2007
MEXICO: TV reporter and cameraman disappear
Gamaliel López Candanosa, TV Azteca Noreste, May 10, 2007, Monterrey Gerardo Paredes Pérez, TV Azteca Noreste, May 10, 2007, Monterrey TV Azteca Noreste reporter Gamaliel López Candanosa and camera operator Gerardo Paredes Pérez went missing on May 10 in the northern city of Monterrey, 440 miles (700 kilometers) from Mexico City, after reporting live on…
CPJ urges Ethiopia to disclose information on detained journalists
Dear Prime Minister, We are writing to express our deep concern about the whereabouts, legal status and health of Eritrean journalists Tesfalidet Kidane Tesfazghi and Saleh Idris Gama of Eritrean state broadcaster Eri-TV. Official statements and videotape indicate that your government has been holding them incommunicado after their arrests by Kenyan authorities late last year during fighting in Somalia.
Uribe urged to retract comments about reporters
New York, October 11, 2007 Mr. Álvaro Uribe Vélez President of the Republic of Colombia Casa de Nariño Bogotá D.C., Colombia Via facsimile: 011-571-337-5890 Dear Mr. President: We strongly object to your recent accusations against two prominent journalists. Your strident and personal comments have resulted in multiple death threats against these journalists and have forced…
In Niger, newspaper editor jailed without charge
New York, October 11, 2007—The director of a newspaper based in strife-torn northern Niger was arrested late Tuesday in the capital of Niamey on suspicions of links with France-based Radio France Internationale (RFI)—a station targeted by the government in recent months over its coverage of a deadly rebellion of nomadic Tuaregs, according to local journalists…
In Pakistan, reporter goes missing following threats
New York, October 11, 2007—The Committee to Protect Journalists is concerned for the safety of missing Pakistani journalist Riaz Mengal, a reporter for the regional newspaper Intikhab in Khuzdar, in the southwestern province of Baluchistan. Mengal did not return home on October 4 and has not been seen since, according to a CPJ source and…
Al-Jazeera cameraman’s health deteriorates at Guantanamo
New York, October 10, 2007—An Al-Jazeera cameraman held at the U.S. Naval Base at Guantanamo Bay for five years without charge is in deteriorating health as a result of a hunger strike, his lawyer told the Committee to Protect Journalists. The lawyer also revealed that the U.S. military, in a recent hearing, cited cameraman Sami…
Government bans two publications in one day
New York, October 10, 2007—Gabon’s governmental media regulatory body suspended two private newspapers Monday. The National Communication Council blocked the Paris-based, pan-African bimonthly Le Gri-Gri from printing and distributing in Gabon, on the grounds that the newspaper has not registered with the authorities as a Gabonese publication. La Nation, a bimonthly as well, has been…
New legislation a potential threat to press freedom
New York, October 10, 2007—The Committee to Protect Journalists is concerned about the press freedom implications of proposed Australian legislation that would give the federal police commissioner powers to unilaterally block Internet content that he or she “has reason to believe … is crime or terrorist related.” The Communications Legislation Amendment (Crime or Terrorism Related…
Three journalists released, three still held in detention
New York, October 10, 2007 — The Committee to Protect Journalists condemns the continued detention of at least three Burmese journalists and expresses strong concern about recent news reports that government authorities have consulted media images to identify and detain people who participated in recent street protests. According to CPJ sources, Win Ko Ko…
Nepalese journalist abducted, Maoist leadership denies responsibility
New York, October 10, 2007—The Committee to Protect Journalists condemns the abduction of Nepalese journalist Birendra Shah, Bara district correspondent for Nepal FM, Dristi Weekly, and Avenues TV. Shah has been missing since Friday. Ram Dev Das, editor of the magazine Terai Khabar Patrika, told the Federation of Nepalese Journalists that he was with Shah…