Asia

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…

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…

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)…

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…

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…

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…

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.

China, Myanmar, and Israel lead jailers of journalists in 2025 New York, January 21, 2026 — For the fifth consecutive year, more than 300 journalists were behind bars at year-end, according to a new report released by the Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ). China, Myanmar, and Israel were the leading jailers of journalists on the…

Amsterdam, January 21, 2026—Despite Pakistan’s repeated promises to protect press freedom, justice for murdered journalists remains out of reach. An investigation by international press freedom organizations has uncovered new evidence in the killing of journalist Shan Dahar, exposing police misconduct, political inaction, and years of impunity. Given the extensive evidence unearthed, and the suspected culprits…

New Delhi, January 21, 2026—The Committee to Protect Journalists on Wednesday called for authorities in the Indian-administered territory of Jammu and Kashmir to immediately end the harassment and intimidation of journalists, after at least two Kashmir-based correspondents for national media outlets were summoned by police in connection with their reporting. “Using police powers to summon…