Cambodian journalist Hem Vanna arrested after cyberscam report
Bangkok, February 6, 2026—The Committee to Protect Journalists calls on Cambodian authorities to immediately and unconditionally release journalist Hem Vanna, who was arrested after publishing a report about a suspected cyberscam compound. On February 3, Vanna, a journalist with the local independent HVNN TV Online, was summoned by military police in the western border town…
CPJ calls for release of 2 Chinese journalists held after reporting on corruption
New York, February 6, 2026—Chinese authorities must immediately release independent journalists Liu Hu and Wu Yingjiao, who were detained days after publishing a report accusing a local official of corruption, the Committee to Protect Journalists said on Friday. Liu, 50, and Wu, 34, were detained on February 1, news reports said. The following day police in the southwestern city of…
Pakistani journalist Sohrab Barkat detained for more than 60 days as employer shuts Islamabad office
New York, February 5, 2026—Pakistani authorities must immediately and unconditionally release journalist Sohrab Barkat and ensure that his employer Siasat can continue to report the news freely, the Committee to Protect Journalist said on Thursday. Barkat was detained on November 26 on his way to attend a United Nations conference and is facing three separate…
Ahead of Bangladesh election, CPJ urges political parties to protect press freedom
The Committee to Protect Journalists has written to Bangladesh’s major political parties ahead of a national election scheduled for February 12, calling for urgent steps to safeguard press freedom and journalists’ safety. In separate letters, CPJ called on the Bangladesh Nationalist Party, Jamaat-e-Islami Bangladesh, the National Citizen Party, and the Jatiya Party to make public…
Myanmar journalist Myat Thu Kyaw seriously injured in alleged prison assault
Bangkok, January 28, 2026—The Committee to Protect Journalists strongly condemns the alleged physical abuse of imprisoned Myanmar journalist Myat Thu Kyaw at Yangon’s Insein Prison and calls on authorities to immediately release him on humanitarian grounds. Prison authorities orchestrated an assault on Myat Thu Kyaw and three other political prisoners using members of an incarcerated…
Pakistan journalist Nadir Abbas Baloch targeted with intimidation, threats
New York, January 27, 2026—Pakistani authorities must end their intimidation of journalist Nadir Abbas Baloch, who has been summoned twice for questioning in the past month over his reporting, and ensure his safety following several threats against him, the Committee to Protect Journalists said Tuesday. On December 12, the National Cyber Crime Investigation Agency (NCCIA)…
CPJ demands justice 15 years after the murder of Philippine journalist Gerry Ortega
Manila, January 27, 2026—Fifteen years after the murder of radio journalist Gerry Ortega, the Committee to Protect Journalists has urged Philippine authorities to swiftly deliver justice for his family and end impunity in one of the world’s most dangerous countries to be a journalist. Ortega was gunned down in 2011 outside a thrift store in…
#FreeFrenchieMaeCumpio: NGOs condemn journalist’s conviction as blow to press freedom in the Philippines
January 22, 2026—A coalition of international and local press freedom organizations condemns the sentencing of Filipino journalist Frenchie Mae Cumpio for between 12 and 18 years in prison in her terrorism financing case, denouncing it as a grave miscarriage of justice. Lawyers have moved for reconsideration of the verdict. Frenchie has meanwhile been acquitted on…
CPJ condemns ‘absurd’ prison sentence of up to 18 years for Philippine journalist Frenchie Mae Cumpio
Tacloban City, January 22, 2026—The Committee to Protect Journalists on Thursday condemned the harsh 12- to 18-year prison sentence handed down to Philippine journalist Frenchie Mae Cumpio after she was found guilty of financing terrorism, and called on authorities to immediately free her and stop targeting journalists. “This absurd verdict shows that the various pledges…
2025 journalist jailings remain stubbornly high; harsh prison conditions pervasive
For the fifth year in a row, more than 300 journalists were imprisoned worldwide as of the end of 2025, according to CPJ’s annual prison census. These record-setting numbers reflect growing authoritarianism and escalating numbers of armed conflicts worldwide. Often, journalists are held under cruel and life-threatening conditions – “a cemetery of the living,” as one freed Palestinian prisoner described it.