Qatari Minister Underlines Qatar's Respect of Freedom of Journalism

Doha, January 22 (QNA) -HE Qatar's Minister of Justice, Hassan Abdullah Al Ghanim underlined on Sunday the importance of the conference on the protection of journalists in risky areas and praised the efforts of the National Human Rights Committee (NHRC) in Qatar which is hosting the meeting. Following the inauguration of the conference, the minister expressed the hope that the conference would produce recommendations for protecting journalists many of whom have been killed while on missions. He noted that Qatar is in the process of issuing a law on information, noting that restrictions on the entry of foreign newspapers into the country had been lifted years ago. He also underlined that there are no restrictions on the dissemination of information in the country. The conference on the protection of journalists in risky areas was opened earlier in the day at Ritz Carlton Doha. Around 100 participants from different media organizations across the globe are taking part. The conference is discussing unifying efforts in reaching a consensus to develop an international mechanism and standards to protect journalists in countries having internal unrest and military conflict, as well as the situation of journalists across the world that are exposed to risk areas. Increasing the journalists capability in safety standards will be another crucial issue that is being discussed. (QNA)