Myanmar junta raids Rakhine State news agency, arrests journalist
Bangkok, November 3, 2023—Myanmar’s military regime must immediately release Rakhine State journalist Htet Aung and allow the independent Development Media Group news agency to operate freely, the Committee to Protect Journalists said Friday. On Sunday, soldiers arrested Development Media Group reporter Htet Aung while he was taking photos of soldiers making donations to Buddhist monks…
CPJ, partners call for journalists’ protection in Vietnam ahead of country’s human rights review
New York, November 2, 2023—Journalists in Vietnam are facing widespread threats and mistreatment, and have been routinely detained or imprisoned for their reporting and commentary, according to a joint submission to the United Nations prepared by the Committee to Protect Journalists, Freedom House, and Robert F. Kennedy Human Rights. The joint submission is being released…
At least 27 Bangladeshi journalists attacked, harassed while covering political rallies
New York, November 1, 2023 – Bangladesh authorities must immediately and impartially investigate the assaults on at least 27 journalists covering recent political rallies and hold the perpetrators accountable, the Committee to Protect Journalists said Wednesday. On Saturday, October 28, at least 27 journalists covering rallies in the capital of Dhaka were attacked by supporters…
Faces of impunity across the world
CPJ’s 2023 Global Impunity Index lists the top 12 countries where the murderers of journalists go free. But impunity knows no borders. The mosaic below shows the faces of slain journalists around the world. Beneath each journalist’s photo is the location of their death. Click the images for more details about these unsolved cases. (Photo grid by Geoff McGhee)
Haiti joins list of countries where killers of journalists most likely to go unpunished
By Arlene Getz/CPJ Editorial Director The persistent lack of justice for murdered reporters is a major threat to press freedom. Ten years after the United Nations declared an international day to end impunity for crimes against journalists – and more than 30 years after CPJ began documenting these killings – almost 80% of their killings…
CPJ calls on Sri Lanka to reconsider bills likely to undermine press freedom
New York, October 18, 2023—Sri Lankan authorities should withdraw the proposed Online Safety Bill and Anti-Terrorism Bill or significantly amend them in line with international human rights standards, the Committee to Protect Journalists said Wednesday. In parliament on October 3, Public Security Minister Tiran Alles tabled the Online Safety Bill, which would empower a five-member…
CPJ joins call for India to release detained journalists, stop using counterterror law against media
The Committee to Protect Journalists on Friday joined 11 rights organizations in calling on the Indian government to immediately release all journalists arrested in politically motivated cases and to cease targeting critics under the anti-terror Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act, pending its amendment in line with international human rights standards. Read the full statement:
Tipping the scales: Journalists’ lawyers face retaliation around the globe
The smears began the day Christian Ulate began representing jailed Guatemalan journalist José Rubén Zamora: tweets accusing the lawyer of being a leftist or questioning his legal credentials. He began to fear he was being surveilled. Ulate had taken over the case in August 2022 from two other lawyers, Romeo Montoya García and Mario Castañeda,…
Bangladesh national election 2024: Journalist safety guide
Bangladesh is scheduled to hold general elections by January 2024. Amid questions over the potential legitimacy of the elections, clashes are already on the rise both between and within the political parties, and journalists have frequently been caught in the crosshairs. Ahead of the upcoming election, Bangladeshi police have procured large amounts of shotgun bullets,…
Taliban intelligence agents detain 3 Radio Nasim journalists
New York, October 9, 2023—Taliban authorities should immediately and unconditionally release journalists Sultan Ali Jawadi, Saifullah Rezaei, and Mojtaba Qasemi and cease harassing the press in Afghanistan, the Committee to Protect Journalists said Monday. On Saturday, three Taliban intelligence operatives took the independent Radio Nasim’s director, Jawadi, and two of its journalists, Rezaei and Qasemi,…