2016
CPJ testifies on Turkey’s press freedom record after failed coup attempt
CPJ Europe and Central Asia Program Coordinator Nina Ognianova today testified before the Europe, Eurasia, and Emerging Threats Subcommittee of the U.S. House Foreign Affairs Committee, at the hearing, “Turkey after the July Coup Attempt.”
Why proposed bill could mean the end of independent journalism in Iran
The Iranian government will address the United Nation’s General Assembly this month for the last time before President Hassan Rouhani seeks re-election next year. The international appearance would be a good chance for Rouhani’s administration to discuss its record in office.
Arrest warrant for muckraking U.S. journalist
New York, September 12, 2016 — Prosecutors in the U.S. state of North Dakota should immediately drop all criminal charges against broadcast journalist Amy Goodman, the Committee to Protect Journalists said today. Goodman, who hosts the global news program Democracy Now!, faces criminal trespass charges in connection with her reporting on protests against the construction…
Turkey Crackdown Chronicle: Week of September 11
Eid holiday leaves detained writers in legal limbo, lawyers say Veysel Ok and Ergin Cinmen, lawyers for Mehmet and Ahmet Altan, two prominent writers detained four days ago, yesterday made a joint statement saying that because of the Eid holiday they could not find the responsible prosecutor or a court in which to appeal their…
Ethiopian journalist Yusuf Getachew released from jail
New York, September 10, 2016–Ethiopian authorities today released Yusuf Getachew, editor-in-chief of Ye Muslimoch Guday (Muslim Affairs), who has been imprisoned since his arrest in July 2012, a relative of the journalist told CPJ. Yusuf was freed on the day that several prisoners were released as part of a presidential pardon for Ethiopia’s new year…
Police raid newspaper after critical documentary airs in Maldives
Bangkok, September 9, 2016 – Authorities in the Maldives should cease harassing the Maldives Independent, the Committee to Protect Journalists said today. Police raided the daily newspaper’s office hours after the Qatari broadcaster Al-Jazeera aired a documentary produced by the paper’s former editor alleging high-level corruption in the Maldives.
Venezuelan journalist arrested after reporting on protest
Bogotá, Colombia, September 7, 2016–Venezuelan authorities should immediately release online and radio journalist Braulio Jatar Alonso, the Committee to Protect Journalists said today. Domestic intelligence officers detained Jatar on September 3, a day after he reported on an anti-government protest.
Journalist detained over criminal defamation complaint in Bangladesh
Bangkok, September 6, 2016–Bangladeshi journalist Siddiqur Rahman Khan has been detained since September 1 after a criminal defamation complaint was filed against him under Article 57 of the 2006 Information and Communication Technology Act, according to news reports. The Committee to Protect Journalists called today for Khan’s immediate release and an end to the use…
Turkey Crackdown Chronicle: Week of September 4
Police raid Kurdish magazine office Police raided Istanbul office of the pro-Kurdish magazine Özgür Halk today, the pro-Kurdish Dicle News Agency (DİHA) reported. DİHA reported that the raid, which was in progress at the time of publication, was related to the magazine’s feature commemorating August 15, the date the banned Kurdistan Worker’s Party (PKK) took…