Europe & Central Asia

  
Harlem Désir, pictured at France's National Assembly in Paris in July 2016, says he is committed to standing up for journalists in his new role as OSCE Representative on Freedom of the Media. (AFP/Jacques Demarthon)

Q&A: Impunity and journalist safety are priority says new OSCE Representative on Freedom of the Media, Harlem Désir

The OSCE Representative on Freedom of the Media plays a vital role that is valued by journalists and media freedom groups for its ability to speak out in defense of press freedom in participating states of the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe.

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The staff of embattled independent Russian newspaper Novaya Gazeta pose for a photograph in Moscow in 2006. (AFP/Sergey Kuznetsov)

Uzbek journalist at risk of deportation allegedly tortured in Russia

New York, August 7, 2017–Russian authorities should credibly investigate allegations that bailiffs tortured Uzbek journalist Khudoberdi Nurmatov, and should not deport him to Uzbekistan, the Committee to Protect Journalists said today. A court in Moscow is scheduled to hear the journalist’s appeal of the order to deport him tomorrow, according to media reports.

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A member of the Journalists Union of Turkey TGS holds a sign reading "Enough" in a protest in Istanbul to mark World Press Freedom Day, May 3, 2017. (Reuters/Murad Sezer)

French journalist jailed in Turkey pending terrorism trial

New York, August 3, 2017–Turkish authorities should immediately release French freelance journalist Loup Bureau, the Committee to Protect Journalists said today. A court in Turkey’s southeastern Şırnak province yesterday ordered the journalist jailed pending trial on terrorism charges, according to press reports.

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Press freedom advocates chant hold a banner saying "To hell with despotism, long live freedom" outside an Istanbul courthouse where journalists from Cumhuriyet newspaper stood trial, July 28, 2017. (Reuters/Murad Sezer)

Turkey Crackdown Chronicle: Week of July 30, 2017

Court jails two journalists pending trial A court in the southeastern Turkish city of Gaziantep on August 2 ordered Furkan Gökşen, a reporter for the local newspaper Detay Haber, and Murat Güreş, a columnist for the local newspaper Ayıntap, jailed pending trial on charges of “violating the secrecy of an investigation,” the leftist daily newspaper…

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Journalists and press freedom advocates read Cumhuriyet newspaper at a protest demanding the release of 17 employees and directors of the newspaper outside their trial in Istanbul, July 28, 2017. (Reuters/Murad Sezer)

Seven Cumhuriyet journalists and managers released pending trial

New York, July 28, 2017–Turkish authorities should immediately and unconditionally release all employees and directors of the daily newspaper Cumhuriyet, and all journalists jailed for their work, the Committee to Protect Journalists said today. A court in Istanbul today ordered seven Cumhuriyet employees and managers released pending the conclusion of their trial, according to press…

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Journalists and press freedom advocates release balloons in front of the courthouse in Istanbul where 17 journalists and board members from Cumhuriyet newspaper were standing trial, July 24, 2017. (Reuters/Murad Sezer)

Turkey Crackdown Chronicle: Week of July 23, 2017

Journalists to stand trial on charges of obtaining secret information Hatay’s Second Court of Penal Peace yesterday ordered Dihaber journalist Erdoğan Alayumat jailed pending trial on charges “obtaining secret information of the Republic of Turkey with the means of political and military espionage” and ordered Nuri Akman released on probation pending trial, their employer reported.…

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Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev (right) stands with Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan (left), and Russian President Vladimir Putin at an energy summit in Istanbul, October 10, 2016. (Reuters/Murad Sezer)

Newspaper financial director jailed in Azerbaijan

New York, July 24, 2017–An Azerbaijani court’s sentencing of Faiq Amirov, financial director of the independent newspaper Azadliq, is a further serious blow to press freedom in the country, the Committee to Protect Journalists said today.

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Journalists and press-freedom advocates release balloons outside the Istanbul courthouse where 17 employees and board members of the newspaper Cumhuriyet went on trial, July 24, 2017. (Reuters/Murad Sezer)

Trial of 17 Cumhuriyet newspaper employees begins in Turkey

New York, July 24, 2017–The trial of 17 journalists, managers, and board members of the pro-opposition daily newspaper Cumhuriyet on terrorism-related charges is a further blow to press freedom in Turkey, the Committee to Protect Journalists said today.

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Ukraine's President Petro Poroshenko, center, meets a CPJ delegation in Kiev in July to discuss the investigation into Pavel Sheremet's murder. (Press service of the Ukrainian president)

CPJ and rights groups call on President Poroshenko to prioritize Pavel Sheremet murder case

CPJ today joined seven other media rights organizations– all part of the Council of Europe’s Platform to protect journalism and promote the safety of journalists–in signing a joint letter to Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko. The letter calls on the president to ensure an effective investigation into the murder of Pavel Sheremet, the prominent journalist murdered…

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Russian independent journalist Yulia Latynina attacked

New York, July 20, 2017 — Russian authorities should investigate an attack on prominent independent journalist and columnist Yulia Latynina, bring those responsible to justice, and ensure her safety, the Committee to Protect Journalists said today. In the early hours yesterday, unknown assailants sprayed a foul-smelling substance through an open window of Latynina’s house in…

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