Afghan journalist Jawed Yusufi beaten, stabbed in Kabul
New York, December 20, 2021 – The Taliban must thoroughly investigate the recent attack on journalist Jawed Yusufi, hold those responsible to account, and ensure the safety of Afghan reporters, the Committee to Protect Journalists said today. At about 5 p.m. yesterday, four unidentified men followed Yusufi, a reporter with the independent online Ufuq News…
Multi-year prison terms for Egyptian journalists Alaa Abdelfattah and Mohamed Oxygen ‘unacceptable’
New York, December 20, 2021 – In response to a Cairo court’s sentencing today of journalists Alaa Abdelfattah and Mohamed Oxygen to multi-year prison terms, the Committee to Protect Journalists issued the following statement of condemnation: “Egypt’s sentencing of journalists Alaa Abdelfattah and Mohamed Oxygen to years in prison is unacceptable, and demonstrates the lengths…
First Myanmar journalist to die in custody since February coup
On December 10, soldiers in Myanmar arrested photographer Soe Naing after he photographed a “silent strike” protest in Yangon against the country’s military junta government. Citing anonymous friends, colleagues, and family members of the photographer, media reports stated on Tuesday that Soe Naing had died in custody. Those reports did not state any suspected cause of…
In Middle East and North Africa, a drop in attacks on journalists belies dire state of press freedom
The Middle East and North Africa region has long been especially dangerous for journalists. The Committee to Protect Journalists’ research has found that one out of every three reporters killed worldwide in retaliation for their work since 1992 — 477 out of 1,422, or 33.5% – were located in the region. That proportion rose to…
Ethiopia uses emergency law to ramp up arrests of journalists
Nairobi, December 16, 2021 – Ethiopian authorities must immediately and unconditionally release all journalists held in custody for their work and should refrain from using the country’s state of emergency law to imprison members of the press, the Committee to Protect Journalists said today. Ethiopian authorities have arrested at least 14 journalists since declaring a…
Polish court fines journalist Ewa Siedlecka for criminal defamation
Berlin, December 15, 2021 –Polish authorities should not contest journalist Ewa Siedlecka’s appeal of her criminal defamation conviction and should reform the country’s criminal defamation laws so they can no longer be used against journalists, the Committee to Protect Journalists said today. On November 24, 2021, the District Court for Warsaw-Śródmieście convicted Siedlecka, a columnist…
Nine-year sentence for prominent journalist Pham Doan Trang reaffirms Vietnam’s ‘abysmal’ press freedom record
Bangkok, December 15, 2021 – Vietnamese authorities should immediately and unconditionally release journalist Pham Doan Trang, and stop imprisoning independent news reporters for their work, the Committee to Protect Journalists said today. In a one-day trial yesterday, Hanoi’s People’s Court sentenced Trang to nine years in prison under Article 117 of the penal code, a…
Togo journalists Ferdinand Ayité and Joël Egah detained over online broadcast
New York, December 13, 2021 — Togolese authorities should immediately release journalists Ferdinand Ayité and Joël Egah and halt legal harassment of Isidore Kouwonou, the Committee to Protect Journalists said today. On December 9, national police officers arrested Ayité, the publication director of the privately owned L’Alternative newspaper, after he responded to a summons to…
Hungary’s Szabolcs Panyi on how Pegasus surveillance has hindered his reporting
It took five months for Hungary to acknowledge publicly that it had bought the Pegasus spyware allegedly used to hack the phones of hundreds around the world. In November, Lajos Kósa, a top official from Hungary’s ruling Fidesz party, acknowledged the purchase in a media interview after a parliamentary meeting; Minister of the Interior Sándor…
Peruvian journalist receives threatening messages, demands to stop reporting on local officials
Bogotá, December 9, 2021 – Peruvian authorities must thoroughly investigate death threats against journalist Jairo Roque Gómez and hold the perpetrators to account, and local officials should refrain from using the country’s outdated defamation laws to threaten reporters, the Committee to Protect Journalists said today. On December 1, Roque, editor of the independent Diario Hechicera…