The vicious murder of Wall Street Journal reporter Daniel Pearl in Pakistan focused international attention on the dangers faced by journalists covering the U.S. “war on terror,” yet most attacks on journalists in Asia happened far from the eyes of the international press. In countries such as Bangladesh and the Philippines, reporters covering crime and…
Shortly after U.S. president George W. Bush arrived in South Korea’s capital, Seoul, in February 2002 for a state visit, the North Korean state news agency, KCNA, reported a miracle: that a cloud in the shape of a Kimjongilia, the flower named after the country’s leader, Kim Jong Il, had appeared over North Korea. “Even…
During 2002, Thailand’s reputation as a regional haven of constitutionally guaranteed free expression was frequently assaulted by the country’s powerful prime minister, Thaksin Shinawatra, and his political allies. The government booted radio and television programs off the air, threatened Thai journalists with financial investigations and foreign reporters with expulsion, and engaged in angry exchanges with…
New York, February 14, 2003—The Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ) today sent a letter of inquiry to Thai prime minister Thaksin Shinawatra urging his government to ensure a thorough investigation into the murder of reporter Surapong Ritthi, who was killed on February 11 in southern Phuket Province. Several of the journalist’s colleagues in Phuket believe…
February 6, 2003 TO: His Excellency Samdech Hun Sen Prime Minister, Kingdom of Cambodia Khemarin Palace Phnom Penh, Cambodia Via facsimile: +855-23-725-432 Your Excellency: The Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ) is requesting information about the arrest of Mam Sonando, owner and manager of Beehive (Sombok Khmum) radio station, and In Chan Sivutha, editor of the…
Bangladesh: TIPU SULTAN For Tipu Sultan, an award-winning free-lance reporter from Bangladesh, writing the truth almost cost him his life. On January 25, 2001, Sultan was abducted and savagely beaten by about 15 thugs wielding baseball bats, hockey sticks, and iron rods after producing an article accusing a local legislator of criminal activity. Joynal Hazari,…
Journalists across Asia faced extraordinary pressures in 2001. Risks included reporting on war and insurgency, covering crime and corruption, or simply expressing a dissenting view in an authoritarian state. CPJ’s two most striking indices of press freedom are the annual toll of journalists killed around the world and our list of journalists imprisoned at the…
When populist telecommunications billionaire Thaksin Shinawatra and his Thai Rak Thai (Thai Love Thai) party came to power with a solid majority in January, the stage was set for an ongoing confrontation between the new prime minister, eager to contrive a positive public image, and the freewheeling Thai press.