2013

  
An image grab from a YouTube video uploaded on December 18 allegedly shows NBC employees, from left to right, Aziz Akyavas, Richard Engel, and John Kooistra in captivity in Syria. (AFP/YouTube)

Do news blackouts help journalists held captive?

At any given time over the past two years, as wars raged in Libya and then Syria, and as other conflicts ground on in South Asia and sub-Saharan Africa, a number of journalists have been held captive by a diverse array of forces, from militants and rebels to criminals and paramilitaries. And at any given…

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Supporters of former President Nasheed gather outside the Indian High Commission where Nasheed sought refuge to evade arrest. (AP/Ahmed Mujthaba)

Maldives journalists assaulted in political violence

New York, February 25, 2013–The Committee to Protect Journalists is alarmed by the recent string of attacks against journalists in the Maldives and calls on all sides in the political conflict to halt violence against the media.

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Tajik weekly ordered to pay damages for defamation

New York, February 25, 2013–The Committee to Protect Journalists is concerned by today’s defamation ruling against independent Tajik weekly Imruz News in closed court proceedings, the organization said.

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Online journalist reported missing in Egypt

New York, February 25, 2013–Egyptian authorities must do their utmost to determine the whereabouts and ensure the safety of Mohamed el-Sawi, an online journalist who was reported missing on February 21, the Committee to Protect Journalists said today. CPJ also calls on Egypt to stop using the law to intimidate journalists and prevent them from…

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An undated photo of Olivier Voisin. (AFP)

French photographer killed in Syria’s Idlib province

New York, February 25, 2013–A French freelance photographer died in a Turkish hospital on Sunday from shrapnel wounds he received while covering the unrest in Syria’s Idlib province three days earlier, according to news reports. Olivier Voisin, 38, had contributed work to several local and international publications, including Le Monde, The Guardian, and Agence France-Presse.…

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Unidentified gunman kills Peruvian photographer in Lima

Bogota, Colombia, February 25, 2013–Authorities in Peru should immediately determine the motive behind the murder of a journalist on Saturday and bring the perpetrators to justice, the Committee to Protect Journalists said today.

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Kenyan Prime Minister and presidential candidate Raila Odinga waves to supporters at a campaign rally in Mombasa on Sunday. (Reuters/Joseph Okanga)

As Kenya votes, journalists must take precautions

Election-related violence is a worry for journalists in many countries, but perhaps nowhere more so than Kenya, where presidential polls will be held March 4. In the aftermath of the nation’s last presidential elections in 2007, over one thousand people were killed in ethnic and political violence, live news broadcasts were banned, and the press…

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Local radio journalist shot dead in Brazil

New York, February 25, 2013–A local radio reporter who often denounced crime on his show was shot dead on Friday in northern Brazil, according to news reports. The Committee to Protect Journalists condemns the murder and calls on Brazilian authorities to conduct a thorough investigation and bring the perpetrators to justice.

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A guard patrols the hallways of Evin Prison. (Reuters/Morteza Nikoubazl)

With another arrest, Iran continues crackdown on press

New York, February, 22, 2013–Yet another journalist has been arrested in Iran as part of the broad crackdown aimed at silencing dissent before Iran’s presidential elections in June, according to news reports. The Committee to Protect Journalists calls on authorities to halt their pattern of imprisoning journalists and instead allow members of the press to…

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Rajapaksa regime under UNHRC, Commonwealth scrutiny

On February 13, Navi Pillay, the U.N. high commissioner for human rights, said in her annual report to the U.N. Human Rights Council (UNHRC) that Sri Lanka’s government has not taken enough steps recommended by its own Lessons Learnt and Reconciliation Commission (LLRC). Although the LLRC is seen as a flawed attempt to heal Sri Lanka…

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