Free Media Union commemorates martyrs Sayid Afran and Mazloum Bakok

Today, the Free Media Union issued a statement marking the third anniversary of the passing of journalist and writer Sayid Afran, who was martyred on September 22, 2023. The statement recalled his media career and his role in training generations of journalists, as well as commemorating journalist Mazloum Bakok (Ahmad Saado) and all the martyrs of the Free Media.

The statement read:

“In September, as the memories of the martyrs of the Free Media intertwine, we respectfully and faithfully commemorate the souls of the journalists and media professionals who made the word, image, and voice a path to the truth, and who carried the responsibility of conveying the reality of their peoples under the most difficult circumstances.

In September, we, the Free Media Union, commemorate journalist and writer Sayid Afran, who passed away on September 22, 2023, after spending more than three decades in the field of media and in pursuit of the truth. Sayid, known among his colleagues and students as the ‘teacher,’ was a school of journalism and an educator to generations of media professionals. He left a rich legacy in the field of free media, stressing the need for journalists to live the truth they write about and to remain close to society and its issues.

In September, we also commemorate martyr Mazloum Bakok (Ahmad Saado), the first journalist to be martyred in North and East Syria, who was martyred on September 28, 2014, while carrying out his journalistic duty and covering the campaign to open the humanitarian corridor between Rojava and Shengal. Mazloum was among the first to take the camera into the field, making his name part of the memory of the Free Media.

Between the memories of Sayid Afran and Mazloum Bakok, we commemorate all the martyrs of the Free Media who, through their sacrifices, wrote pages of the history of journalism and left future generations a professional and humanitarian legacy, as well as the responsibility to continue seeking the truth, preserving memory, and conveying the voice of society.

On this occasion, we affirm that honouring the martyrs of the media is not achieved through remembrance alone, but by safeguarding the legacy they left behind, raising the standard of journalistic work, strengthening professional ethics, upholding the truth, and preparing new generations capable of shouldering the responsibility of free media.

In September, we commemorate Mazloum Bakok and Sayid Afran, and with them all the martyrs of the Free Media who sacrificed their lives in order to reveal the truth.”

Sh-S

ANHA