JFO Mission

Journalistic Freedoms Observatory: defends the right to freedom of expression and information, support & facilitate journalists and other media workers’ mission who are imprisoned or persecuted for doing their job, and draws attention to the many cases throughout the world of journalists being harassed or jailed.

JFO also runs campaigns against laws designed to restrict press freedom in Iraq, in addition Providing legal support to journalists in need, a great team of specialists available for that including looking after families of journalists in specific cases, other types of supporting includes the safety electronic tools available online with the Salama partnership.

JFO always works to improve the safety of journalists, especially in war zones, as providing the Safety Gear and escort the foreign correspondents seeking to report in Iraq including facilitating legal residency procedures.

Here in the States

JFO in the USA is a natural progression of JFO’s mission in Iraq; to act as a media watchdog to protect journalists and also to help facilitate the work of both Iraqi and foreign journalists through access to information crucial to their jobs. Without a free press, a country cannot be truly free, and the responsibilities and tasks of Iraqi journalists must be linked to the outside world.  With the creation of the new Iraqi state, despite recent setbacks, Iraq is no longer in isolation from the world as it was before 2003. JFO provides the opportunity to encourage the free press in Iraqi, and hold the Iraqi government accountable to its people.  This accountability is a necessary ingredient to ensure that sectarian strife subsides, a significant cause of the current conflict with the terrorism.  

The creation of JFO in the states, is the obvious first choice for JFO given the history of cooperation between the JFO and the US Embassy in Baghdad and the relationship between the two countries.

This effort is a continuance of the role the United States government played in the development of several aspects of the Iraqi free press in the post-Saddam era after the 2003 invasion.