2011
Recalling J Dey, Mumbai’s heralded crime reporter
In the comfort of my London home, far from the dangers of crime reporting in Mumbai, the news flash on television seemed unreal. Senior journalist Jyotirmoy Dey had been killed, pumped full of five bullets in broad daylight. I thought things like this only happened in Bollywood flicks, and that crime reporters in Mumbai never…
In limbo – the journalists forced into exile
AFP and the Guardian were among the mayor news outlets that covered the release of CPJ’s 2011 Exile Report. The report, released on June 20, documents how nearly 70 journalists were forced into exile over the past 12 months, with more than half coming from Iran and Cuba.
Prominent Mexican columnist, wife, son shot to death
New York, June 20, 2011–A prominent Mexican newspaper columnist, his wife, and a son were shot to death in their home in Veracruz, according to state investigators, a shocking assault that underscores the country’s ongoing crisis. The administration of President Felipe Calderón Hinojosa must take decisive action to end to the cycle of violence undermining…
Sri Lanka’s Groundviews back online after takedown
A note for the Sri Lanka watchers who visit CPJ.org regularly. Sanjana Hattotuwa, the founder of the citizen journalism website Groundviews messaged me this morning to say that the site is up and running again after suddenly going down within Sri Lanka over the weekend. Hattotuwa is the driving force behind the site, which is…
Pakistan reporter beaten for reporting on earlier attack
New York, June 20, 2011–Waqar Kiani, a Pakistani journalist who was assaulted Saturday night by men in police uniforms, told the Committee to Protect Journalists that he fears for his safety and the safety of his wife and two young children. The attack came five days after Kiani, 32, had written a story the U.K.…
Uighur refugee extradited by Kazakhstan, held in China
Kazakhstan authorities have extradited Uighur schoolteacher Arshidin Israil to China, where officials have described him without elaboration as a “major terror suspect,” according to Reuters and other news accounts. Israil and his supporters believe the detention comes in reprisal for reporting he contributed to Radio Free Asia concerning the July 2009 riots in Xinjiang Uighur…
Public health still risky topic for Chinese journalists
Public health reporting is improving in China, but not fast enough. A new Human Rights Watch report on child lead poisoning in Chinese cities documents harassment of local journalists trying to cover the problem. “Journalists who reported on the lead poisoning in three of the four locations told Human Rights Watch that police had followed…
In Kenya, hospital staff said to attack journalist
New York, June 20, 2011–Four employees of the Wajir District Hospital attacked journalist Abdi Hassan Hussein at the hospital on Saturday, the reporter told the Committee to Protect Journalists. Hassan, a reporter for the Wajir Community Radio Station in the far northeastern corner of the country, said he visited the hospital with three colleagues to…