Blog: Lebanon Archives - Committee to Protect Journalists

Blog | Lebanon, Pakistan, Russia

November 23 becomes International Day to End Impunity

By Maria Salazar-Ferro/Coordinator, Impunity Campaign & Journalist Assistance Program

Members from around the world of the International Freedom of Expression Exchange met in Beirut last week. On the second day of our conference, amid discussions of the daily problems journalists face, we received word of the abduction and murder of Pakistani investigative journalist Saleem Shahzad. A day later, the conference buzzed with news of an arrest more than five years after the murder of iconic Russian journalist Anna Politkovskaya. As news unfolded in both cases, impunity--a recurring theme in official meetings and hallway conversations--loudly made its way to the forefront. And on June 2, IFEX members announced that they would join forces to globally put an end to journalists' murders and impunity for their killers, making November 23 the International Day to End Impunity.

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Blog | Lebanon

In Lebanon, Gebran Tueni's daughter seeks the truth

By Rima Marrouch/CPJ Middle East and North Africa Research Associate

On a rainy Sunday in downtown Beirut, in St. George Cathedral at Place d'Etoile, the family of murdered Lebanese journalist Gebran Tueni gathered with the staff of his newspaper, Al-Nahar, to hold a memorial marking the fifth anniversary of Tueni's assassination. The memorial was held in the same church where Tueni was married in 2001, and where his funeral was held in 2005, as if to complete the circle of life and memory.

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Blog | Lebanon

Lebanon tries to modernize its chaotic media laws

By Rima Marrouch/CPJ Middle East and North Africa Research Associate

Current Lebanese media laws exist in the perfect state of chaos. For example, a print journalist who is a member of the Journalists' Syndicate, according to the Publication Law, is protected from administrative arrest for an opinion piece or an article he writes. However, if the same journalist broadcasts the very same opinion and some find it defamatory, according to the penal code, he can end up in jail. Provisions concerning media and journalists are scattered among numerous pieces of legislation like the penal code, the Publications Law, the Audiovisual Media Law, and the Military Justice Code.

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Blog | Lebanon

From the Family of Holli Chmela

CPJ is concerned for the safety of two American journalists, Holli Chmela, 27, and Taylor Luck, 23, who are reported missing in Lebanon. The Chmela family issued the following statement tonight.

We are hoping and praying for the safe return of our children, Taylor Luck and Holli Chmela. We wish to thank the State Department and FBI in Washington and our U.S. embassies in Beirut, Damascus and Amman for their extraordinary efforts on their behalf. We also want to thank the Jordan Times and The New York Times for their invaluable assistance. We are looking forward to a happy result.

For additional information, we recommend contacting the Public Affairs Office at the U.S. Embassy in Beirut.

Thank you.

Committee to Protect Journalists

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November 23 becomes International Day to End Impunity

In Lebanon, Gebran Tueni's daughter seeks the truth

Lebanon tries to modernize its chaotic media laws

From the Family of Holli Chmela

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