In the Philippines, president’s husband withdraws 46 libel suits
New York, May 3, 2007—Jose Miguel Arroyo, husband of Philippine President Gloria Macapagal Arroyo, has withdrawn 46 criminal libel suits he had filed against 11 journalists. The Committee to Protect Journalists welcomed today’s news but said the suits should never have been brought. Withdrawal of the cases—which came because Arroyo was “grateful for surviving a…
Backsliders: The 10 countries where press freedom has most deteriorated
New York, May 2, 2007–Three nations in sub-Saharan Africa are among the places worldwide where press freedom has deteriorated the most over the last five years, a new analysis by the Committee to Protect Journalists has found. Ethiopia, where the government launched a massive crackdown on the private press by shutting newspapers and jailing editors,…
Amid civil strife, another Tamil journalist killed in Sri Lanka
New York, April 30, 2007—The Committee to Protect Journalists deplores the slaying on Sunday of Selvarajah Rajeewarnam, a reporter for the Tamil-language daily Uthayan, and calls on the government to investigate and quickly bring his assailants to justice. Rajeewarnam was aboard a bicycle on assignment in Jaffna when he was shot by unidentified motorcycle-riding gunmen…
In Pakistan, another TV station said to be shuttered
New York, April 26, 2007— Government regulators have ordered Royal TV off the air after its coverage of recent demonstrations concerning the dismissal of the chief judge of the country’s top court, the station said in a statement Wednesday. The largely Urdu-language station ordinarily broadcasts by satellite to the capital, Islamabad, and to nearby Rawalpindi,…
Prominent Internet writer detained in Vietnam
New York, April 25, 2007—The Committee to Protect Journalists journalist is gravely concerned about the recent arrest of Tran Khai Thanh Thuy, an award-winning journalist and writer. Thuy was taken into custody Saturday at her residence, where she was already being held under house arrest, according to news reports. She was charged with violating Article…
CPJ urges Pakistani president to halt recent government harassment
Dear President Musharaff: As Pakistanis prepare for elections and a possible change of national leadership in the coming months, the Committee to Protect Journalists calls on you to reverse the government’s recent anti-press actions and allow for greater public criticism of your administration in the media. Government harassment through legal, financial, and physical attacks on media houses runs contrary to your often-repeated claim of fostering a free press in Pakistan.
China issues decree on government transparencyNew rules contain significant limitations and do not ease state’s control of the press
New York, April 24, 2007—China’s State Council today publicized a decree signed by Premier Wen Jiabao to boost the transparency of government offices. But the new rules make broad exceptions for information deemed by authorities to threaten national security, social stability, public safety, and economic security.
In Sri Lanka, editor of Tamil magazine is killed in his home
New York, April 20, 2007—Subash Chandraboas, editor of the Tamil-language monthly magazine Nilam, was shot and killed in his home near Vavuniya on Monday. The Committee to Protect Journalists is investigating whether the killing was related to his work. The Free Media Movement (FMM), a media-rights organization that first reported the death, said it was…