The International Freedom of Expression eXchange (IFEX), founded in 1992, is a global network of around 90 non-governmental organisations that promotes and defends the right to freedom of expression.
IFEX exchanges information online and mobilises action on issues such as press freedom, Internet censorship, freedom of information legislation, criminal defamation and insult laws, media concentration and attacks on journalists, writers, human rights defenders and Internet users.
A Clearing House in Toronto, Canada, coordinates the programmes and activities of IFEX, and is managed by Canadian Journalists for Free Expression on behalf of the members.
The membership of IFEX encompasses a broad array of organisations that work to defend journalists and media personnel, academics, photographers and camera operators, writers, cyber-dissidents, publishers, cartoonists, community radio stations and libraries. Members include Human Rights Watch, Reporters Without Borders, International Federation of Library Associations and Institutions, World Association of Community Radio Broadcasters and International PEN. For a more complete list, see Members of IFEX below.
IFEX provides information to many intergovernmental organizations that monitor freedom of expression, including the UNESCO, African Commission on Human and Peoples' Rights, Council of Europe, European Union, Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights, OAS Special Rapporteur for Freedom of Expression and OSCE Representative on Freedom of the Media
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In 1992, several funding and development organisations recognised the need for more cooperation among freedom of expression groups by providing start-up support for IFEX. The Ford Foundation provided funding to hold the first IFEX meeting in Montreal, Canada. The Joyce Mertz-Gilmore Foundation of New York supported the establishment of the IFEX Action Alert Network. UNESCO provided support through its International Programme for the Development of Communication (IPDC), which helped to extend IFEX's links with the developing world and promote IFEX through its own network.
One of the central components of IFEX is the Action Alert Network (AAN). Member organisations report freedom of expression abuses in their geographic region or area of expertise to the Clearing House which, in turn, circulates this information to other members and interested organisations all over the world. This system enables members to stay abreast of their counterparts' activities, share information and research, and focus their energies where it is most needed.
IFEX also publishes the IFEX Communiqué (www.ifex.org), a weekly newsletter that reports on IFEX members' activities and on freedom of expression developments around the world. Distributed to thousands of subscribers in more than 150 countries, the IFEX Communiqué highlights free expression hotspots and issues including anti-terrorism laws, journalists' safety, women in the media, Internet censorship, media concentration and access to information. The newsletter is published in English, French, Spanish, Arabic online at the IFEX website and in Russian (www.ifex.cjes.ru).
Another key area of the Clearing House's work is the Outreach and Development Programme. Based on a recognition of current North-South disparities, this programme is designed to support and strengthen fledgling freedom of expression organisations in the developing world, Eastern Europe and in the former Soviet Union.
The risks and obstacles faced by people who attempt to start up free expression groups in countries plagued by human rights abuses or censorship can be overwhelming, and IFEX offers vital transfusions of information, financial and technical resources, expertise, and international support and recognition.
IFEX's multilingual (English, French, Spanish, Arabic) website contains the largest searchable online archive of information on free expression violations, dating back to 1995. The site is also available in Russian.
IFEX brings members together to act jointly or campaign on freedom of expression issues, harnessing the collective power and resources of around 90 organisations around the world. Through IFEX, members launch international joint actions to help free jailed individuals or challenge repressive laws. Participants at IFEX General Meetings express concern over freedom of expression violations.
IFEX also facilitates campaigns to focus attention on freedom of expression violations in specific countries or regions.
The IFEX Tunisia Monitoring Group (IFEX-TMG), comprising 21 IFEX member organisations, raises international awareness of censorship and other human rights violations in Tunisia.[1]
Launched in late 2004, this campaign aimed to pressure the Tunisian government to improve its human rights record in the run-up to, and following, the UN-sponsored World Summit on the Information Society (WSIS), which was held in Tunis in November 2005.
The group has produced reports which document widespread violations against independent journalists, human rights defenders and Internet users who criticise the government. The reports are based on fact-finding missions to Tunisia in 2005, 2006, 2007, 2010 and 2011.
A mission carried out in April 2011 post-revolution took place in an entirely new context. In stark contrast to previous missions, the delegation of seven IFEX-TMG member groups was able to meet and talk openly with civil society groups, human rights activists, journalists, bloggers and representatives from across the political spectrum. The work of the IFEX-TMG in consistently raising freedom of expression issues both inside Tunisia and on the international stage during the country's darkest years was widely praised, while opinions on how the transition process is unfolding were freely given.[2] A full report is being issued on 1 June 2011.