CPJ condemns Myanmar military junta’s harassment of The Irrawaddy
Bangkok, October 21, 2022 – Myanmar’s military regime must cease its harassment of The Irrawaddy and allow the independent news organization to report without fear of reprisal, the Committee to Protect Journalists said Friday. On October 14, Myanmar’s junta announced on state television that it would take legal action against The Irrawaddy for reporting that military forces…
#EndImpunity: Maltese court sentences hitmen to 40 years each for role in assassination of Daphne Caruana Galizia
A Maltese court sentenced brothers Alfred and George Degiorgio to 40 years each on October 14, following their guilty plea for their role as hitmen in the assassination of Malta’s leading investigative journalist Daphne Caruana Galizia in 2017. Representatives from CPJ, Article 19 Europe, the European Centre for Press and Media Freedom, the European Federation…
Rafael Emiro Moreno, Colombian journalist under government protection, killed in Córdoba
Bogotá, October 19, 2022—Colombian authorities must thoroughly investigate the killing of journalist Rafael Emiro Moreno, determine if he was targeted for his work, and bring those responsible to justice, the Committee to Protect Journalists said Wednesday. About 7:10 p.m. on Sunday, October 16, in the northern town of Montelíbano, two men aboard a motorcycle fatally…
Indian authorities prevent Pulitzer-winning Kashmiri journalist Sanna Irshad Mattoo from flying abroad
New Delhi, October 18, 2022 – Indian authorities should allow Kashmiri photojournalist Sanna Irshad Mattoo to travel abroad freely and collect her Pulitzer Prize in New York, the Committee to Protect Journalists said Tuesday. On Monday evening, immigration officials at the Indira Gandhi International Airport in New Delhi stopped Mattoo, who was flying to New…
CPJ submits reports on Tunisia, Algeria, and Morocco to United Nations Universal Periodic Review
The human rights records of Tunisia, Algeria, and Morocco are under review by the United Nations Human Rights Council through the Universal Periodic Review (UPR). This U.N. mechanism is a peer-review process that surveys the human rights performance of member states, monitoring progress from previous review cycles, and presents a list of recommendations on how a…
SOTA, one of the last independent news outlets in Russia, doubles down on coverage
Since the outset of Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February, Russia has sought to stamp out independent reporting on the war, prompting journalists to flee and newsrooms to shut down or to self-censor under threat of criminal prosecution. Remarkably, one local outlet has continued to produce robust reporting despite the repressive environment. SOTA, which counts a staff of 40 journalists and support workers,…
The legal battle to protect slain reporter Jeff German’s electronic devices–and why it’s so concerning for press freedom
A district judge last week barred police from accessing electronic devices used by Las Vegas Review-Journal reporter Jeff German before his fatal stabbing in September – but only for a while. The measure was a preliminary injunction against searching German’s cellphone, hard drive, and computers, but a further ruling expected this week could authorize a…
Four staff members of Nicaragua’s La Prensa charged with conspiracy, two in detention
Guatemala City, October 14, 2022 — Nicaraguan authorities should immediately drop all criminal charges against staff members of the independent newspaper La Prensa, release two drivers held in custody, and cease harassing the outlet, the Committee to Protect Journalists said Friday. On September 29, the Nicaraguan prosecutor’s office charged four La Prensa staff members with “conspiracy…
Vietnamese journalist Huynh Thuc Vy beaten, choked by prison guards
Bangkok, October 14, 2022 – Vietnamese authorities must investigate, identify, and bring to full justice the prison guards responsible for physically abusing imprisoned journalist Huynh Thuc Vy, the Committee to Protect Journalists said Friday. On October 9, Vy told her young daughter that guards had beaten and choked her at the Gia Trung Prison, where…
South African court bans Independent Media outlets from publishing leaked intelligence report
Lusaka, October 13, 2022 – A South African court judgment banning the publication of an intelligence report about alleged U.S. efforts to gather intelligence about South Africa’s ruling African National Congress party must be made public and should be overturned on appeal, the Committee to Protect Journalists said Thursday. On October 5, Gauteng High Court…