Gulnoza Said
Gulnoza Said, CPJ's Europe and Central Asia program coordinator, is a journalist and press freedom advocate with over 20 years of experience in New York, Prague, Bratislava, and Tashkent. At CPJ, she has conducted several missions to countries in Europe and Central Asia, and advocated for greater press freedom and the release of jailed journalists at forums including the U.S. Congress, the United Nations, and the OSCE. Before joining CPJ in 2016, she was a journalist and covered issues including elections, politics, media, religion, and human rights with a focus on Central Asia, Russia, and Turkey. She also worked in communications for the United Nations Secretariat and the UNDP. Her op-eds, reports, and comments have appeared in CNN, the BBC, The New York Times, The Washington Post, The Guardian, PBS, NBC, Voice of America, RFE/RL, Fergana, Eurasianet, and other outlets, and she authored the Uzbekistan chapter in a book on the study of social entrepreneurship. Follow her on LinkedIn.
‘Not at the finish line’: Slovak editor Peter Bárdy on ending impunity for Ján Kuciak’s murder
Last month brought mixed news in the quest for justice for 27-year-old Slovak investigative journalist Ján Kuciak, who was murdered with his fiancée Martina Kušnírová in their home outside Bratislava on February 21, 2018. The alleged mastermind, businessman Marián Kočner, is behind bars for forgery; on January 12 an appeals court upheld a lower court ruling sentencing Kočner to…
Four press freedom trends to watch amid Belarus’s antigovernment protests
The images coming out of Belarus look like scenes from a blockbuster film: A president clinging to power striding out of a helicopter holding a Kalashnikov assault rifle, while his gun-toting teenage son and heir apparent walks alongside him in a helmet and military vest; the protesters calling for the president’s removal singing songs, playing music, and taking off their…
COVID-19 lockdowns pose challenges for imprisoned journalists observing Ramadan
This year, the Islamic month of Ramadan, which started on April 24 and will continue through May 23, is particularly challenging for Muslim journalists in jail to observe safely, their family members and friends told CPJ.
CPJ joins letter expressing concern about Kyrgyzstan media restrictions during pandemic
CPJ and 23 other members of IFEX, a global network of free expression organizations, sent a letter yesterday expressing concern over the press freedom implications of Kyrgyzstan’s COVID-19 state of emergency, which has been in place since March 22.
Journalist Soltan Achilova on covering COVID-19 in Turkmenistan, one of the few countries with 0 confirmed cases
Soltan Achilova is a freelance photojournalist based in Ashgabat, the capital of Turkmenistan, who covers social issues for independent foreign-based media outlets including Khronika Turkmenistana.
Kyrgyz president must release journalist Azimjon Askarov amid COVID-19 epidemic
CPJ today joined eight other human rights and press freedom organizations to call for the immediate release of journalist and human rights defender Azimjon Askarov, who has been serving a life sentence in retaliation for his reporting since June 2010.
Journalist Afgan Mukhtarli: ‘Azerbaijani prisoners are facing death under coronavirus quarantine’
Azerbaijani journalist Afgan Mukhtarli was released from prison on March 17, 2020, after nearly three years in jail, and flown to Berlin, where he was reunited with his wife and daughter. He served half of his six-year sentence on charges that Azerbaijani authorities brought in retaliation for his investigative reporting, as CPJ research shows.
Chechen blogger and government critic Tumso Abdurakhmanov: ‘I am constantly at risk’
Tumso Abdurakhmanov, a prominent blogger critical of the Chechen authorities, survived a violent assault in his home in Swedish town of Gävle on February 26, 2020. Two Russian nationals have been arrested in connection with the attack, according to a report by Agence France-Presse. CPJ documented the incident and spoke to the blogger after his…
CPJ joins call for Kyrgyzstan to ensure safety of journalists covering corruption
CPJ and four other international organizations today sent a letter to Kyrgyzstan authorities demanding they stop harassing local journalists who have covered alleged official corruption, and urging authorities to investigate threats and attacks against journalists.
Malta must avoid political interference in Caruana Galizia investigation
CPJ and nine other international press freedom organizations today released a joint statement reiterating that the investigation into the assassination of Maltese blogger Daphne Caruana Galizia must be independent and free from political interference.