CPJ calls for swift and credible investigation into burglary of Ethiopia Insider office
Nairobi, July 20, 2023—In response to the recent burglary of the privately owned news outlet Ethiopia Insider, including the stealing of video production equipment, the Committee to Protect Journalists issued the following statement: “The burglary of Ethiopia Insider, an outlet with a reputation for critical and independent journalism, could have a devastating impact on its…
Uganda’s anti-homosexuality law poses free speech fears for journalists
Kuchu Times was founded eight years ago to give voice to Uganda’s LGBTQ+ community. Now, a new anti-homosexuality law is threatening this mission at a time when LGBTQ+ Ugandans are facing beatings and evictions. “People will tell us their stories and ask us not to put them out there, not until it is safer,” Kuchu…
M23 rebels ban radio show by displaced Congolese journalists
Kinshasa, July 19, 2023 – Leaders of the M23 rebel movement occupying Rutshuru in the eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo, should immediately reverse the latest ban on “Sauti ya Wahami,” a radio show produced by displaced journalists, and on Top Congo FM’s programming, the Committee to Protect Journalists said on Wednesday. In a July…
Burkina Faso suspends third French media outlet in under 8 months
Dakar, July 17, 2023—Burkinabè authorities should immediately reverse the suspension of French television news channel La Chaîne Info (LCI) and stop censoring local and foreign media coverage of the jihadist insurgency in Burkina Faso and the Sahel region, the Committee to Protect Journalists said Monday. On June 23, Burkina Faso’s media regulator, the Superior Council…
NGOs call for protection of journalists in Cameroon ahead of country’s UN human rights review
New York, July 17, 2023—Cameroonian journalists are facing lethal threats and false legal charges as they pursue reporting in the midst of Cameroon’s Anglophone conflict, according to a new report on press freedom and freedom of expression submitted to the United Nations by Freedom House, the Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ), and the American Bar…
Senegalese broadcaster Walf TV suspended for 1 month, threatened with permanent license revocation
On June 1, 2023, Senegalese Minister of Communication, Telecommunications, and Digital Economy Moussa Bocar Thiam ordered a 30-day suspension of Walf TV, the television broadcast service of the privately owned media group Wal Fadjri, over its coverage of ongoing countrywide protests. Authorities cut off Walf TV’s broadcast signal on June 1 and restored broadcasts on…
‘You better shut up’: A Ghana family’s relentless calls for justice
Kamilu Ibrahim Tahidu and his brothers gather every evening outside their family home in Ghana’s capital of Accra. They sit in a circle of plastic chairs and enjoy each others’ company. They pray together. And they never forget that one of them is missing. It’s been over four years since assassins came to their neighborhood,…
Ugandan journalists robbed, assaulted while covering election
On June 14, 2023, unidentified people assaulted or harassed at least four reporters covering local elections in the eastern Uganda district of Bukedea, according to a report by the privately owned broadcaster NTV Uganda, a statement by the Human Rights Network for Journalists-Uganda (HRNJ-U) local press rights group, and three of those journalists, who spoke…
CPJ calls for Zimbabwe president to reject ‘Patriot Bill’ threatening critical journalism
Lusaka, July 3, 2023—Zimbabwe President Emmerson Mnangagwa should not sign into law the overly broad Criminal Law (Codification and Reform) Amendment Bill as it seriously threatens the rights to freedom of expression and media freedom in Zimbabwe, the Committee to Protect Journalists said Monday. On June 7, Zimbabwe’s upper chamber of parliament approved the bill,…