Amid a crackdown, three Egyptian editors sentenced to jail
New York, September 26, 2007―The Committee to Protect Journalists condemns this week’s convictions of three editors from an opposition daily, which come amid a flurry of criminal lawsuits filed against the press by lawyers affiliated with the ruling National Democratic Party. A criminal misdemeanor court on Monday convicted Al-Wafd Editor-in-Chief Anwar al-Hawari, Deputy Editor-in-Chief…
Appeals for release of ailing Chinese writer ignored
New York, September 25, 2007 —The Committee to Protect Journalists is alarmed by reports that imprisoned writer Zhang Jianhong has been transferred to Qiaosi prison in the eastern province of Zhejiang, despite numerous appeals for his release on medical parole. Zhang has been diagnosed with a rare nerve disorder that could lead to permanent paralysis…
Iraqi producer murdered in Baghdad
New York, September 24, 2007—The Committee to Protect Journalists condemns the murder of an Al-Baghdadia satellite channel producer in Baghdad on Sunday. Several gunmen in a car shot Jawad al-Daami, 40, a line producer for the independent Cairo-based Al-Baghdadia, in the head in Baghdad’s southwestern neighborhood of Al-Qadissiya at around 4 p.m. on Sunday, a…
In Niger, veteran journalist imprisoned
New York, September 24, 2007—A veteran radio journalist for French broadcaster Radio France Internationale, distinguished for his exclusive coverage of a seventh-month-old armed rebellion in northern Niger, was sent to prison today after four days in police custody on accusations of aiding the rebels, according to local journalists.
CPJ dismayed by contempt of court ruling in India
New York, September 24, 2007—The Committee to Protect Journalists is dismayed by the New Delhi High Court’s decision last week to sentence four journalists to four months in prison apiece on contempt of court charges stemming from a series of articles and a political cartoon accusing a former chief justice of official misconduct. The journalists…
Press Freedom in Morocco
Press Freedom in Morocco A CPJ event co-hosted by the Congressional Caucus for Freedom of the Press Washington, September 21, 2007–U.S. congressmen emphasized the need for an open and free press in Morocco at an event hosted today by the Committee to Protect Journalists. Diplomats from the Moroccan, Tunisian, and Algerian embassies were part of…
Crime reporter shot and wounded
New York, September 20, 2007—Brazilian reporter Amaury Ribeiro Jr. was shot on Wednesday afternoon while investigating a story on organized crime in the outskirts of the capital city of Brasília. The journalist is in stable condition. Ribeiro, an investigative crime reporter for the Brasília-based daily Correio Braziliense, was waiting for a source at a bar…
Police fire on Somalia’s Radio Shabelle
New York, September 18, 2007—CPJ condemns the attack by Somali security forces on the Radio Shabelle compound this morning. Forces opened fire on the building with staff inside, forcing the station off the air.According to local journalists, police fired repeatedly from 10 a.m. to noon at the doors and windows at the compound while staff…
Pakistani journalist alleges government abduction
New York, September 18, 2007— An abducted Pakistani journalist alleged that he was kidnapped by government agents a few days ago and released after questioning. Babar Hussain, a reporter for Dawn TV, was grabbed near his home in Rawalpindi, near the capital, Islamabad, by three men in a two-door cream-colored Pajero—a vehicle favored by government…
Authorities crack down on business news Web site
New York, September 17, 2007— The Committee to Protect Journalists is gravely concerned about the ongoing Vietnamese government harassment of Peter Leech, the owner and publisher of the popular business news Web site Intellasia. On September 12 Vietnam’s political police unit, known as PA25, and the Culture Ministry ordered the Australia-registered and Hanoi-based news service…