In a limbo between Baghdad and the U.S.
Before the war, I was an artist, a sculptor, and an art teacher in Baghdad. Life wasn’t so easy back then and I had to find another job in order to make a better living for myself and my wife and two kids, but even so, life was sweeter than it is now–I didn’t have…
My incomplete mission: From the Gambia to the States
My intention to remain in my home country, to use my pen to correct injustice, and to champion press freedom was aborted by security threats that forced me and my family into exile. I left behind my beloved country and editorial desk in the hands of perpetrators.
Correcting the record on journalists (female or male, young or old)
Postings this week on two Web sites erroneously attributed statements about young female journalists to the Committee to Protect Journalists. Because the statements are completely contrary to our fundamental principles, we are taking a moment to make sure the record is clear.
A Gambian journalist remembers torture in detention
The unlawful detention of seven Gambian journalists since last Monday is serious cause for concern. These respected journalists were detained at the National Intelligence Agency headquarters in Banjul for “interrogation.” They have been denied access by legal representation, family members, friends, or colleagues. On Thursday, they were charged with sedition for criticizing President Yahya Jammeh’s…
Who will lead UNESCO?
Being director general of UNESCO is the definition of a plum diplomatic job. Headquartered in Paris, UNESCO’s mandate is to promote cultural exchanges and scientific research, or, as its charter more grandly puts it, “peace in the minds of men.” With the term of the current UNESCO head coming to an end, the diplomatic battle…
Gambia has ‘no stake’ in Hydara murder
Last week, President Yahya Jammeh, at left, discussed the unsolved 2004 murder case of editor Deyda Hydara in an interview on “One on One,” a weekly program on The Gambia Radio and Television Service. The government “has for long been accused by the international community and so-called human rights organisations for the murder of Deyda Hydara,…
Saberi to Lee and Ling: ‘You are not alone’
Roxana Saberi, who was imprisoned in Iran for nearly four months, offers her thoughts on the detentions of U.S. journalists Laura Ling and Euna Lee in North Korea. In this interview with CPJ, Saberi, left, said she was “amazed and very moved at the support I received” while in prison. “You are not alone,” she…
Somali journalists leave profession in fear as another dies
Somali journalists held an emotional press conference in Mogadishu today at the Sahafi Hotel after Sunday’s fatal shooting of the former director of Shabelle Media Network. (Sahafi means “journalist” in Arabic.) Roughly 15 journalists from different news outlets announced they were suspending their work because of security concerns. “We can no longer operate independently and…