Shireen Abu Akleh
During his opening of the symposium organized by the Faculty of Mass Communication in celebration of the World Press Freedom Day, the President of Yarmouk University, Professor Islam Massad, announced that the university presidency has submitted a proposal to the university’s board of trustees to start the procedures for allocating a scholarship in the name of Shireen Abu Akleh, in an attempt to perpetuate her memory, sincerity, and dedication to her work, extending the university’s condolences to the martyr's family, the Palestinian people, and the entire media and journalism family. Massad then said that the World Press Day is to emphasize the need to respect freedom of press and its ethics and to provide a free and safe media environment for journalists, which enables them to practice their work professionally and in compliance with the values and standards of journalism. He also stressed the need to provide a legislative system that guarantees the freedom of press and publication.
In his turn, the Dean of the Faculty of Mass Communication, Dr. Tahseen Mansour, said that celebrating the World Press Freedom Day in the third of May is to consolidate the outcomes, hard work, and perseverance of journalists around the world. Mansour then stressed that Yarmouk Faculty of Media is striving for development through establishing short and long-term partnerships with various institutions and bodies, which contributes to developing and advancing the Faculty’s progress and prosperity.
The head of the journalism Department, Dr. Esmat Haddad, said that the Palestinian Arab martyr, Shireen Abu Akleh, departed with her heart beating for her family and the people of Palestine and that she decided, after more than a quarter of a century of media work, to document the end of her journalistic journey with her blood and sacrifice herself for the sake of Palestine. He also explained that freedom has always been the goal of mankind and that there is no creativity without freedom, stressing that freedom increases in value and rises in status when combined with the press.
the General Director of Jordan News Agency – Petra, Mr. Fayek Hijazin representing the Minister of State for Information Affairs said that the martyrdom of journalist Shireen Abu Akleh opens the way for more research in the field of press freedom, pointing out that Israel did not assassinate the martyr, but assassinated the whole truth that Israel always tries to conceal, stressing that many countries around the world use the media to blurring and distorting facts. He indicated that today's media in Jordan and the Arab World faces many financial and content-based problems, which requires reformulating the media policy and working to establish the necessary measures to control what is published on social media platforms.
For his part, the head of the Parliamentary National Orientation, Media, and Culture Committee, Mr. Yasar Khasawneh called on the students of the Faculty to make use of the many resources and experiences offered by the Faculty staff to get what it takes to be a weapon against injustice, emphasizing that the martyrdom of Shireen Abu Akleh reflects the nobility of her career.
The President of the Jordanian Journalists Syndicate, Mr. Rakan Al-Saaida, said that the celebration of the World Press Freedom Day for this year is mixed with sadness and anger over the martyrdom of Shireen Abu Akleh, pointing out that the World Press Freedom Day acknowledges three main foundations: free press, independent press, and pluralistic journalism. He also said that the World Press Freedom Forum is to remind governments of the importance of protecting journalists and the right of expression and providing appropriate environments for their work.
