Nepalese editor Kanak Dixit released
New York, March 8, 2005—The Committee to Protect Journalists welcomes the release early this morning of prominent Nepalese editor Kanak Mani Dixit, who was detained and questioned for roughly five hours last night. At least four journalists jailed since the royal coup on February 1 remain imprisoned.
Editor remains jailed
New York, March 8, 2005—Lawyers representing an imprisoned journalist were beaten by security forces during a hearing last week to appeal the prison sentence of Yemeni editor Abdelkarim al-Khaiwani. Jamal al-Jaabi, one of al-Khaiwani’s lawyers, told CPJ that the day of the hearing, March 2, he and colleague Naji Mohamed Allaw were invasively searched before…
CPJ condemns detention of prominent Nepalese editor
New York, March 7, 2005—The Committee to Protect Journalists condemns the detention today of prominent Nepalese journalist and political analyst Kanak Mani Dixit, editor and publisher of the Nepalese-language Himal Khabarpatrika magazine. Dixit, who has criticized the king’s February 1 takeover of the government, was taken into custody shortly after returning from India, where he…
Freed Italian journalist wounded by coalition fire
New York, March 4, 2005—Italian journalist Giuliana Sgrena, held hostage in Iraq for a month, was wounded shortly after her release today and an Italian security agent was killed when U.S.-led coalition forces fired on their car near a military checkpoint in Baghdad. Sgrena, a reporter for the Rome-based daily Il Manifesto who was held…
Former Ukrainian minister implicated in Gongadze case is found dead
New York, March 4, 2005—Former Interior Minister Yuri Kravchenko was found dead this morning outside the capitol of Kyiv just hours before he was to be questioned by prosecutors about the September 2000 abduction and murder of Internet journalist Georgy Gongadze, according to local and international press reports.
Freed Italian journalist wounded by coalition fire
New York, March 4, 2005—Italian journalist Giuliana Sgrena, held hostage in Iraq for a month, was wounded shortly after her release today and an Italian security agent was killed when U.S.-led coalition forces fired on their car near a military checkpoint in Baghdad. Sgrena, a reporter for the Rome-based daily Il Manifesto who was held…
Sixteen journalists remain in secret jails
New York, March 3, 2005—The Committee to Protect Journalists has learned that Voice of America (VOA) correspondent Aklilu Solomon has been released after almost 18 months in jail. He was freed on December 31, 2004, and is said to be in poor health. Solomon was arrested in July 2003, after the VOA broadcast his report…
Editor of opposition weekly gunned down
New York, March 2, 2005—The Committee to Protect Journalists condemns the murder of Elmar Huseynov, the founder and editor of the opposition weekly news magazine Monitor, who was gunned down this evening in his apartment building in the capital, Baku. Huseynov was shot several times while walking up the stairwell of his building on his…
Government maintains chokehold on independent press
New York, March 2, 2005—The Nepalese government yesterday directed editors of four weeklies to replace the word “Maoist” with “terrorist” or face punishment. The weeklies, including Jana Astha, were forced to change large portions of their text to comply with the order. The Ministry of Information and Communication also issued a new notice banning media…
olumnist found shot dead
New York, March 2, 2005—A local newspaper columnist was found shot dead on a road in the town of Naic, Cavite Province, just south of Manila. A local village official found the body of Arnulfo Villanueva, 43, a columnist for the community paper Asian Star Express Balita, on the night of February 28, according to…