Philippines orders ABS-CBN news network off the air
Bangkok, May 5, 2020 — Philippine authorities should allow the ABS-CBN network to resume broadcasting and should not let political considerations affect administrative decisions regarding media outlets’ licenses, the Committee to Protect Journalists said today.
Journalist in Rohingya refugee camp describes bracing for coronavirus without access to internet
Ro Sawyeddollah has lived in a refugee camp in Cox’s Bazar, Bangladesh, since he fled Myanmar along with thousands of other ethnic Rohingya in 2017, where the U.N. found that Rohingya live under threat of genocide.
CPJ calls on Burundi to release 4 Iwacu journalists on appeal
Nairobi, May 4, 2020 — In advance of an upcoming appeal hearing for four journalists at Burundian news website Iwacu, who were sentenced to 2.5 years in prison in January, the Committee to Protect Journalists issued the following statement:
Network shutdowns restrict reporting during COVID-19 crisis
The Global Network Initiative, a coalition of nongovernmental organizations of which CPJ is a member, issued a statement yesterday calling on governments to refrain from shutting down internet access amid the spread of the COVID-19 pandemic.
CPJ joins letters calling on US Senate to increase Magnitsky Act funding
The Committee to Protect Journalists recently joined 50 democracy, human rights, and anti-corruption organizations and experts in three letters urging U.S. Congressional leaders to retain and increase funding and capacity for the enforcement of the Global Magnitsky Act.
Missing Bangladeshi journalist Shafiqul Islam Kajol arrested after being found near Indian border
Washington, D.C., May 3, 2020–Police in Jessore, Bangladesh, should immediately release journalist Shafiqul Islam Kajol from custody and drop all charges against him, the Committee to Protect Journalists said today.
CPJ, Amnesty International, Article 19 urge Cuban President Díaz-Canel to release jailed journalist Roberto Quiñones
CPJ, Amnesty International, and Article 19’s Mexico and Central America office write to Cuban President Miguel Díaz-Canel Bermúdez to call for the immediate release of jailed journalist Roberto de Jesús Quiñones Haces amid the sweeping COVID-19 pandemic.
World Press Freedom Day: Imprisoned journalists’ lives at risk due to COVID-19
For journalists behind bars, the coronavirus pandemic has now become a matter of life and death. Imprisoned journalists have no control over their surroundings, cannot choose to isolate, and are often denied necessary medical care. Recognizing the urgency of this situation, more than 175 partner organizations have joined CPJ’s #FreeThePress campaign calling for the immediate…
