Session 4: Cross-Cutting Line Between Journalism and Human Rights Advocacy​

Berta Valle: Navigating Journalism Under Authoritarian Repression and Exile

Berta Valle, a journalist and Member of the World Liberty Congress, began her intervention with a deeply personal account of exile, state repression, and survival. As a Nicaraguan dissident and the spouse of prominent political opposition figure Félix Maradiaga, Valle described the immense psychological, legal, and political burdens she faced in the aftermath of her husband’s arrest. “This is my second exile,” she noted. “The first time I crossed the desert as a baby in my mother’s arms. Now, I’m stateless.”

Valle’s experience is emblematic of the dangerous terrain journalists navigate when authoritarian states criminalize independent thought. She recounted how, even after fleeing to the United States and advocating internationally, she remains in legal limbo. “I have a work permit,” she said, “but I don’t have political asylum. I don’t have a passport. I don’t have a country.”

Valle highlighted the collective efforts that led to her husband’s release, which included years of advocacy and international pressure. However, the Nicaraguan regime retaliated by revoking the citizenship of over 200 released prisoners and opposition figures, rendering them stateless. “The regime stripped my husband and I of our nationality,” she explained. “They took away our bank accounts, our home, our legal identity.”

Berta Valle`s testimony included a gripping reflection on the night before her husband’s arrest: “We had a phone call, and he said, ‘Wife, tomorrow they may take me. Activate the security protocol. This “protocol” referred to a pre-arranged network of actions, calling trusted contacts, alerting the media, engaging legal representation, and notifying international human rights organizations.” Valle stressed the importance of such preparedness: “We must not just report. We must be ready. Ready to resist. Ready to rebuild.”

She further elaborated on how many journalists fail to follow basic digital security practices, making them vulnerable to state surveillance. Even after extensive training, weak passwords and failure to encrypt sensitive material led to mass confiscation of equipment and digital archives. “Security is a habit, not a one-time training,” she emphasized.

Berta Valle concluded with a somber reminder: “As journalists under authoritarianism, our most powerful weapon is clarity—clarity in purpose, in preparation, and in solidarity. The regimes will try to erase us. Our job is to keep writing anyway.”

Nilofar Moradi: Displacement and Dispossession in the Afghan Media Landscape

Afghan journalist, Nilofar Moradi offered a searing portrait of the collapse of Afghan journalism following the Taliban’s return to power. Speaking from Canada, where she now resides as an exiled journalist, Moradi traced the trajectory of media repression in Afghanistan, emphasizing both the institutional and intimate consequences. “After the Taliban came to Kabul, they closed radio stations, banned protests, and silenced women’s voices,” she stated.

Many journalists, particularly women and those affiliated with human rights work, were targeted for their reporting before the regime change. Nilofar Moradi recounted chilling episodes of torture, threats, and disappearances. Some colleagues remain imprisoned today, while others live in hiding or have fled with no ability to resume their profession. “They were tortured for covering women’s protests in the streets. Some of them are still in Taliban jails.” The loss is not only professional but existential. “They cannot be journalists anymore,” she said. “They have become refugees. They are working construction, selling food, anything to survive. And their children? They have no right to education in these host countries.”

Nilofar Moradi criticized the failures of both regional neighbors and international institutions: “We do not have enough support, not even from those who claim to stand for human rights. UNHCR is underfunded. NGOs say they help, but there is no money, no pathway, no voice.” Moradi highlighted that many journalists who fled to countries like Iran, Turkey, and Pakistan face continued insecurity. Despite Canada’s reputation as a safer haven, she emphasized that Afghan journalists there often receive limited structural support and cannot access platforms to continue their professional work. “They gave us a passport. But not a platform.”

In her closing reflection, Moradi pointed to a more profound truth: journalism is not only a profession; it is an identity that, once denied, leaves a permanent void. “When we lose our newsroom, we lose a piece of ourselves,” she said. “And yet, we keep telling stories, if not on paper, then in our memory, and in our advocacy.”

Joyce M. Davis: Press Freedom and the Ethical Reclaiming of Journalism

Joyce M. Davis, Opinion Editor of PennLive and President of the World Affairs Council of Harrisburg, provided a wide-ranging analysis that bridged domestic and global perspectives. With decades of experience in journalism and civic leadership, Davis spoke to the ethical contradictions facing journalism today, particularly in democracies where freedom of expression is increasingly eroded not by brute force but by legislative and corporate pressures.

“Journalism is under threat everywhere,” Joyce Davis asserted. “Not just in autocracies, but in our own backyards.” She referred to the increasing use of SLAPP suits (Strategic Lawsuits Against Public Participation) as a form of silencing reporters. These lawsuits, often filed by powerful actors, are designed not to win in court but to intimidate, drain resources, and chill public interest reporting. “The point is to make it too costly to tell the truth,” she said.

Joyce Davis challenged traditional notions of objectivity, arguing that the role of journalists is not to remain neutral in the face of injustice. “Objectivity cannot mean false equivalency. We must be fair, yes, but also morally grounded,” she said. She emphasized the need for civic journalism that not only informs but empowers communities. “We need journalism that rebuilds trust, that centers marginalized voices, and that refuses to be complicit in silence,” she urged. Davis also raised concerns about the increasing corporatization of media, where financial interests often override editorial independence.

“We need to rethink the ownership models. Journalism should not be a commodity.” As president of a civic organization, Davis also noted the role of media in public diplomacy and community engagement. “Journalists are the bridge between the people and power. But we need better bridges, and stronger ones,” she concluded.

The panel transitioned into a discussion with participants, one of whom posed a haunting question: if the United States and United Kingdom, the traditional sanctuaries for exiled journalists, are becoming less accessible, what options remain? This opened a floodgate of reflections.

Berta Valle responded by contextualizing regional refuge strategies. “Many Nicaraguans go to Costa Rica or Spain,” she said. “Not because they are perfect, but because they are accessible.” She emphasized the importance of community ties and diasporic support as informal lifelines for those in flight. Valle also detailed the loss of legal identity, explaining that statelessness has tangible consequences: no passport, no bank account, no mobility. “Without a country, you are invisible in the eyes of the law,” she said. She also warned about the fragility of digital security: “We had training. We knew the rules. But still, many lost everything, files, interviews, even archives, because we underestimated the risks.”

Nilofar Moradi added that many Afghan journalists in neighboring countries live under immense pressure, without work rights, legal documents, or the ability to send their children to school. She criticized the global community’s failure to provide even minimal humanitarian support. “We are still advocating for basic food, not even a newsroom,” she said bluntly.

Joyce Davis reiterated that freedom of the press is a collective responsibility. “We need to support each other across borders, journalist to journalist, citizen to citizen. Because when one voice is silenced, we all become more vulnerable.” The session concluded with a call to action, the distribution of advocacy toolkits and digital safety resources, and a group photo to mark the shared resilience and commitment of the participants.