2011
Mission Journal: South Sudan’s struggle for a free press
The former guerrillas of the Sudan People’s Liberation Army (SPLA) fought a 22-year civil war for greater autonomy and civil rights for the southern Sudanese people, culminating in South Sudan’s independence this July. But local journalists fear the former rebels turned government officials still harbor a war mentality that is unaccustomed to criticism, and that…
Cuba pulls veteran correspondent’s credentials
New York, September 7, 2011–The Committee to Protect Journalists condemns the Cuban government’s decision to not renew press credentials held by a 20-year veteran correspondent for the Spanish daily El País and radio network Cadena SER. Mauricio Vicent, whose access to official events had been restricted by the government for the past year, is now…
In Ethiopia, terrorism charges against five journalists
New York, September 7, 2011–Ethiopia filed terrorism charges on Tuesday against four independent journalists detained in the country since June and July, along with the editor of a U.S.-based news forum critical of the Addis Ababa government, according to local sources and news reports.
The ‘new’ Syrian media law is nothing new
On August 28, President Bashar al-Assad approved a new media law that purportedly upholds freedom of expression and bans the arrest of journalists. Yet less than a week later, on Saturday, a Syrian journalist and contributor to the pan-Arab daily Al-Hayat was arrested, CPJ reported. Just two days before the endorsement of the law, Syrian…
In pre-election violence, arsonists target DRC TV station
New York, September 6, 2011–Unidentified armed men today torched the studios of a private television station that aired programs favorable to Democratic Republic of Congo opposition leader Etienne Tshisekedi, local journalists and news reports said. At around 2 a.m., a dozen men threw tear gas into the studios of Radio Lisanga Télévision (RLTV), based in…
Syrian journalist arrested, held without charge
New York, September 6, 2011–The Committee to Protect Journalists is concerned by Saturday’s arrest of a Syrian journalist without charge and the continued reports of missing journalists in Syria. Amer Matar, contributor to the pan-Arab daily Al-Hayat, was arrested by Syrian security forces in Damascus on Saturday, the Guardian of London reported. Matar, who is also a political…
Journalists attacked while covering protest in Angola
New York, September 6, 2011–Angolan security forces attacked journalists covering an anti-government protest on Saturday in the capital, Luanda, news reports said. At least two dozen people were arrested and several others injured as police blamed the violence on protesters.
On 9/11 and post-conflict Sri Lanka
For a few years now, I have used Sugi Ganeshananthan’s articles as a frame of reference for CPJ advocacy in Sri Lanka. Ganeshananthan, a novelist and essayist who teaches at the University of Michigan, writes stories often grounded in current events. Her 2008 novel, Love Marriage, addresses the cultural and familial conflicts that Sri Lankans…