THAILAND
SEPTEMBER 30, 2005 Posted October 11, 2005 Sondhi Limthongkul, Sarocha Porn-udomsak, Channel 9 LEGAL ACTION Thai Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra filed two lawsuits over a September 9 commentary by political talk show hosts Sondhi Limthongkul and Sarocha Porn-udomsak on state-owned Channel 9. The commentary cited an article that implied that Thaksin was disloyal to King…
Missing journalist case should be priority, CPJ urges
Your Excellency: The Committee to Protect Journalists is deeply troubled by the stalled police investigation into the disappearance of Elyuddin Telaumbanua, a journalist with the daily Berita Sore who was reported missing on the island of Nias off the northwestern coast of Sumatra on August 22.
Newspaper suspended after exposing mining accident cover-up
New York, September 27, 2005— The Committee to Protect Journalists today condemned the suspension of a Chinese daily for reporting in August on the cover-up of a coal mining accident in the central city of Ruzhou. Henan Shang Bao (Henan Business News) was suspended for a month from September 17 for “inaccurate reporting” on orders…
China tightens restrictions for online news and commentary
New York, September 26, 2005—The Committee to Protect Journalists is deeply concerned by severe new restrictions for online news, which were issued by China’s State Council and the Ministry of Information Industry on Sunday. CPJ called the new regulations a “major setback for independent writers and Internet users in China.” Under the new regulations, any…
CHINA
SEPTEMBER 25 2005 October 17, 2005 All journalists CENSORED China’s State Council and the Ministry of Information Industry issued severe restrictions for online news. Under the new regulations, any individual or organization that posts news or commentary must first be approved by the State Council Information Office. Bulletin board systems (BBS), a widely used medium…
Jail sentence for online writer, the third this year
New York, September 22, 2005— The Committee to Protect Journalists today condemned the conviction of freelance journalist Zheng Yichun, the third Internet journalist this year to be sentenced to jail by Chinese authorities. A court in the northeastern port city of Yingkou on Tuesday handed Zheng a seven-year jail term to be followed by three…
Chinese Internet writer’s hunger strike reaches three weeks
New York, September 21, 2005—The Committee to Protect Journalists is extremely concerned about the health of imprisoned freelance writer Zhang Lin, who has been on a hunger strike for three weeks. Zhang’s lawyer Mo Shaoping told CPJ that his client plans to wage the strike for 100 days to protest an unjust, five-year prison sentence…
NEPAL
SEPTEMBER 19, 2005 Posted October 11, 2005 Harihar Singh Rathour, Kathmandu Post, and Kantipur IMPRISONED Authorities detained Harihar Singh Rathour, correspondent for the Kathmandu Post and Kantipur, without charge in the mid-western district of Dailekh. Authorities threatened to hold him under the Terrorist and Destructive Activities (Control and Punishment) Ordinance for allegedly collaborating with Maoist…