Azerbaijani newspapers evicted, editor threatened
New York, May 21, 2007—Local authorities evicted the independent Russian-language weekly Realny Azerbaijan and the Azeri-language daily Gündalik Azarbaycan from their Baku offices on Sunday night, saying that the publications’ building violates safety regulations. The action comes amid a series of threats, attacks, and cases of harassment targeting the muckraking newspapers—including, most recently, an anonymous…
Police detain foreign journalists on the way to opposition rally
May 18, 2007 Adrian Bloomfield, The Daily TelegraphAlan Cullison, Wall Street JournalAllard Detiger, Dutch Broadcasting Foundation Boris Raitshuster, Focus HARASSED Russian police detained three foreign journalists in a Moscow airport as they prepared to fly to the southern city of Samara to cover a rally led by former chess world champion and Kremlin critic Garry…
As world press event approaches, Russian agency evicts journalist union
New York, May 16, 2007—A federal property agency is evicting the Russian Union of Journalists (RUJ) from its Moscow offices as the press organization is preparing for the 26th World Congress of Journalists, an international gathering of media workers starting on May 28 in Russia’s capital. The Committee to Protect Journalists is deeply troubled by…
In Azerbaijan, two journalists jailed for defaming president’s uncle
New York, May 16, 2007—A court in the Azerbaijani capital, Baku, sentenced two journalists to 30 months in prison apiece today on charges of defaming President Ilham Aliyev’s uncle. The Committee to Protect Journalists calls for the verdict to be overturned on appeal, for the journalists to be freed in the meantime, and for the…
Man charged, sought in Politkovskaya murder
New York, May 12, 2008—The Investigative Committee at Russia’s Prosecutor-General’s Office announced today that 34-year-old ethnic Chechen Rustam Makhmudov has been charged in absentia with murdering Novaya Gazeta journalist Anna Politkovskaya, according to local news reports. The Investigative Committee issued an international warrant for Makhmudov’s arrest. Investigative Committee spokesman Vladimir Markin told journalists that seven…
Russian police search Novaya Gazeta newsroom, confiscate computers
New York, May 11, 2007—The Committee to Protect Journalists is alarmed by reports that police in the southern Russian city of Samara have raided the local bureaus of the independent newspaper Novaya Gazeta and the independent news agency Regnum. Three journalists with other news organizations were also detained and interrogated, according to news reports. The…
In sanction talks, EU must consider Uzbek press record
Dear Minister Steinmeier, The Committee to Protect Journalists urges the European Union, to consider the Uzbek government’s appalling press freedom record during your May 14 discussions on the possible lifting of targeted EU sanctions imposed against Uzbekistan in the aftermath of the 2005 Andijan crisis. As Germany holds the EU presidency, we ask you to take a leadership role in bringing this issue to the forefront.
Scorecard: GEORGIA
Positives: Libel is decriminalized. Reporting of state secrets also decriminalized. Assaults on journalists decline slightly. Negatives: Government still harasses media, using such methods as retaliatory tax investigations. Administration pressures media to tone down coverage, replace critical journalists. Pending bill would set a “code of conduct” for news media.