UPDATED: May 16, 2006 Original Alert: December 12, 2005 Leykun Engeda, Dagim Wonchif IMPRISONED, LEGAL ACTION CPJ confirmed that Leykun Engeda, who was sentenced on December 9 to 15 months in prison, was released pending a decision in his appeal. The former editor-in-chief and publisher of the Amharic-language weekly Dagim Wonchif was convicted of publishing…
MAY 3, 2006 Posted: May 16, 2006 Sebastiao Canjera, Mabarwe Joao Mascarenhas, Mabarwe Patreque Francisco, Mabarwe IMPRISONED A prosecutor in the western district of Manica ordered three journalists from the community newspaper Mabarwe detained without charge, according to the local chapter of the Media Institute for Southern Africa (MISA) and local news reports. According to…
MAY 16, 2006 Posted: June 30, 2006 Neville De Silva, The Sunday Times, THREATENED A veteran Sri Lankan journalist based in London was threatened after a Web site that supports the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam ((LTTE)) posted his picture and accused him of being a Sri Lankan government spy. Neville De Silva, U.K. correspondent…
May 15, 2006 Posted: June 2, 2006 All Media THREATENED National Security Minister John Michuki warned local journalists that he would use force against local media outlets that criticized the government, according to local and international news reports. Referring to March raids on a prominent newspaper, The Standard, and a television station owned by the…
MAY 15, 2006 Posted: May 15, 2006 Fernando Batul, DYRB Radio THREATENED Two unexploded hand grenades were found at the home of radio commentator Fernando “Dong” Batul, in Puerto Princessa on Palawan Island, according to the Philippines Center for Media Freedom and Responsibility.
May 14, 2006 Posted: June 9, 2006 Dupont Ntererwa, Centre Lokole ATTACKED Ntererwa, a journalist with the Centre Lokole radio production studio in Bukavu, eastern DRC, was attacked by four youths in civilian clothes, who threatened him over his reporting on insecurity in the town, the studio said in a press release. The journalist told…
MAY 14, 2006 Posted May 30, 2006 Africa Independent Television (AIT) CENSORED Plainclothes security agents told managers at the Abuja bureau of Africa Independent Television (AIT) to stop broadcasting a privately produced 30-minute documentary about past failed efforts by Nigerian leaders to prolong their time in office. The agents also confiscated the master copy of…
MAY 13, 2006 Posted: June 1, 2006 Víctor Lara Martínez, ¡Por Esto! HARASSED Lara, a reporter for the Mérida-based daily Por Esto!, was detained at 6 p.m. on May 13 while covering a meeting at the local chamber of commerce. He was held for 17 hours at a local police station after being accused of…
Update: May 12, 2006 Original Alert: February 28, 2006 Chaacha Mwita, The Standard Dennis Onyango, The Standard Ayub Savula, The Standard IMPRIONED, LEGAL ACTION Mwita, Onyango, and Savula of Kenya’s independent daily The Standard appeared in court on March 2, 2006, after 48 hours in police detention. They were charged with publishing “alarming statements” and…
MAY 8, 2006 Posted: May 12, 2006 Hugo Basso, La Tribuna ATTACKED Basso, director of the Rufino-based weekly La Tribuna, was attacked by a local official after taking his photograph at a municipal meeting in the central province of Santa Fé, according to news reports and an interview with the journalist.