The year 2012 stirred up the journalists' syndicate world that had been dormant for several years. It saw the birth (and eclipse) of the audio-visual workers' union and the expanded membership of the Journalists Union that had been an exclusive club for decades.

A session about emerging online threats to journalists zeroed in on how repressive regimes exercise cyber censorship, surveillance and other forms of control.

The dust had barely settled following harsh criticism of his government, when Moroccan journalist Taoufik Bouachrine was slapped with a real estate and sales fraud charge and sentenced to six months in prison.

Security and press freedom can coexist, with the free flow of information recognized as the best weapon against terrorism, international media experts argued in a final declaration published this week.