CPJ alarmed by Taliban threat to kill Afghan journalist Ajmal Nakshbandi
New York, March 30, 2007—The Committee to Protect Journalists is alarmed by reports that Taliban leader Mullah Dadullah has threatened to kill kidnapped Afghan journalist and translator Ajmal Nakshbandi unless President Hamid Karzai negotiates his release. Ajmal remains in Taliban custody nearly four weeks after he was abducted in Helmand province on March 4, along…
Media mogul receives two-year jail sentence for defamation
New York, March 30, 2007—The Committee to Protect Journalists is concerned about the two year prison term on criminal defamation charges handed down to firebrand and Manager Media Group founder Sondhi Limthongkul, who is appealing the sentence and remains free on bail. A Bangkok criminal court on Thursday sentenced Sondhi in relation to comments he…
CPJ calls for release of imprisoned journalist Josh Wolf
New York, March 29, 2007—The Committee to Protect Journalists today called for the release of video blogger Josh Wolf, who has been jailed longer than any reporter in U.S. history after refusing to provide raw video footage of July 2005 San Francisco street protests to a federal grand jury. “No more purpose is served by…
Russian editor faces five years in prison for “extremist activity”
New York, March 28, 2007—The Committee to Protect Journalists is alarmed by the criminal prosecution of Viktor Shmakov, editor-in-chief of the opposition newspaper Provintsialnye Vesti (Provincial News) in the Russian republic of Bashkortostan. Prosecutors in the regional capital Ufa, 680 miles (1100 kilometers) east of Moscow, have charged Shmakov with “public calls for the realization…
Two Colombian journalists flee after death threats and murder plot
New York, March 27, 2007—The Committee to Protect Journalists is alarmed by death threats against Colombian journalist Germán Hernández, who fled his hometown, and a murder plot against journalist Darío Arizmendi, who fled the country this month. “We are concerned by the death threats against our colleague Germán Hernández, as well as by allegations of…
In Zimbabwe, state broadcast journalists face criminal charges
New York, March 27, 2007—Two journalists with Zimbabwe’s state broadcaster have been criminally charged in connection with footage of diamond trafficking in the eastern Manicaland province, according to Media Institute of Southern Africa (MISA) and news reports. Andrew Neshamba, Manicaland bureau chief for the Zimbabwe Broadcasting Corporation (ZBC), was arrested on February 9 and charged…
In Pakistan, a media group cries foul over government advertising
CPJ’s Bob Dietz discusses the situation in Pakistan. (mp3). New York, March 27, 2007— The Committee to Protect Journalists is concerned about a deteriorating media environment in Pakistan that includes both business retaliation and outright attacks on media companies.
In Uzbekistan, Deutsche Welle reporter faces criminal charges
New York, March 27, 2007—The Committee to Protect Journalists condemns the filing of criminal charges against Natalya Bushuyeva, Tashkent-based correspondent for the German public broadcaster Deutsche Welle. On Friday, the prosecutor’s office in the Uzbek capital charged Bushuyeva with tax evasion as well as concealing her income and working as a reporter without accreditation, according…
In Bangladesh, reporter jailed for reporting on local mismanagement
New York, March 26, 2007—The Committee to Protect Journalists called for the immediate release of Daily Star reporter E.A.M. Asaduzzaman Tipu, who was jailed in the northern Bangladesh district of Nilphamari on Wednesday. The correspondent suffered a severe asthma attack two days after being arrested for his reporting on official mismanagement, the Dhaka-based daily reported.…
Somali government shuts down Al-Jazeera bureau
New York, March 23, 2007— The bureau of satellite television Al-Jazeera in the capital Mogadishu was indefinitely shuttered on Thursday following an order from intelligence officials of Somalia’s Ethiopian-backed transitional government, according to news reports. The bureau of the Qatar-based broadcaster was “effectively closed” today after the station received a letter from the transitional government’s…