Washington, November 20, 2008–On the day Ugandan editor Andrew Mwenda was introduced here as a recipient of a CPJ International Press Freedom Award, police back home summoned the journalist for questioning over his magazine’s hard-hitting political coverage.
Since 2001, CPJ has documented the cases of 340 journalists forced into exile after their reporting exposed them to harassment, violence, or imprisonment. They face many difficulties in their new homes, from language and cultural adjustments to emotional and economic hardships. Here are five snapshots of journalists in exile.
On Wednesday, the U.S. State Department announced it decided to issue visas to two Cuban journalists who had previously been denied reentry into the U.S. As a footnote to the transcript of spokesman Sean McCormack’s discussion about the case of Cuban journalists Ilsa Rodriguez Santana and her husband, Tomas Anael Granados Jimenez, which was reviewed…
The Committee to Protect Journalists urges you to make your government’s commitment to obtain the release of all imprisoned Cuban journalists a priority of Spain’s foreign policy. Since you first took office in April 2004, your government has played a decisive role in helping to secure the release of several dissidents, including nine independent journalists. In February, shortly after Spain announced the resumption of cooperation programs with Cuba, the government of President Raúl Castro released four prisoners, including independent journalists José Gabriel Ramón Castillo and Alejandro González Raga, who are now living in exile in Spain.
IPFA Awards 2008 To Attend the Awards Dinner (PDF) Bilal Hussein Danish Karokhel and Farida Nekzad Andrew Mwenda Héctor Maseda Gutiérrez Beatrice Mtetwa New York, September 16, 2008–The Committee to Protect Journalists will honor courageous journalists from Iraq, Afghanistan, Uganda, and Cuba with its 2008 International Press Freedom Awards at a ceremony in November. Bilal…
Imprisoned since March 2003 To Attend the Benefit Dinner (PDF) | Awards 2008 |Announcement of the Awards | Bilal Hussein| Danish Karokhel and Farida Nekzad | Andrew Mwenda | Beatrice Mtetwa Maseda Gutiérrez, 65, is the oldest of 21 journalists behind bars in Cuba. Arrested in the government’s March 2003 crackdown on the independent press, he…
We announced the 2008 International Press Freedom Award recipients on Tuesday, and the news has been well-received worldwide. Bilal Hussein of Iraq, Danish Karokhel and Farida Nekzad of Afghanistan, Andrew Mwenda of Uganda, and Héctor Maseda Gutiérrez of Cuba will all be honored by CPJ on November 25 for their courageous work. Beatrice Mtetewa, of Zimbabwe will…
Two articles on the labor exploitation of prisoners in Havana’s Güanajay Prison appeared over the weekend on the Miami-based news Web sites CubaNet and PayoLibre. The articles detailed the use of prisoners as free labor in a local shoe factory, and described the terrible conditions under which the 28 men work. Though not written by…
On July 18, Juan Carlos Herrera Acosta went on a hunger strike to demand better prison conditions. Three days later, he sewed his mouth shut to intensify his protest. This is not the first time that Herrera Acosta has self-mutilated in order to garner attention for his plight.