John Emerson

The Israeli army continued to imperil reporters and restrict their work in the occupied West Bank and Gaza Strip, making the area one of the most complicated and dangerous assignments for journalists in the Middle East. During 2003, two journalists were shot and killed by Israel Defense Forces (IDF) fire. Others encountered harsh treatment at…

The brutal murder of a French journalist in the Ivory Coast in October highlighted the lack of security in the country in 2003. The killing came after the collapse of the government of national reconciliation in September, when rebels walked out and accused President Laurent Gbagbo of refusing to fully implement the peace process. Despite…

The new government of Prime Minister Faisal al-Fayez, formed in October 2003, pledged to improve basic freedoms in Jordan. But if the last two years are any indication, the task will be formidable. Since 2001, Jordan has witnessed a sharp erosion of liberties, chief among them press freedom. After King Abdullah II dissolved Parliament in…

President Nursultan Nazarbayev continued his intense persecution of Kazakhstan’s independent media in 2003, silencing government critics and sidelining opposition to his autocratic policies and control over the country’s billion-dollar oil and gas industries. Anyone who criticizes the president, his family, and his associates can be criminally prosecuted, and the government’s growing persecution of the media…

The December 2002 electoral victory of President Mwai Kibaki’s National Rainbow Coalition (NARC) brought high hopes for a new era of democracy, economic recovery, and respect for human rights after the 24-year rule of former President Daniel arap Moi and his KANU party. However, the euphoric atmosphere quickly dissipated.

In the lead-up to the U.S.-led war in Iraq, hundreds of international journalists assembled in Kuwait, the main launching pad for the U.S. invasion. Although journalists were able to report freely within the country, those seeking to cross the border into Iraq encountered stiff resistance from the Kuwaiti military.

Once regarded as one of Central Asia’s more progressive countries, impoverished Kyrgyzstan has become highly repressive when it comes to the press. Despite having cast himself as a liberal when he took office in 1991, in recent years President Askar Akayev has tightened the government’s grip on the independent and opposition media.

Laos likes to keep to itself, and the Communist government does everything in its power to see that it stays that way. The country is one of the most isolated and information-starved in Asia, with no independent media of any kind. In 2001, the government announced that limited ownership of private media would be allowed,…

Lebanese media feature diverse opinions, aggressive question-and-answer television programs with government officials, and lively criticism of authorities and policies. In addition, the prevalence of satellite dishes gives Lebanese citizens access to other Arab and international TV stations.

With rebel forces overring the capital, Monrovia, and the international community clamoring for his departure, Liberian President Charles Taylor resigned and accepted exile in Nigeria on August 11. Taylor’s departure paved the way for a transitional national government–comprised, in part, of representatives from two rebel groups, as well as members of Taylor’s government–to lead the…