New York, May 24, 2005—The Committee to Protect Journalists calls on authorities in Bangladesh to drop sedition charges against Salah Uddin Shoaib Choudhury, the editor and publisher of the now-defunct weekly tabloid Blitz. Choudhury will appear in court tomorrow to apply for an extension of his bail, which he received on April 30 after spending…
New York, May 24, 2005—Hundreds of journalists took to the streets of Nepal’s capital, Kathmandu, today in a silent protest of reported government moves to amend the media law to impose further restrictions on the press. The Kathmandu-based dailies Kantipur and Kathmandu Post, citing an unnamed source, reported late last week that officials had moved…
New York, May 23, 2005—The former presenter for a popular MTV-style music video program was shot and killed in her home in Kabul last week. Shaima Rezayee, 24, hosted the daily music program “Hop” on the private television channel Tolo TV until March. Police told The Associated Press that Rezayee was killed May 18 by…
New York, May 23, 2005—Three Romanian journalists and their translator were released Sunday after nearly two months of captivity in Iraq. The journalists arrived in Romania today. A group identifying itself as the Muadh ibn Jabal Brigade kidnapped reporter Marie Jeanne Ion and cameraman Sorin Dumitru Miscoci, both of Bucharest-based Prima TV, and reporter Ovidiu…
Doha, Qatar, May 23, 2005—The Committee to Protect Journalists issued a report today to an ad hoc group investigating journalist safety issues. The group requested the statement from CPJ as part of its yearlong effort to study the causes and effects of the rising death toll of journalists worldwide. Known as the Committee of Inquiry,…
Doha, Qatar, Monday, May 23, 2005—The Committee to Protect Journalists has analyzed the deaths of journalists across the world for many years, producing two recent reports that highlight alarming trends in the circumstances, locations, and motives. At least 339 journalists were killed on duty between 1995 and 2004, according to CPJ research compiled in January.…
New York, May 23, 2005—The Committee to Protect Journalists is deeply troubled by the continued harassment of Yuri Bagrov, a North Caucasus correspondent for the U.S. government-funded Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty (RFE/RL). A Federal Security Service (FSB) agent prevented Bagrov from covering an opposition rally on Friday, then followed him back to his office and…
Doha, Qatar, May 23, 2005—The Committee to Protect Journalists today released an Arabic language version of its journalist security handbook, “On Assignment: A Guide to Reporting in Dangerous Situations.” Frank Smyth, CPJ’s journalist security coordinator and author of the handbook, officially launched the new edition at a press conference here. The new edition updates the…
MAY 22, 2005 Posted: May 31, 2005 Olivier Péguy, Radio France Internationale LEGAL ACTION Péguy, a correspondent for Radio France Internationale (RFI) and several other international news organizations, was forced to leave the country on May 22 after the government refused to renew his work permit. Péguy, who had reported from Madagascar for four years,…