On World Press Freedom Day 2017, members of civil society around the world voiced their support for freedom of expression and highlighted the crucial role that media plays in democracy. View our #WorldPressFreedomDay Storify compilation to see World Movement participants’ powerful commentary on press freedom. The compilation features Ethiopian journalist Lily Yekoye Simegnish Mengesha; Bolivian journalist Raul Peñaranda; Bangladeshi journalist and TV personality Ashif Rabi; Yazidi journalist Nawaf Haskan; Kenyan journalist and prime-time television anchor James Smart; and Executive Director of the Andean Foundation for Social Observation and Study of the Media (FUNDAMEDIOS) César Ricaurte. The Storify also includes the World Movement’s new video with Bambang Harymurti, former political prisoner, journalist, and editor-in-chief at Tempo Media, who describes the critical role the free press plays in speaking truth to power in Indonesia and the world.

Bambang Harymurti is a World Movement for Democracy Steering Committee member