CHAD President Idriss Déby’s government jailed several journalists and closed a community radio station in an unprecedented assault on the media. Equally unprecedented was the response of journalists, who organized protests, a one-week newspaper strike, and a blackout of all radio news bulletins. The protests, together with international pressure, kept the spotlight on the imprisoned…
CHINA President Hu Jintao consolidated his leadership in March during a legislative session that formalized the transition of power from Jiang Zemin. Hu’s administration distinguished itself by its hard-line stance against dissidents, intellectuals, and activists, intensifying a far-reaching and severe crackdown on the media. Central authorities arrested and prosecuted journalists under broad national security legislation,…
COLOMBIA In May, CPJ identified Colombia as one the world’s five most murderous countries for journalists, a notoriety earned by 12 work-connected slayings in the country since 2000. Over the past decade, 28 journalists in Colombia have been killed for their work. Still, deadly violence tapered off for the second consecutive year, with only one…
CUBA Cuba remained one of the world’s leading jailers of journalists, second only to China. Two journalists were imprisoned during the year, joining 22 others who have been jailed since a massive crackdown on the independent press in March 2003. On the second anniversary of that notorious sweep, more than 100 prominent Latin American writers—including…
The murder and attempted murder of journalists in 2005 sent a chill through the independent press in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC). Journalists operated in a tense pre-electoral climate, enduring threats and harassment from government officials and other powerful figures. Rampant corruption and a weak judiciary in a country still bearing the scars of…
EGYPT Press freedom was dealt a triple blow in 2005—in Parliament, in court, and on the street. President Hosni Mubarak failed to honor promises made in 2004 to introduce legislation that would decriminalize press offenses. A criminal court handed jail terms to three journalists from one of the country’s few independent newspapers for defaming a…
ETHIOPIA The government unleashed a sudden and far-reaching crackdown on the independent press in November following clashes between police and antigovernment protesters that left more than 40 people dead. Authorities detained more than a dozen journalists, issued a wanted list of editors and publishers, and threatened to charge journalists with treason, an offense punishable by…
THE GAMBIA The tightening of repressive media laws and the failure to solve the December 2004 murder of veteran journalist Deyda Hydara added to the climate of violence and intimidation faced by private media in 2005. President Yahya Jammeh said that the Gambia allowed “too much freedom of expression,” and local journalists feared that government…
GEORGIA Two years after the Rose Revolution toppled the corrupt regime of Eduard Shevardnadze and ushered in the promise of media reform, independent journalists feared the emergence of a new, subtler wave of repression. Several media owners have close ties to political leaders, journalists said, enabling authorities to exert behind-the-scenes pressure on front-line reporters and…
HAITI Amid civil unrest, political turmoil, and spiraling violence, the poorest country in the Western hemisphere remained a very dangerous place for journalists. The fall of former President Jean-Bertrand Aristide in 2004 created a political vacuum; street gangs, drug traffickers, corrupt police, ex-soldiers from the disbanded military, and the ousted leader’s supporters sought violently to…