Attacks on the Press 2001: Thailand
When populist telecommunications billionaire Thaksin Shinawatra and his Thai Rak Thai (Thai Love Thai) party came to power with a solid majority in January, the stage was set for an ongoing confrontation between the new prime minister, eager to contrive a positive public image, and the freewheeling Thai press.
Attacks on the Press 2001: Trinidad and Tobago
This oil- and gas-rich island nation, whose population is equally divided between people of African and Indian descent, moved from crisis to crisis after elections in December 2000. Former prime minister Basdeo Panday’s United National Congress (UNC), supported mainly by Indo-Trinidadians, narrowly defeated the People’s National Movement (PNM), generally supported by Afro-Trinidadians, in elections that…
Attacks on the Press 2001: Turkey
In an effort to improve its chances to join the European Union, the Turkish Parliament in October approved more than 30 amendments to the country’s restrictive constitution, which was passed in 1982 after a military coup two years before. Lawmakers are currently considering a proposal that would bring some of the nation’s repressive laws used…
Attacks on the Press 2001: Vietnam
During 2001, Vietnam forged closer ties with the international community. In July, the country hosted the Association of Southeast Asian Nations conference, and in November, the national assembly signed a long-awaited trade agreement with the United States. Spurred by China’s admission, the Vietnamese government moved ahead with efforts to enter the World Trade Organization. Yet…
Attacks on the Press 2001: Yugoslavia
The revolutionary political changes of late 2000 and early 2001 that ousted former Yugoslav President Slobodan Milosevic ended a decade of repression for Yugoslavia’s independent journalists. But after a year in power, the Democratic Opposition of Serbia (DOS), which replaced Milosevic, failed to enact needed reforms in media-related laws. And while the DOS proved far…
Attacks on the Press 2001: Zambia
Incumbent president Frederick Chiluba failed to convince Zambians that he should be allowed to run for an unconstitutional third term in the December 2001 general elections. Political controversies surrounding the elections dominated media headlines in Zambia all year long. Mounting tensions between the ruling Movement for Multiparty Democracy (MMD) and the opposition were mirrored in…
Attacks on the Press 2001: Zimbabwe
President Robert Mugabe was named to CPJ’s list of the ten worst enemies of the press in 2001. See CPJ’s 2001 Enemies list. Backed by his volatile minister of information and publicity, Jonathan Moyo, Mugabe harangued, insulted, threatened, and intimidated journalists throughout the year. Mugabe, his unpopularity growing at home, found himself increasingly isolated on…
Attacks on the Press 2001: Journalists in Prison
There were 118 journalists in prison around the world at the end of 2001 who were jailed for practicing their profession. The number is up significantly from the previous year, when 81 journalists were in jail, and represents a return to the level of 1998, when 118 were also imprisoned.
Journalists accused of complicity in global drug trade
New York, March 22, 2002—The Venezuelan state news agency has sparked widespread furor by accusing three local independent journalists of involvement in an alleged global drug trafficking conspiracy controlled by international banks and political leaders from developed countries. On March 13, the state information agency Venpres published an opinion piece on its Web site (http://www.venpres.gov.ve)…
CPJ protests court rulings against satirical weekly
New York, March 19, 2002—The Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ) is very concerned about two recent crippling libel judgments against the satirical weekly Feral Tribune. The judgments were issued in two separate libel suits filed by Marica Mestrovic, the daughter of a famous Croatian sculptor, and Zeljko Olujic, an attorney and former ally of the…