The Committee to Protect Journalists has joined Social Justice Connection and other
press freedom and human rights groups in calling on the World
Bank to adopt a human rights policy at its annual spring meeting in Washington
D.C.
In a letter to the president of World Bank, Jim Yong Kim, the groups urged the bank to consider
human rights and freedom of expression in the drafting of its social protection
policy, which is due to be completed this summer.
CPJ has documented the importance of press freedom
for development and Social Justice Connection has examined World Bank lending to
what it has identified as the top 10 countries that censor and harass the media.
The letter comes amid growing recognition of the importance that
access to information and press freedom play in development.
Last year, the UN’s Sustainable Development Goals included a target related to public access
to information and fundamental freedoms.
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CPJ is an independent, nonprofit organization that works to safeguard press freedom worldwide.
Media contact:
Samantha Libby
Advocacy Officer
Tel. +1 212-300-9007
E-mail: slibby@cpj.org
Ashley Parent
Communications Associate
