Belarus journalists charged, detained over alleged Facebook interactions with banned outlets
Vilnius, Lithuania, November 4, 2021 — Belarusian authorities should cease their practice of banning news outlets, and should not punish journalists for allegedly interacting with such banned outlets, the Committee to Protect Journalists said today. On November 1, Belarusian courts convicted two journalists, Iryna Slaunikava and Syarhei Niarouny, on charges of spreading extremism over their alleged…
Finland charges 3 investigative journalists with revealing state secrets
Berlin, November 3, 2021 – Finnish authorities should drop all criminal charges filed against three journalists working for the daily newspaper Helsingin Sanomat, and ensure that members of the press can cover sensitive issues without facing government retaliation, the Committee to Protect Journalists said today. On October 29, Finnish prosecutors announced that three Helsingin Sanomat…
CPJ, other groups call on Turkey to release imprisoned journalist Nedim Türfent
CPJ joined PEN International, the International Press Institute, the Media and Law Studies Association, and 50 other Turkish and international groups in a statement today calling for Turkish authorities to immediately and unconditionally release imprisoned journalist Nedim Türfent, a former reporter for the shuttered pro-Kurdish Dicle News Agency (DİHA) on the 2,000th day of his…
Rimma Maksimova died seven years ago. Her fight to bring her son’s killers to justice lives on.
Rimma Maksimova spent the final decade of her life fighting two battles: one against the bone cancer that would eventually kill her and another for justice in her son’s murder. A few years before her death in 2014, she filed a case against Russia with the European Court of Human Rights (ECHR). She would not…
Killers of journalists still get away with murder
No one has been held to account in 81% of journalist murders during the last 10 years, CPJ’s 2021 Global Impunity Index has found. By Jennifer Dunham/CPJ Deputy Editorial Director Published October 28, 2021 Somalia remains the world’s worst country for unsolved killings of journalists, according to CPJ’s annual Global Impunity Index, which spotlights countries…
Spanish judge demands journalist Ignacio Escolar reveal his sources in a leak investigation
Berlin, October 26, 2021 — Spanish authorities must drop their demand for journalist Ignacio Escolar to reveal his news site’s sources in a leak investigation, the Committee to Protect Journalists said today. On October 5, 2021, the first instance investigative criminal court No. 29 of Madrid, presided by investigating judge María Cristina Díaz, gave Ignacio…
RFE/RL’s staff receive death threats ahead of Uzbekistan presidential election
New York, October 21, 2021 – Authorities in Uzbekistan should swiftly investigate threats received by employees of the U.S. Congress-funded broadcaster Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty, and ensure that they can work safely, the Committee to Protect Journalists said today. On October 16, anonymous users of the Telegram messaging app sent dozens of death threats to…
Belarus police raid Novy Chas newspaper, interrogate at least 2 journalists
Vilnius, Lithuania, October 21, 2021 — Belarusian authorities should stop harassing independent journalists and refrain from charging or imprisoning members of the press over their work, the Committee to Protect Journalists said today. Yesterday, police in Minsk raided the office of the independent weekly online newspaper Novy Chas and the home of at least one…
CPJ testifies at Helsinki Commission about press freedom threats in OSCE region
Freedom of the press is under severe threat across the Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe (OSCE) region and the OSCE’s 57 participating states must do more to protect the safety of journalists, CPJ Deputy Executive Director Rob Mahoney told a United States Congress commission today. Appearing virtually at a hearing held by the…
Kazakh outlet HOLA News reports website blocks after Pandora Papers coverage
Stockholm, October 20, 2021 – The Committee to Protect Journalists expressed concern today about apparent blocking of Kazakh independent news website HOLA News after reporting on the Pandora Papers offshore leaks. The website was widely inaccessible for 10 days after they published the coverage, and only became functional again after it was removed. A statement…