Colombia’s Indigenous ‘communicators’ face special challenges reporting for their communities
Mabel Quinto Salas is a reporter for Radio Pa’yumat, a station in the Northern Cauca region of Colombia. But she doesn’t identify as a journalist. Instead, she calls herself a “community communicator,” a category that is common among Colombia’s Indigenous communities. “Communication is seen as a tool for visibility, for denunciation of human rights violations, but also for…
Brazilian journalist says city councilor attacked him with rocks in Minas Gerais state
Rio de Janeiro, May 20, 2022 – Authorities in Minas Gerais state must thoroughly investigate the attack on journalist Alexandre Megale and hold the perpetrator to account, the Committee to Protect Journalists said Friday. In the early afternoon of May 16, journalist Alexandre Megale said he was assaulted and hit with rocks by Paulo Luiz…
Guatemalan official files criminal suit against 3 journalists under violence against women law
Guatemala City, May 18, 2022 — Guatemalan authorities should drop all charges against three journalists from the independent newspaper elPeriódico and stop using laws intended to protect women from violence to target and intimidate reporters, the Committee to Protect Journalists said Wednesday. On May 13, Judge Anaelsee Ramírez formally notified elPeriódico publisher José Rubén Zamora,…
CPJ condemns Cuba’s new penal code as a threat to independent media
Miami, May 16, 2022 – In response to news reports that on Sunday, May 15, the Cuban National Assembly passed an amendment to the penal code that could severely damage independent journalism, the Committee to Protect Journalists issued the following statement expressing alarm: “We are alarmed by the passage of Cuba’s new penal code, which further criminalizes the…
Mexican journalists Yessenia Mollinedo and Johana García shot dead in Veracruz
Mexico City, May 13, 2022 – Mexican authorities should immediately, credibly, and transparently investigate the killings of journalists Yessenia Mollinedo Falconi and Sheila Johana García Olivera, the Committee to Protect Journalists said Friday. The journalists were getting into their car in the parking lot of a convenience store in Cosoleacaque, a town in the eastern…
Chilean journalist Francisca Sandoval dies after shooting at May 1 protest
Miami, May 12, 2022 – In response to news reports that Chilean journalist Francisca Sandoval died from injuries she sustained in a shooting while covering a protest on May 1, the Committee to Protect Journalists issued the following statement of condolence and condemnation: “We are saddened by the news of the death today of Chilean…
Mexican journalist Luis Enrique Ramírez found killed in Culiacán
Mexico City, May 10, 2022 – Mexican authorities should swiftly and thoroughly investigate the death of journalist Luis Enrique Ramírez, find those responsible, and bring them to justice, the Committee to Protect Journalists said Tuesday. On the morning of May 5, Ramírez’s body was found near a dirt road in the northwestern city of Culiacán,…
Suriname journalist detained, investigated on defamation charges after reporting on police
Miami, May 9, 2022 – Surinamese authorities should stop detaining and charging journalists for their work and scrap the country’s criminal defamation laws, the Committee to Protect Journalists said today. On May 3, journalist Mones Nazarali turned himself in at the police headquarters in the city of Nieuw Nickerie, in Suriname’s Nickerie district, after being…
Gunfire at Chilean workers’ demonstration injures 3 journalists; 1 in critical condition
Miami, May 4, 2022 — Chilean authorities must thoroughly investigate the shootings of three journalists covering a demonstration and hold those responsible to account, the Committee to Protect Journalists said Wednesday. On Sunday, May 1, gunmen opened fire during a Workers’ Day demonstration in the Barrio Meiggs area of Santiago, the capital, as well as…
CPJ joins call for Brazilian authorities, electoral candidates to respect press freedom
The Committee to Protect Journalists joined 10 Brazilian and international civil society groups and press freedom organizations in a statement marking World Press Freedom Day on May 3, 2022, calling for Brazilian authorities and candidates in upcoming elections to respect the role of a free press and ensure journalists can work safely. The statement notes…