A/HRC/27/35 torture and other cruel, inhuman and degrading treatment or punishment, and sexual violence against women journalists. Journalists had been tried on such spurious grounds as espionage, posing a threat to national security and alleged bias, and had often faced unfair trials and been sentenced to excessive terms of imprisonment. 7. The High Commissioner welcomed the greater international awareness of the frequency with which journalists were attacked because of their work, and the need to ensure greater protection. The Security Council, in its resolution 1738 (2006), the General Assembly, in its resolution 68/163, and the Human Rights Council, in its resolution 21/12, had all condemned attacks against journalists. They had called upon all States to act on their legal obligations to promote a safe and enabling environment for journalists so that they were able to perform their work independently and without undue interference. In 2012, UNESCO, in collaboration with OHCHR and other United Nations agencies, had developed the United Nations Plan of Action on the Safety of Journalists and the Issue of Impunity, which was now being implemented in five pilot countries: Iraq, Nepal, Pakistan, South Sudan and Tunisia. Regional organizations, including OSCE, the Council of Europe and the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights, had also taken initiatives. The High Commissioner highlighted the fact that OHCHR had prepared and presented a report on good practices in the protection of journalists, including the prevention of attacks and the fight against impunity,2 and expressed hope that the panel discussion would be a platform to share experiences and ideas about how best to put the key points from the report into practice. 8. The High Commissioner reminded the Council that, above all, there must be unequivocal political commitment to ensure that journalists can carry out their work safely. The international legal framework for the protection of journalists is in place, she said, pointing out that it must now be implemented at the national level. States must create an enabling environment in which the rights of journalists and other members of society could be fully respected, with clear and public agreement by officials that issues of public interest could, and should, be examined and discussed openly in the media. States must also adopt legislative and policy measures for ensuring the safety and protection of journalists and other media workers, with zero tolerance of any form of violence against journalists and full accountability for any such violence. 9. On the question of who could be considered a journalist, the High Commissioner confirmed that, from a human rights perspective, all individuals were entitled to the full protection of their human rights whether the State recognized them as journalists or not; whether they were professional reporters or “citizen journalists”; whether or not they had a degree in journalism; and whether they reported online or offline. In this context, she reminded the Council that the Human Rights Committee had, in its general comment no. 34, defined journalism as “a function shared by a wide range of actors, including professional full-time reporters and analysts, as well as bloggers and others who engage in forms of self-publication in print, on the Internet or elsewhere”.3 She also drew the attention to General Assembly resolution 68/163, in which the Assembly acknowledged that journalism was continuously evolving to include inputs from media institutions, private individuals and a range of organizations that seek, receive and impart information and ideas of all kinds, online as well as offline, in the exercise of freedom of opinion and expression, thereby contributing to shape public debate. The High Commissioner therefore urged States to approach the issue under discussion from a human rights perspective, and to protect journalists and other media workers in the broadest sense. 2 3 4 A/HRC/24/23. CCPR/C/GC/34, para. 44.