2007
In Sri Lanka, editor of Tamil magazine is killed in his home
New York, April 20, 2007—Subash Chandraboas, editor of the Tamil-language monthly magazine Nilam, was shot and killed in his home near Vavuniya on Monday. The Committee to Protect Journalists is investigating whether the killing was related to his work. The Free Media Movement (FMM), a media-rights organization that first reported the death, said it was…
In Senegal, ruling party official said to threaten radio staff
New York, April 20, 2007—Critical comments made during a radio call-in program Wednesday led a ruling party politician and his supporters to threaten staffers at a private radio station in the town of Mbacké, 105 miles (168 kilometers) east of the capital Dakar, according to local journalists and media reports. The politician denied making any…
In Rwanda, publication of a letter draws a prison term
New York, April 20, 2007–A court in the capital, Kigali, today sentenced Agnès Nkusi-Uwimana, director of the bi-monthly journal Umurabyo, to a year in prison on charges linked to the publication of a reader’s letter critical of the government, according to local journalists and press freedom group Journaliste en Danger. Nkusi-Uwimana has been jailed since…
In Kazakhstan, reporter disappears after writing critical articles
New York, April 18, 2007—The Committee to Protect Journalists is deeply worried about the fate of investigative reporter Oralgaisha Omarshanova who has been missing since March 30. Colleagues believe Omarshanova’s disappearance is related to her journalism for the Astana-based independent weekly Zakon i Pravosudiye (Law and Justice), whose anti-corruption department she directed, local press reports…
Philippine journalist killed, another wounded in separate shootings
New York, April 19, 2007—The Committee to Protect Journalists calls on the Philippine government to ensure prompt and thorough investigations into two separate shootings this week, one of which took the life of radio reporter Carmelo Palacios. Police have assigned the cases to a special task force that investigates attacks on journalists. “We’re glad that…
Despite order, DRC radio station still closed
New York, April 19, 2007—Local authorities have yet to allow a community radio station in central DRC to return to the air despite an order by state regulators that it be allowed to resume broadcasting, according to the press freedom group Journaliste en Danger (JED) and local journalists. Radio ODL was shuttered by police on…
Cuban journalist sentenced to prison on ‘dangerousness’ charge
New York, April 19, 2007—The Committee to Protect Journalists condemns the four-year prison sentence handed down on Friday to Cuban independent journalist Oscar Sánchez Madan after a one-day trial on a charge of “social dangerousness.” Cuban authorities arrested Sánchez Madan, reporter for the Miami-based news Web site CubaNet, on Friday morning at his home in…
Urdu-language columnist attacked after alleged anti-Islam articles
APRIL 19, 2007 Posted April 27, 2007 Jawaad Faizi, Pakistan Post ATTACKED, THREATENED After receiving anonymous threats, Faizi, a columnist for the New York-based Urdu-language biweekly Pakistan Post, was attacked by unidentified individuals in Toronto, according to the Canadian press and CPJ interviews.
In Senegal, journalist sentenced to prison
New York, April 18, 2007—A court in the capital, Dakar, handed a prison sentence and heavy damages against a tabloid director on criminal defamation charges over a story trumpeting an alleged high-profile corruption scandal, according to local journalists and news reports. Ndiogou Wack Seck of the private, pro-government daily Il Est Midi was sentenced to…
Egyptian blogger ordered detained for 15 days
New York, April 18, 2007—The Committee to Protect Journalists condemns the arrest in Cairo of a blogger who has exposed torture in Egyptian police stations and prisons. Authorities detained Abdel Moneim Mahmoud on Sunday on charges that he belongs to the outlawed Muslim Brotherhood and that he defamed the government with his reporting.