Opportunities in Exile

ECPMF is committed to solidarity with persecuted, threatened, and exiled journalists and media workers and supports them according to their individual needs. With this project, we want to expand our offers for journalists in exile with the primary goal of enabling long-term professional future opportunities and social participation. 

Project Activities

Media professionals worldwide are under pressure due to the deteriorating situation of press and media freedom. ECPMF provides practical and legal assistance as well as temporary shelter to journalists and media workers who are located in Europe, supporting their ability to continue working in the face of threats, harassment, and/or intimidation related to their journalistic activities. 

 

Because of the increasing threats against individual journalists, many of them are being forced to flee their countries of origin. Our project “Opportunities in Exile” provides individually adaptable support measures for journalists who are threatened or persecuted because of their work and has a specific focus on media professionals who are in exile in Germany.

 

The project consists of the following main activities: 

1. Individual support for journalists and media workers in exile in Germany

This individual support includes offers for exiled media workers in Germany which can be adapted depending on the situation and needs. The journalists get access to professional training, internships, language courses, legal advice, psychosocial support, equipment and networks. ECPMF provides the necessary funding and contacts to enable the journalists to shape their lives and professional pathways in Germany as independently as possible.

 

Read more here.

2. Temporary relocation: ECPMF’s Journalists-in-Residence Programme

Activity 2 includes part of our Journalists-in-Residence (JiR) programme, which offers temporary relocation for media workers who are particularly at risk.  The programme enables journalists who are under threat and located in Europe a temporary shelter in Germany. In a protected environment, they can distance themselves from crisis situations, take a break from work or continue researching their projects.

 

Read more here.

3. Support for supporters

Activity 3 complements the project by providing the responsible project staff and their network partners with opportunities for networking and further training in the field of psychosocial care. 

 

Read more here.

Please find more information about the support offers, eligibility criteria, application procedures and contact details in the respective sections of our website using the links above.

 

Project duration: 01 January 2023 – 31 December 2024

This project is funded by the Federal Government Commissioner for Culture and the Media (BKM) and co-financed by the Free State of Saxony.

Opportunities in Exile

Contact

Katrin Schatz, Project Manager (katrin.schatz@ecpmf.eu)

Journalists in Exile Network

Through our support offerings for journalists in exile in Germany, we have worked with many talented and dedicated journalists and media workers. Get to know some of them, their stories, and their professional focus areas in our Journalists in Exile Network page.

Explore the Network

Related news

Press release

Feindbild Journalist:in 8: Angst vor der Selbstzensur

Die Zahl der physischen Angriffe auf Journalist:innen stieg im vergangenen Jahr im Vergleich zu 2022 wieder an. Nach 56 Fällen im Jahr 2022 verifizierte das ECPMF für 2023 69 Fälle von physischen Angriffen auf Journalist:innen.

READ MORE
Statement

Georgia: MFRR partners strongly condemn new attempts to introduce a “foreign agent” law

The undersigned media freedom organisations strongly condemn Georgia’s ruling party's renewed effort to pass a Russian-style foreign agent law.

READ MORE
Statement

Safety and justice: demanding accountability for attacks against journalists in Serbia

Commemorating 25 years since the brutal murder of Serbian journalist Slavko Ćuruvija, media freedom organizations unite to condemn continued impunity in this case.

READ MORE
General

Three years later: Still no justice for murdered Greek journalist

Three years have elapsed since the assassination of Giorgos Karaivaz, a veteran Greek crime reporter. Today, the undersigned members of the Media Freedom Rapid Response (MFRR) commemorate his death and renew demands on the Greek authorities to redouble their efforts to bring the perpetrators to justice.

READ MORE
Threat

Slovakia: Independence of Slovakia’s leading TV news channel must be protected

ECPMF is deeply alarmed by the actions of the Slovak government towards Slovakia's leading commercial broadcaster, TV Markíza.

READ MORE
Statement

CoE’s Recommendation represents a significant milestone in the fight against SLAPPs

CASE welcomes the Council of Europe’s Recommendation on SLAPPs, approved by the Committee of Ministers on Thursday 4 April.

READ MORE