2005
After just eight weeks, an independent newspaper is shuttered
New York, February 28, 2005—Zimbabwe’s Media and Information Commission (MIC) has closed the independent regional newspaper Weekly Times after just eight weeks of publication, saying the newspaper violated the country’s media legislation, according to news reports. Local journalists believe the closing is part of a systematic clampdown on critical media in the run-up to parliamentary…
Kidnapped journalist killed in IraqJournalist injured in separate incident
New York, February 28, 2005—The Committee to Protect Journalists is outraged by the murder of Raeda Wazzan, a news anchor with the Iraqi state TV channel Al-Iraqiya who was kidnapped on February 20. Wazzan’s body was found on Friday, February 25, on a roadside in Mosul, where the journalist had lived and worked, according to…
PHILIPPINES
FEBRUARY 28, 2005 Posted: March 28, 2005 Arnulfo Villanueva, Asian Star Express Balita KILLED—UNCONFIRMED Villanueva, 43, a columnist for the community newspaper, was found shot dead on a road in the town of Naic, Cavite Province, just south of Manila. A local village official found his body on the night of February 28, according to…
MALAYSIA
FEBRUARY 28, 2005 Posted: March 30, 2005 Jeff Ooi, Jeffooi.com HARASSED Police questioned Malaysian blogger Jeff Ooi for two hours in connection with a contributor’s September 30, 2004 posting to his Web log, according to the Centre for Independent Journalism in the capital of Kuala Lumpur. Local and international news sources reported that Ooi is…
BAHRAIN
FEBRUARY 27, 2005 Posted: March 14, 2005 Ali Abdel Imam, www.bahrainonline.com IMPRISONED Abdel Imam, an Internet writer, also known as a Web logger, or blogger, was summoned by prosecutors in the capital, Manama, and detained, according to sources in Bahrain. Abdel Imam is the founder and editor of www.bahrainonline.com, which features a blog with commentary…
Radio station suspended days before parliamentary elections
New York, February 25, 2005—A state broadcast regulator last night shuttered the popular Kyrgyz Service of Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty, known locally as Radio Azattyk, just three days ahead of the country’s parliamentary elections, according to local and international press reports. The Committee to Protect Journalists called on the government to overturn the decision immediately…
IRAQ
FEBRUARY 25, 2005 Posted: March 1, 2005 Raeda Wazzan, Al-Iraqiya KILLED—CONFIRMED Wazzan, a news anchor with the Iraqi state TV channel Al-Iraqiya who was kidnapped on February 20, was found dead five days later on a roadside in Mosul, where the journalist had lived and worked, according to press reports citing her husband. She had…
ZIMBABWE
FEBRUARY 25, 2005 Posted: March 17, 2005 The Weekly TimesCENSORED The government-controlled Media and Information Commission (MIC) shuttered the independent regional newspaper The Weekly Times after just eight weeks of publication, saying the newspaper violated the country’s media legislation. Local journalists told CPJ the closure was part of a systematic clampdown on critical media in…
CNN’s Jordan is gone, but questions remain over U.S. security record in Iraq
Committee to Protect Journalists This article appeared in the Atlanta Journal-Constitution on February 22, 2005 Posted: February 17, 2005 The media was abuzz over comments attributed to CNN news executive Eason Jordan that some of the several dozen journalists killed in Iraq were deliberately targeted by U.S. forces. Pundits, bloggers, columnists, and members of Congress…
Internet writers imprisoned, harassment continues
New York, February 24, 2005—The Committee to Protect Journalists is concerned by the Iranian government’s months-long crackdown on Internet writers who disseminate information and opinion on Web logs, also known as blogs. One writer who may have been detained for his postings has been sentenced to 14 years in prison, and at least one other…