London Declaration by the International Association of Press Clubs and the European Press Clubs Federation

June 05, 2006

We, representatives of Press Clubs from around the world, have met in London to discuss matters of common interest and to chart a way forward that involves our organisations more closely in maintaining independent media, enlarging freedom of the press and improving democracy and good governance in our societies.

We wish to encourage the establishment and the expansion of Press Clubs throughout the world. To this end we pledge our Clubs to maintain their independence from any single source of funding and not to compromise their integrity through dependence on any single political source, commercial, political or governmental.

We extend the hand of friendship to all journalists who strive to maintain high standards of integrity, accuracy and honesty in their work. We encourage them to joint action, both within their own societies in the framework of national and local Press Clubs and internationally through the worldwide network of Press Clubs. In addition we undertake to encourage the establishment of Press Clubs in cities and countries where they do not yet exist, and to support, morally and materially, Press Clubs which wish to be associated with our organisations.

Our two organisations, the International Association of Press Clubs and the European Press Clubs Federation, undertake to keep under review the progress made in achieving the goals set out in this London Declaration. Each year we will report to our members and to each other on developments which affect them, and we will publicise widely both the achievements and the shortcomings that we register in that review.

For the International Association of Press Clubs – Professor Donald Trelford
For the European Federation of Press Clubs – Isabelle Bourdet.