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Sidebar: Raising the Cost of Impunity, in the Name of Magnitsky Sergei Magnitsky, 37, a Russian lawyer and tax adviser, died in November 2009 after spending several months in Moscow’s Butyrka prison, which is known for its harsh conditions. An independent report by the Moscow Pub­lic Over­sight Com­mis­sion, a Russ­ian NGO that mon­i­tors human rights…

Conclusion Today the fight against impunity has reached an important juncture. There is awareness on domestic and global levels of the extreme peril posed to journalists and the public’s right to information when violence against the press is met with official inaction. The cries for justice by freedom of expression advocates have been amplified by…

Recommendations In recognition that unpunished violence against journalists represents one of the greatest threats to the free flow of information, CPJ makes the following recommendations:

Appendix I At least 370 journalists have been murdered in direct connection to their work from the beginning of 2004 through 2013, according to CPJ research. In 333 of the cases, no one has been convicted. In 28 cases, some suspects have been sentenced, or killed in the course of apprehension, but others believed to…

Appendix II Overview of key U.N. documents and resolutions directly relating to impunity in journalist murders:

Slideshow: Seeking the Masterminds CPJ research shows that in 88 percent of cases of journalist slayings around the world, the masterminds behind the murders face no consequences, even when their accomplices are apprehended.

“I want to send a message to the world; there is no need for defending honorable Egyptian journalists.” That’s what Egyptian Prime Minister Ibrahim Mehleb said on World Press Freedom Day this year, speaking at Al-Ahram state newspaper. The same day, Al-Jazeera English Bureau Chief Mohamed Fahmy was roaring in an Egyptian court: “I want…

Nairobi, October 27, 2014–The Committee to Protect Journalists condemns today’s sentencing of Ethiopian journalist Temesghen Desalegn to three years’ imprisonment on charges of defamation and incitement that date back to 2012. A court in Addis Ababa, the capital, convicted Temesgen on October 13 in connection with opinion pieces published in the now-defunct Feteh news magazine,…

New York, October 24, 2014–The Committee to Protect Journalists condemns today’s conviction and sentencing to prison of French documentary filmmakers Thomas Dandois and Valentine Bourrat on charges of breaking immigration laws in Indonesia. The two were sentenced to two months and 15 days in prison and are expected to be released next week because of…

Bangkok, October 24, 2014–Burma’s army shot dead freelance reporter Aung Kyaw Naing while the journalist was in military custody, according to news reports. The Committee to Protect Journalists condemns the journalist’s killing, the first in Burma since 2007.