On the occasion of World Press Freedom Day, the Lebanese Press Syndicate emphasized its commitment to being a platform for defending press freedom and the media message. It also highlighted the necessity of accelerating the enactment of a modern and new media law that guarantees the protection of journalists.
In a statement, the Syndicate said: "On the occasion of World Press Freedom Day and close to the sixth of May, the Day of the Martyrs of the Lebanese Press, the President of the Syndicate and the members of the Syndicate Council extend their salute of pride and appreciation to the martyrs of the word, voice, and image who fell defending Lebanon, its sovereignty, independence, and human freedom, especially the colleagues who either fell as martyrs or were injured while covering the Israeli aggression in Southern Lebanon and the Gaza Strip."
The statement continued: "The Press Syndicate reiterates on these two occasions the importance of preserving media freedom and ensuring the safety of journalists while carrying out their duties, particularly in this period when challenges are intensifying against journalists, newspapers, and media outlets on various levels, especially security, economic, and financial ones. The Syndicate reaffirms its commitment to being a defender of this freedom that is akin to Lebanon and about the message of journalism and its role in shaping public opinion based on responsible freedom and in accordance with the laws that preserve Lebanon as a homeland for letters, colors, and words that unite rather than divide, and build rather than destroy."
The statement concluded: "On these two occasions, the Syndicate Council calls for the urgent enactment of a modern and new media law in Lebanon that guarantees the protection of journalism and journalists from the repercussions that threaten the continuity of their work in all aspects, especially the abuse of laws unjustly, as well as leaving many esteemed journalistic institutions to face their fate alone. There is no homeland without journalism, nor journalism without a homeland, and both have no value without freedom."
