed on this day three years back in the Maguindanao massacre, and to make a statement against the reign of impunity that prevails elsewhere, including in India,� a statement from the JUA mentioned.
On the occasion of International Day to End Impunity, declared by the International Freedom of Expression Exchange (IFEX), all those journalists who lost their lives while seeking the truth and whose cases still remained unresolved are remembered
�So far, 23 journalists have been killed in Assam since 1989. The investigative agencies and the authorities have failed to nab the culprits associated with the murders of these 23 journalists. In July 2009, the sole person to go to trial for the murder of Parag Kumar Das, executive editor of Asomiya Pratidin in 1996, was acquitted of all charges, with the trial court judge reserving special words of censure in his final judgment for the slipshod approach of the investigative agencies,� the statement added.
To observe the occasion, a meeting would be held in Guwahati on November 23, where a joint declaration against impunity and safety of journalists would be made. The organizers have appealed to the journalists and others who are concerned with safety of journalists and freedom of media to attend the meeting.
Chandan Goswami, Head of Dept of Journalism, GU and Ananta Kalita, a columnist will be speaking on the occasion.