M Ziauddin among ‘100 Information Heroes’

Mr Ziauddin is the oldest person on the list, which includes ‘Information Heroes’ from 65 countries.

World Press Freedom Day,  on May 3, will be celebrated  by Reporters Without  Borders (RWB) through the  publication of a list of ‘100  Information Heroes’, one of  whom is a senior Pakistani  journalist, The Express Tribune’s  executive editor Muhammad  Ziauddin.

The first list of its kind, ‘100 Information Heroes’ pays tribute to those who promote the right to freedom, as enshrined in Article 19 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights:  the freedom to ‘seek, receive and impart information and ideas through any media and  regardless of frontiers’. The list commemorates ‘the courage of journalists and bloggers who constantly sacrifice their safety and sometimes their lives to their vocation’, according to Reporters Without Borders secretary-general Christophe Deloire.

A veteran journalist with 45 years of experience within the media, Mr Ziauddin is the oldest member of the list, which includes ‘Information Heroes’ from 65 countries. He is  joined by journalists such as Glenn Greenwald and Laura Poitras, US citizens who were responsible for revealing the  mass electronic surveillance methods used by the US and British intelligence agencies, Ismail Saymaz, a Turkish journalist who has been  prosecuted a score of times for his reporting, Hassan Ruvakuki, who was jailed  for 15 months in Burundi for interviewing members  of a rebel movement, and Gerard Ryle, the head of International Consortium of Investigative Journalists, who has contributed to the  emergence of global investigative journalism.

The list also includes Mazen Darwish, founder of the Syrian Centre for Media and  Freedom of Expression and  winner of the RWB press  freedom prize in 2012, has  been held for more than two  years by the Assad regime.

RWB’s list celebrates authors, citizen-journalists and activists as well. “Their courage is the common denominator,” a statement from RWB said.

“These information heroes are a source of inspiration to all men and women who aspire to freedom,” said Deloire.

“This initiative aims to show that the fight for freedom of information requires not only active support for the victims of abuses but also the promotion of those who  can serve as models.”

RWB noted that The Express Tribune ‘has adopted an unflinchingly liberal tone, whether reporting on religious extremism or human rights’, adding, ‘this has earned it many critics’ and citing the recent attacks against the media group.

Hamid Mir from Pakistan is also on the list.

Correction: An earlier version of this story had mistakenly noted that Ziauddin was the only Pakistani on the list.