Polish television crew freed in South Ossetia
New York, September 9, 2008—The Committee to Protect Journalists welcomes today’s release of Telewizja Polska (TVP) crew members who were detained outside the Georgian village of Karaleti by South Ossetian militia members, and taken into custody in the regional capital, Tskhinvali on Monday. Reporter Dariusz Bohatkiewicz told CPJ that authorities in Tskhinvali transferred him and…
Filmmaker Berends freed, Nigerian still faces questioning
New York, September 9, 2008—U.S. filmmaker Andrew Berends, detained by Nigerian security officials for 10 days, was aboard a flight to Germany late today, two U.S. State Department officials told the Committee to Protect Journalists. Berends, the focus of an international advocacy effort, was scheduled to fly from Frankfurt, Germany, to the United States, they…
Nigerian senator calls for release of journalist and translator
New York, September 9, 2008—Nigerian Sen. Chris Anyanwu urged the ministers of information and defense today to assist in the immediate release of American filmmaker Andrew Berends and Nigerian translator, Samuel George. Anyanwu, a prominent former journalist, also urged that the government undertake formal discussions with the media to avoid future arrests of journalists.
Cameraman freed by U.S.; another held
New York, September 8, 2008–The Committee to Protect Journalists welcomes the release of a cameraman held by U.S. forces in Iraq, and calls on the military to release a freelance journalist working for Reuters who has been held since Tuesday. Omar Husham, 28, a cameraman with Baghdad TV, a satellite channel owned by the Iraqi…
Judge orders seizure of weekly after story on alleged tax evasion
New York, September 8, 2008–The Committee to Protect Journalists is concerned by the decision of a Panamanian civil court on Friday to order the seizure of assets belonging to a weekly newspaper, as well as portions of two staff members’ salaries. The ruling came after the publication ran a story on alleged tax evasion by…
American filmmaker still detained
New York, September 8, 2008–U.S. filmmaker Andrew Berends continues to be interrogated by security forces in Nigeria’s capital, Abuja, while authorities have told translator Samuel George to report to security in Port Harcourt on Wednesday, local journalists told CPJ. Today marks the ninth day security forces have conducted day-long interrogations of Berends and George on…
Polish television crew detained in South Ossetia
New York, September 8, 2008—South Ossetian and Russian authorities should immediately release three members of a Polish television crew detained today near the village of Karaleti in the buffer zone between South Ossetia and Georgia, the Committee to Protect Journalists said. Authorities confiscated equipment and cell phones from the Telewizja Polska (TVP) crew and were…
Sri Lanka arrests six in connection with news Web site
New York, March 11, 2008—Six people affiliated with the Sri Lankan news Web site OutreachSL have been detained by the Terrorist Investigation Division of the Sri Lankan police force in Colombo since last week, according to Agence France-Presse and local news reports. The Committee to Protect Journalists urges the government of Sri Lanka to charge…
Dozens of journalists arrested while covering RNC
New York, September 5, 2008–Dozens of journalists were arrested while covering demonstrations on the third day of the Republican National Convention. They included two Associated Press reporters who, along with other members of the media, were documenting a few hundred protesters trapped by police on both sides of bridge over an interstate highway. The protesters…
Journalist and translator temporarily released
NIGERIA: New York, September 5, 2008—Nigerian authorities temporarily released today American filmmaker Andrew Berends into the custody of the U.S. Embassy in Nigeria’s capital, Abuja, according to his colleagues, who have been in contact with the U.S. State Department. Authorities in Port Harcourt also released Berends’ Nigerian translator, Samuel George, for the weekend, a friend…