2004
After journalists deported, bill would alter visa waiver program
Washington, July 23, 2004—A bill introduced this week in the U.S. House of Representatives would allow journalists from 27 “friendly” countries to enter the United States without a visa for up to 90 days—just as any other citizen of a “friendly” country may enter. Proposed by Rep. Zoe Lofgren (D-Calif.), the bill, known as HR…
CPJ concerned by new draft of press law
New York, July 23, 2004—The Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ) and five other press freedom groups (Article 19, Media Institute of Southern Africa, Media Foundation of West Africa, Media Rights Agenda, and the International Federation of Journalists) have written to Ethiopian Information Minister Bereket Simon expressing concern about the government’s latest draft of a proposed…
Palestinian journalists threatened over coverage of political infighting
New York, July 22, 2004—The Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ) is alarmed by new threats against Palestinian journalists covering political unrest in the Gaza Strip, the most recent in a months-long series of actions by Palestinian militants and forces intended to stifle independent reporting there. Journalists working for the Qatar-based satellite channel Al-Jazeera and the…
CPJ urges repeal of desacato laws, welcomes initial step
Dear Mr. Salas: The Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ), a New York-based nonprofit organization that works to safeguard press freedom worldwide, welcomes the Legislative Assembly’s initial approval of constitutional reforms that repeal the constitutional basis for desacato (disrespect) laws. We urge Panamanian legislators to ratify these reforms.
Journalist found dead outside Moscow
New York, July 21, 2004—The body of Armenian journalist Pail Peloian was found on the side of a highway outside Russia’s capital, Moscow, on July 17, according to local and international press reports. Peloian had been severely beaten and stabbed multiple times and had a cracked skull and bruised face. The police found money, documents,…
Weekly newspaper allowed to resume publishing
New York, July 20, 2004—Iraq’s interim government has allowed a weekly newspaper closed by U.S. occupation authorities in March to resume publishing. Iraqi Prime Minister Iyad Allawi issued a decree on July 18 allowing for the reopening of Al-Hawza, a Baghdad weekly affiliated with radical Shiite cleric Moktada al-Sadr. A spokesman for al-Sadr said the…
After 16 months without charge, prominent writer to go on trial
New York, July 20, 2004—The Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ) calls for the immediate release of writer Nguyen Dan Que, who spent 16 months in detention without charge. The Ho Chi Minh City People’s Court will finally try Que on July 29 on charges of “taking advantage of democratic rights to infringe upon the interests…
Police raid independent newspaper
New York, July 20, 2004 – Financial police in the capital of Tbilisi raided the office of The Georgian Times after the independent weekly newspaper published a series of articles questioning how a prosecutor had acquired certain assets. On July 14, financial police “confiscated a year’s worth of accounting documents without a proper search warrant,”…
TRIAL IN CASE OF MURDERED PHOTOJOURNALIST ENDS AMID CHARGES OF GOVERNMENT COVER-UP
New York, July 19, 2004—The trial of an intelligence agent accused of killing Canadian-Iranian freelance photographer Zahra Kazemi in July 2003 was suddenly brought to a close on Sunday, July 18, amid accusations from Kazemi’s legal team of misconduct. An Iranian court abruptly ended the trial of Agent Mohamed Reza Aqdam just one day after…