AFGHANISTAN The Taliban Islamist militia re-emerged in Afghanistan while the government of President Hamid Karzai wavered in its commitment to Western-style media. Despite the proliferation of media outlets since the fall of the Taliban government in 2001, reporters complained of little or no cooperation from officials, who were unwilling to meet with them or allow…
ARGENTINA President Néstor Kirchner’s administration continued its practice of funneling government advertising to friendly news outlets and withholding it from critical media. Amid increased tension between Kirchner and the press, authorities were also accused of editorial interference in the abrupt cancellation of two independent shows on state-owned broadcast networks.
BANGLADESH Rioting kicked off a three-month electoral season in October as the ruling Bangladesh National Party (BNP) was accused of bias in the installation of an interim government and election commissioner. Fears of physical attacks against a politically divided press corps deepened along with the political crisis, as leaders of the rival Awami League threatened…
BELARUS Determined to forestall the kind of democratic uprising that toppled the government in neighboring Ukraine, authoritarian leader Aleksandr Lukashenko and his government crushed dissent in the run-up to the March presidential election—and well beyond. Official results showed that Lukashenko collected 83 percent of the vote to gain a third term, but international observers said…
Versão em português Although freedom of expression is enshrined in Brazil’s 1988 constitution, journalists’ ability to cover the news was impeded by judges whose legal interpretations effectively restricted the press. During the run-up to the October 1 general election, electoral courts banned media outlets from covering corruption allegations against political candidates.
BURMA Military-run Burma, also known as Myanmar, remained one of the most repressive places for journalists, trailing only North Korea on CPJ’s 10 Most Censored Countries list. The junta, which calls itself the State Peace and Development Council (SPDC), exerted Orwellian control over all media, harassing or jailing journalists who strayed from the official line…
BURUNDI Under fire for alleged corruption and human rights abuses, the government of former rebel leader Pierre Nkurunziza cracked down on a wide range of critical voices, including those in the press, during its first year in power. Authorities imprisoned a journalist for five months after he allegedly slandered the state in a private barroom…