2014
Turkish president should veto Internet bill
San Francisco, February 6, 2014–The Committee to Protect Journalists calls on Turkish President Abdullah Gül to veto the Internet bill passed Wednesday by the Turkish Parliament. The bill would grant the Turkish government unprecedented control over the Internet by allowing Web pages to be blocked without a court order, requiring mandatory data retention by Internet…
Attacks on the Press
CPJ to launch annual global assessment of press freedom New York, February 5, 2014–The Committee to Protect Journalists will launch Attacks on the Press: Journalism on the World’s Front lines, a yearly assessment of the state of press freedom worldwide, at a press conference on February 12 at the United Nations.
Mexican crime reporter abducted in Veracruz
New York, February 5, 2014–Armed assailants today abducted Mexican crime beat reporter Gregorio Jiménez de la Cruz in the town of Coatzacoalcos, Veracruz state, according to news reports. The Committee to Protect Journalists calls on the kidnappers to release him immediately.
Attacks on journalists persist amid protests in Ukraine
New York, February 5, 2014–At least two international journalists reported being abducted and beaten while covering protests in Ukraine on Friday, according to news reports. The attack comes as two local press freedom groups each reported that more than 100 journalists have been attacked or briefly detained since the nationwide protests began in late November.
Somaliland authorities ban international broadcaster
Nairobi, February 5, 2014–Authorities from the semi-autonomous republic of Somaliland on Monday indefinitely banned the U.K.-based private broadcaster Universal TV in connection with its critical coverage of the president, local journalists told CPJ. The station has complied with the directive and is not broadcasting in Somaliland, according to news reports.
CPJ to release Risk List
10 places where press freedom deteriorated New York, February 4, 2014–The Committee to Protect Journalists’ Risk List identifying the 10 places where press freedom declined most significantly in the past year will be released on Thursday, February 6. Mass surveillance, fatalities, and increased censorship are among detrimental developments. The Risk List is part of CPJ’s…
Turkish Internet bill would deepen press freedom crisis
The Turkish parliament is on the verge of voting on radical censorship measures that, if approved, would allow the government to block individual URLs without prior judicial review, mandate Internet data retention for periods of up to two years, and consolidate Internet Service Providers (ISPs) into a single association, among other changes. If passed, the…
Cartoonist sanctioned under Ecuador’s communications law
Bogotá, February 3, 2014- The Committee to Protect Journalists condemns the decision by Ecuador’s media oversight agency on Friday to use the country’s communications law to sanction the leading local daily El Universo over a critical cartoon. The agency fined the daily and demanded that the cartoonist “correct” the cartoon within 72 hours, according to…