DUJ Memo to MPs Urges Raising Issues Related to Precarious Situation of Journalists, Press Freedom

New Delhi: Amid attacks on press freedom, intimidation and killing of journalists and poor showing of India in the World Press Freedom Index, the Delhi Union of Journalists (DUJ) has submitted a memorandum to all Members of Parliament requesting them to raise issue concerning the media and mediapersons during the ongoing Monsoon Session of  the House.

Among other demands, the memorandum urges MPs to take up the issue of some of the Acts related to working journalists that need to be strengthened and include those from the electronic and digital media.

“These Acts were the last resort for a journalist to fight the pressures from the management, the corporate advertisers or autocratic governments,” the DUJ said in a press statement.”

The journalists’ union also called for a “law to protect journalists from arbitrary arrests and malicious prosecution is the need of the hour. Journalists cannot be treated as terrorists.

Its other demands include that The Digital Personal Data Protection (DPDP) Act, 2023 should be amended to uphold freedom of expression and freedom of press, early setting up of a common Media Council for print, electronic and digital media, with representatives from the media, media unions and independent public persons, setting up of a Media Commission, repeal of the four Labour Codes, and proper risk insurance cover for media workers and their equipment as well as a decent pension scheme.

Read the full DUJ statement below:

Delhi Union of Journalists Memorandum to MPs in the Monsoon Session of Parliament

Dear Madam/ Sir, 

We, the Delhi Union of Journalists (DUJ), wish you a very happy Independence Day. We are celebrating Independence Day at a time when the global economic, social and political situations are witnessing a churning. More than 60,000 people, including thousands of children, were killed in Palestine. A number of journalists from various media houses were also targeted and killed by the Zionist forces. Gaza is witnessing deaths due to malnutrition and impoverishment. The situation in Russia and Ukraine is not peaceful. 

Our country also cannot stay away from this churning. We had to witness one of the worst terrorist attacks in Pahalgam. The tariff imposed by the United States Administration will further create problems for our workers, farmers and MSMEs. The trade unions held a one-day strike in July against the four Labour Codes. The Monsoon session of Parliament is being held in this background. 

As one of the oldest trade union and professional union of journalists in the country, we request you to take up the issues of journalism and journalists in Parliament. So far, no discussion has been held in this session on the precarious situation of journalists and the attack against freedom of press. 

Through this memorandum, we request you to kindly consider raising the following issues that impact press freedom in Parliament or bring it to the attention of Government. The Working Journalists and other Newspaper Employees (Conditions of Service) and Miscellaneous Provisions Act of 1955 (known as Working Journalists Act) and the Working Journalists (Fixation of rates of wages) Act of 1958 were a result of the struggles of journalists, who were also freedom fighters, to ensure press freedom in the country. But now these Acts have been merged into Labour Codes. The government, ignoring our demand that these Acts must be strengthened to include journalists from electronic and digital media, repealed both the laws, cutting down our rights. These Acts were the last resort for a journalist to fight the pressures from the management, the corporate advertisers or autocratic governments.

 It has been 15 years since the Centre accepted the recommendations of the Majithia Wage Board, which was the last Wage Board for journalists and press workers. The Centre has not shown any willingness to constitute another Wage Board and this is impacting the lives of many journalists and workers.

 The country’s ranking in the Freedom of Press Index has consistently declined during the last 11 years. Several journalists had to serve jail terms. Since 2010, as many as 15 journalists and two media managers have been charged under UAPA, some are still behind bars. 

 Journalists have been retrenched by managements under pressure from their corporate funders. Traditional family owned newspapers and media houses too are forced to bow before the pressure from the market or the governments.

 Twenty two journalists’ unions and clubs representing journalists across the country had raised concerns about the provisions of the Digital Personal Data Protection (DPDP) Act, 2023. We had submitted a detailed memorandum to the Government but this Act has not been amended to address our concerns. This Act directly attacks the journalists’ fundamental right to work granted by Article 19 (1) (a) and (g) of the Constitution and will also curtail freedom of expression. We request your intervention to raise the matter in Parliament. 

 We request you to consider raising the following issues in Parliament and also bring these to the notice of the government:

 1. A law to protect journalists from arbitrary arrests and malicious prosecution is the need of the hour. Journalists cannot be treated as terrorists.

 2. The Digital Personal Data Protection (DPDP) Act, 2023 should be amended to uphold freedom of expression and freedom of press.

 3. Early setting up of a common Media Council for print, electronic and digital media, with representatives from the media, media unions and independent public persons.

 4. Setting up of a Media Commission to study the entire media like the First and Second Press Commissions and to recommend remedial measures, in view of sweeping changes since the onset of imperialist globalisation and the deplorable condition of journalists and non-journalists in media establishments. This Commission should have the powers to hear the labour issues of journalists as well.

 5. Putting responsible checks on cross-media ownership.

 6. Immediate steps to help the growth of national language news and feature agencies through a National Newspaper and Feature Agencies Development Corporation.

 7. Repeal the four Labour Codes. Restore previous pro-labour legislations. Restore the two Working Journalists Acts with a simple amendment to include broadcast and digital media.

 8. Implement the last Wage Board recommendations as per the historic Supreme Court ruling of February 7th, 2014. Set up fast track courts with time bound implementation in view of pendency of cases. Constitute a new Wage Board at the earliest. Interim relief is overdue.

 9. Proper Risk Insurance cover for media workers and their equipment as well as a decent Pension Scheme. Currently, the contributory pension that journalists get is a pittance, seldom more than a couple of thousand rupees.

 10. Ensure a one-year package to the premier national news agency United News of India to help sustain regular payment of long delayed salaries and payments to retrenched employees including their gratuity and other dues. Some of them are in critical condition. The once virtually self reliant UNI Urdu news service is barely surviving, amidst celebrations of 200 years of the Urdu press. Attempts to discriminate against another premier national news agency, the PTI, must stop.

 11. Given the increasing tendency of media companies to outsource work, provisions need to be made for freelance journalists, stringers and consultants, to ensure that payments by media companies are both timely and adequate. The number of such media workers is growing by the day but there are no proper legal provisions for their welfare and social security.

 We appeal once again to raise your voice to save journalism and the journalists and co-workers for a  better tomorrow and to save freedom of the press from being turned into freedom of the purse and  definitely saved from the ignominy of the word : ‘Godi Media’ be it any form of the media while independent press and the media continued to be battered and bruised. This is an appeal to save all forms of media from print digital to electronic.

 Sincerely,

 Sujata Madhok              S.K.Pande               A.M.Jigeesh

President                     Vice President        General Secretary