Egyptian journalist alleges torture, whereabouts unknown
New York, March 3, 2016 – Egyptian authorities should immediately charge or release journalist Sabry Anwar and order an independent and thorough investigation into claims he has been tortured, the Committee to Protect Journalists said today. Security forces arrested Anwar, a correspondent for the independent newspaper El Badil, from his home in the Mediterranean city…
Read and delete: How Weibo’s censors tackle dissent and free speech
The Chinese microblogging site Weibo has a huge following, with around 100 million users posting every day. For those living in China, one of CPJ’s 10 most censored countries, the social network offers the chance to discuss and share news that is often blocked in mainstream outlets.
The business of censorship: Documents show how Weibo filters sensitive news in China
When journalists at the Guangdong-based Southern Weekly found that their 2013 new year editorial had been changed, without their knowledge, to exalt the virtues of the Communist Party, they took their outrage to the Chinese microblogging site Weibo.
Indian television news anchor receives thousands of threatening phone calls
New York, March 2, 2016 – Indian authorities should investigate threats made against a television journalist in the state of Kerala and ensure her safety, the Committee to Protect Journalists said today. News anchor Sindhu Sooryakumar has received thousands of threatening phone calls following a broadcast she hosted last week, she told reporters.
Critics Are Not Criminals: Comparative Study of Criminal Defamation Laws in the Americas.
On March 2, 2016, CPJ will present a new special report on the status of criminal defamation laws in the Americas at a panel discussion in Lima on March 2, 2016. The Perú-based Instituto Prensa y Sociedad (IPYS) will co-sponsor the event. The report, prepared for CPJ by Debevoise & Plimpton LLP in collaboration with…
‘Prison is the equivalent of a death sentence for him,’ son of journalist jailed in Iran says
The son of imprisoned Iranian journalist Issa Saharkhiz says his father’s health has deteriorated and he has lost a worrying amount of weight since being sent to Evin prison last November. In an interview with CPJ, Mehdi Saharkhiz said his father, who is due in court this week, has been treated poorly.
Critics Are Not Criminals: Comparative Study of Criminal Defamation Laws in the Americas
Criminal defamation prosecutions are still widespread throughout the Americas. In a new special report, prepared by Debevoise & Plimpton LLP in collaboration with the Thomson Reuters Foundation, CPJ finds a total of 32 out of 33 countries in the hemisphere maintain criminal penalties for defamation.
Critics Not Criminals: Acknowledgements
Contents Critics Are Not Criminals: Comparative Study of Criminal Defamation Laws in the Americas The Thomson Reuters Foundation is grateful to Debevoise & Plimpton LLP who coordinated this research, together with Benedetti & Benedetti, Brigard Urrutia, Cariola Díez Pérez-Cotapos & Cía. Ltda, Díaz Durán & Asociados, Estudio Rodrigo, Elias & Medrano, Medina, Rosenthal & Asociados,…
Critics Not Criminals: Foreword
Despite a growing consensus that criminal defamation laws should be abolished, there has been an alarming resurgence of their use in the Americas. From North America to South America, over two-thirds of the governments in the region routinely use these laws to silence dissent and to deprive citizens of information on matters of public interest.…
Critics Not Criminals: Introduction
After three decades of democratization, the current state of freedom of expression in Latin America is undoubtedly more open than in the period of military rule. But the legislative and judicial reforms necessary to institutionalize freedom of expression are still widely lacking.