Only the Gambian president has press freedom
On July 22, Gambian President Yahya Jammeh once again went after journalists in an interview on the country’s only state-run television station. The president made a thinly veiled threat toward six independent journalists currently facing “seditious publication” and “criminal defamation” charges in the country: “So they think they can hide behind so-called press freedom and…
Democratic Republic of Congo bans RFI
New York, July 30, 2009–The Committee to Protect Journalists called on authorities today in the Democratic Republic of Congo to lift a ban on the FM broadcasts of Radio France Internationale (RFI) across the Central African country. The government silenced the station in response to its coverage of the ongoing conflict in the east, RFI…
In Madagascar, media torn along partisan lines
“Are you sure about coming back here now?” My cousin in Antananarivo was a bit hesitant about the wisdom of my plan to visit the family while the political crisis was still weighing on the daily lives of Malagasy citizens. I had not been back to my home country in nine years until this summer.…
Anti-terrorism legislation further restricts Ethiopian press
Dear Prime Minister: We are writing to express our serious concerns about legislation that would further restrict press freedom in Ethiopia and about an ongoing pattern of criminal prosecutions, administrative restrictions, and Internet censorship. We are concerned that these measures, which official rhetoric has publicly justified as policies to safeguard the “constitutional order,” actually criminalize independent political coverage and infringe on press freedom as guaranteed by the Ethiopian Constitution. We call on you to use your influence to reverse this trend.
Walter Cronkite’s press freedom legacy
Walter Cronkite had such a profound impact in so many ways that one might overlook an important part of his legacy–his long efforts on behalf of international press freedom and his advocacy on behalf of local journalists around the world. Cronkite was a vital participant in the launch of the Committee to Protect Journalists 28…
In Namibia seal hunt, journalists said to become prey
July marks the start of seal hunting season in Namibia, where hunters will be allowed to kill more than 90,000 seals. British journalist Jim Wickens and South African cameraman Bart Smithers filmed the event near Cape Cross Colony on Thursday morning for a British advocacy organization, Ecostorm. That is, until the journalists became the hunted.
Media harassed in Brazzaville after disputed election
New York, July 17, 2009–The Committee to Protect Journalists is alarmed by the harassment of international journalists covering this week’s disputed presidential elections in Republic of Congo.On Wednesday, police smashed the camera of videographer Marlène Rabaud of France 24 while she was filming the dispersal of an opposition demonstration in the capital, Brazzaville, according to…