One year on: Remembering Wali Khan Babar
Today is the first anniversary of the killing of Geo TV broadcast reporter Wali Khan Babar in Karachi, a case that has almost been forgotten, particularly in the shadow of the release of the judicial inquiry into the murder of journalist Saleem Shahzad. The report on Shahzad has been posted on the Ministry of Information’s…
In mass amnesty, nine journalists released in Burma
Bangkok, January 13, 2012–The Committee to Protect Journalists welcomes the release of nine journalists who were freed as part of a mass release of at least 600 political prisoners in Burma on Friday, but calls on President Thein Sein to release reporters still being held in detention and to implement press reforms that would end…
Fiji’s emergency ends, but media oppression continues
Fiji’s military leadership on Saturday lifted emergency regulations it had been using to stymie the country’s press since 2009, according to local government websites. Good news? Maybe. Yet the regime still restricts the media, and anyone else who dares to question the legitimacy of the 2006 coup that brought its leaders to power–suggesting they are…
No culprits named in Shahzad investigation, media reports
About six months after it was launched, the commission investigating the murder of journalist Saleem Shahzad submitted its report to Prime Minister Yousuf Raza Gilani on Tuesday. In the past, the government has not released results of such investigations into the deaths of journalists, but there might be an exception this time. There are early…
The HRCP’s call to address threats against journalists
A quick pointer to a statement issued by the Human Rights Commission of Pakistan on Monday: It said, in part, that “The HRCP is alarmed at reports of threats received by journalists on account of their work.” The commission asked the government to ensure that threats to journalists end and that risks associated with practicing…
Sri Lanka’s woeful January way-points
For Sri Lankan journalists, January might be the cruelest month. In January 2011, Sonali Samarasinghe wrote about the death of her husband Lasantha Wickramatunga two years earlier on January 8, 2009. In January 2010 I reported in “Sri Lanka: A year later, still failing to fight media attacks” about the government’s inactivity in investigating Wickramatunga’s…
Philippine journalist shot, killed in front of wife, daughter
Bangkok, January 6, 2012–The Committee to Protect Journalists condemns the shooting death of Philippine radio commentator and community newspaper publisher Christopher Guarin and calls on authorities to bring the perpetrators to justice quickly.
Vietnamese police detain reporter who covered corruption
New York, January 4, 2012–The Committee to Protect Journalists condemns Vietnamese journalist Nguyen Van Khuong’s detention on Monday in Ho Chi Minh City on charges related to “giving bribes.” Khuong can be held in detention for as long as four months while authorities investigate his case, according to official statements.