Cambodian reporter Khou Piseth detained for criminal incitement
Bangkok, July 27, 2021 – Cambodian authorities should immediately release journalist Khou Piseth and drop any pending charges against him, the Committee to Protect Journalists said today. Piseth, a reporter with the local Siem Reap Tannhektar news website, was arrested on July 14 in the western city of Battambang after posting messages critical of the government’s handling…
Radio journalist Renante ‘Rey’ Cortes shot and killed in the Philippines
Bangkok, July 23, 2021 – Philippine authorities should conduct a swift and thorough investigation into the killing of radio journalist Renante “Rey” Cortes and bring those responsible to justice, the Committee to Protect Journalists said today. At about 9 a.m. yesterday, unidentified assailants riding a motorcycle shot and killed Cortes while he was standing outside…
CPJ to release report and host media briefing on press freedom in Myanmar
New York, July 20, 2021–Since the February military coup in Myanmar, the junta has cracked down harshly on the press, attacking reporters and photographers and jailing dozens of journalists. The Committee to Protect Journalists will publish a mid-year census on journalists imprisoned in Myanmar, with analysis and recommendations. WHAT: Virtual press launch of mid-year report…
Vietnam sentences journalist Pham Chi Thanh to 5.5 years in prison
Bangkok, July 15, 2021 – Vietnamese authorities should release journalist Pham Chi Thanh immediately and unconditionally, and cease imprisoning members of the press for their work, the Committee to Protect Journalists said today. On July 9, a Hanoi court sentenced Thanh, a journalist who blogs under the pseudonym Pham Thanh, to five years and six…
Myanmar military rearrests journalist Aung Mya Than
Bangkok, July 14, 2021 – Myanmar authorities should immediately release journalist Aung Mya Than and drop any pending charges against him, the Committee to Protect Journalists said today. At about 11 p.m. on July 10, military authorities arrested Aung Mya Than, a reporter with the local Ayeyarwady Times, at his home in the town of Maubin,…
Independent journalist Le Van Dung arrested in Vietnam after weeks in hiding
Bangkok, July 12, 2021 – Vietnamese authorities should immediately release journalist Le Van Dung and drop any charges against him, the Committee to Protect Journalists said today. On June 30, police arrested Dung, a freelance journalist who runs Chan Hung Nuoc Viet, a Facebook and YouTube-based outlet that covers politics, social issues, and alleged corruption,…
At-risk journalists who must flee home countries often find few quick and safe options
In 2018, journalist Mohammad Shubaat was in Daraa, Syria, caught between advancing forces aligned with Syrian President Bashar al-Assad and the closed borders of Israel and Jordan. Despite the dire threat to Shubaat and many of his colleagues, it would take over a year of intense negotiations with some 20 countries by the Committee to…
Former Mexican mayor convicted for role in murder of reporter Miroslava Breach
Mexico City, June 16, 2021 – In response to yesterday’s sentencing of Hugo Amed Schultz Alcaraz to eight years in prison for his role in the 2017 murder of Mexican reporter Miroslava Breach Velducea, the Committee to Protect Journalists issued the following statement: “After several recent sentences in the Javier Valdez Cardenas and Miroslava Breach…
CPJ welcomes release of American editor Nathan Maung in Myanmar
Bangkok, June 15, 2021 – In response to Myanmar authorities’ decision today to release editor Nathan Maung from custody and deport him to the United States, the Committee to Protect Journalists issued the following statement: “While we welcome Nathan Maung’s release from prison in Myanmar, he never should have been detained in the first place,”…
Myanmar military court sentences 2 journalists to jail for incitement
Bangkok, June 2, 2021 – The Committee to Protect Journalists today condemned Myanmar authorities’ sentencing of two journalists to prison on charges of incitement, and called for them to be released immediately. Today, a military court in the southern city of Myeik convicted Aung Kyaw, a reporter with the Democratic Voice of Burma, and Zaw…