CPJ welcomes repeal of criminal libel in Sierra Leone, urges further reform
Abuja, Nigeria, October 30, 2020 – The Committee to Protect Journalists today welcomed Sierra Leone’s repeal of its criminal libel laws, and called for further reforms to ensure that journalists can work freely. On October 28, President Julius Maada Bio signed a law revising the country’s 1965 Public Order Act to remove measures that criminalized…
Head of USAGM removes firewall regulation aimed to protect editorial independence
Washington, D.C., October 27, 2020—The Committee to Protect Journalists today condemned a move by the head of the U.S. Agency for Global Media to eliminate a regulation designed to protect editorial independence for the agency’s networks, including Voice of America. USAGM CEO Michael Pack said in a statement late yesterday that the regulation would be…
Iraqi judge issues arrest warrant for journalist Suadad al-Salhy
New York, October 23, 2020 – Iraqi authorities should drop the arrest warrant issued for journalist Suadad al-Salhy and allow the press to work freely, the Committee to Protect Journalists said today. Yesterday, a judge at the Al-Karrada Investigative Court in Baghdad issued an arrest warrant for al-Salhy, a reporter for the Middle East Eye…
Argentine court charges journalist Daniel Santoro with illicit association, espionage
New York, October 21, 2020 — The Committee to Protect Journalists today called on Argentine authorities to drop criminal charges against journalist Daniel Santoro and ensure criminal investigations do not threaten journalists’ ability to work. In a decision released this morning, Judge Alejo Ramos Padilla of the Federal Court of Dolores, in Buenos Aires province,…
CPJ calls for journalists’ safety to be protected amid Nigeria protests
New York, October 21, 2020–Nigerian authorities should ensure that journalists are able to do their jobs freely and safely while covering protests against police brutality in the country, the Committee to Protect Journalists said today. In recent days, local media have reported violence against protesters and journalists during the demonstrations in Nigeria, which began as…
Thailand issues emergency decree, nationwide restrictions on press
Bangkok, October 15, 2020 — The Thai government should immediately drop its emergency decree restricting the ability of the press to cover protests, the Committee to Protect Journalists said today. At 4 a.m. today, the Thai government issued a decree limiting public assembly and instituting a nationwide ban on publishing and broadcasting news that could…
CPJ condemns Montenegro High Court conviction of investigative journalist Jovo Martinović
New York, October 8, 2020–Montenegro’s High Court in the capital, Podgorica, today found investigative journalist Jovo Martinović guilty in a retrial and sentenced him to one year in prison for drug trafficking, according to news reports; the court acquitted him of charges of criminal organization. Martinović, an investigative freelance journalist who covers organized crime, already…
Egypt detains freelance journalist Basma Mostafa on false news, other charges
New York, October 5, 2020 – On October 3, state security forces arrested freelance journalist Basma Mostafa upon her arrival at a bus stop in the southern city of Luxor, where she had traveled to cover the alleged killing of a man, Ewais al-Rawy, during a police raid for the al-Manassa newspaper, according to her lawyer and husband Karim…
CPJ condemns proposal to abolish federal trust fund to protect Mexican journalists
Mexico City, September 29, 2020 – Today, Mexico’s federal congress is considering a proposal to abolish 54 federal trust funds, including one used to finance programs that protect journalists via the Federal Mechanism for the Protection of Human Rights Defenders and Journalists, according to news reports. Under the legislative proposal, which was brought by the entire ruling…
CPJ condemns knife attack near former Charlie Hebdo office in Paris
Berlin, September 25, 2020 – At least two people were injured in Paris today in a knife attack near the former offices of French satirical newspaper Charlie Hebdo, amid the ongoing trial of the suspected facilitators of the 2015 attack on the paper that killed 12 people—including eight journalists—according to media reports. “CPJ is deeply…