Declaration of the Rights and Duties of the Journalists adopted by AIPA

Declaration of the Rights of Journalists

Full respect by journalists of the duties articulated above requires that they enjoy, at the minimum, the following rights:
1) Free access to all sources of information and the right to investigate without impediment anything that is in the public interest. Public or private confidentiality can only be invoked against the journalist in exceptional circumstances and with the provision of clearly-defined reasons.
2) The right not to act in any way nor express any opinion that is contrary to professional rules or personal conscience. As a result, journalists should not suffer any prejudice.
3) The right to refuse any directive or interference that is contrary to the general policy of the organisation with which he/ she is collaborating. This policy must be communicated in writing top a journalist before he/she is hired. It cannot be modified or revoked unilaterally under pain of breach of contract.
4) The right to transparency as to the ownership of the company for which the journalist works. The right of a member of an editorial team to be informed in time, and to be heard before, any decision that affects the future of the company. In particular, members of the editorial staff must be informed and heard before final decisions determining the composition or organisation of the editorial department.
5) The right to adequate and continuous professional training.
6) The right to benefit from working conditions guaranteed by a fair agreement, including the right to be active in professional organisations without suffering discrimination and guaranteeing moral security.

Declaration of the Duties of Journalists

The journalist who gathers, selects, edits, interprets and com-ments on information is ruled by general principles of fairness in his/her honest treatment of sources (the people with whom he/she is talking) and the public. The journalist's duties are:
1) To seek out the truth, in the interests of the public's right to know, whatever the consequences to him/herself.
2) To defend freedom of information, freedom of commentary and criticism, and the independence and dignity of the journ¬a-l¬istic profession.
3) Not to publish information, documents, images or sound recordings whose origin is unknown to the journalist. Not to suppress information or any essential elements of a story. Not to misrepresent any text, document, image or sound recording, nor people's expressed opinions. If information is unconfirmed to clearly say so. To indicate when photographic and/or sound material has been combined to make a montage.
4) Not to use dishonest methods to obtain information, recordings, images or documents. Not to manipulate them, or have them manipulated by a third party with a view to falsifi-cation. To avoid plagiarism by not passing off the work or ideas of others as one's own.
5) To rectify any published information that is revealed to be factually incorrect.
6) To respect professional secrecy and not reveal the source of any information obtained in confidence.
7) To respect peoples' privacy insofar as the public interest does not demand otherwise. To disregard anonymous or unfounded accusations.
8) So as to respect human dignity, the journalist must avoid any allusion by text, image or sound to a person's ethnic or national origin, religion, gender, sexual orientation as well as to any illness or physical or mental handicap that could be discriminatory in character. The reporting of war, acts of terrorism, accidents and catastrophes by means of text, image and sound should respect the victims' suffering and the feelings of their loved ones.
9) Not to accept any advantage nor any promise that could limit his or her professional independence or expression of opinion.
10) To avoid as journalists any form of commercial advertising; and never to accept conditions laid down by advertisers directly or indirectly.
11) To take journalistic directives only from designated editorial superiors; and to respect those directives only when they are not contrary to this declaration.

Journalists, if worthy of this title, will accept as their duty a strict adherence to the principles of this decla¬ra¬tion. While recognizing the laws of each country, they only accept in professional matters the judgement of their colleagues, the Press Council or similar, legitimate organizations determining professional ethics. Thereby, they reject any interference by the State or any other authority.

By signing this, I attest that I will always observe a journalist's duties.
I have learned the journalist's right and understand them, and will regularly consult the instructions relating to the "Declaration of the duties and rights of the Journalist" issued by the AIPA.

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Please print and send a scanned copy to info@aipa-press.org, after filled it with your name and surname, place and date and signature.