South Sudanese authorities silence three media outlets
Nairobi, August 5, 2015–Authorities in South Sudan have shut down three independent media outlets in the past five days, according to news reports and the outlets’ editors. The Committee to Protect Journalists condemns the closures, which come as international mediators seek to arrive at a peace deal between the government and the armed opposition following…
Militia in central Somalia detains six journalists for four days
Ahlu Sunna Waljama, a formerly government-aligned religious militia based in central Somalia, detained six journalists from July 31, 2015, to August 3, 2015, in the central town of Dhusamareb, according to news reports and local journalists.
Five Myanmar journalists freed from prison as part of mass amnesty
Bangkok, July 31, 2015–Five journalists jailed on anti-state charges in Myanmar were released on Thursday in a presidential amnesty of nearly 7,000 prisoners, according to news reports. The Committee to Protect Journalists welcomes the journalists’ release but calls on Myanmar authorities to release all other journalists imprisoned in the country.
CPJ calls on IOC to ensure press freedom at 2022 Winter Olympics in Beijing
New York, July 31, 2015–The Committee to Protect Journalists is concerned by the decision to award the 2022 Winter Olympic Games to Beijing and calls on the International Olympic Committee to ensure that journalists are able to freely cover all aspects of the Games, including sensitive issues such as construction of the venues, possible protests,…
Turkish authorities block access to news websites
New York, July 28, 2015–Turkish authorities blocked access to at least eight news websites in Turkey on Saturday amid what the government called a counter-terrorism operation, according to news reports. The Committee to Protect Journalists calls on Turkish authorities to restore access to the websites so that Turkish citizens can access news of public interest.
Dogged by fraud allegations, Malaysia targets media
Investigative reporting on alleged mismanagement of a Malaysian state investment fund has triggered a backlash against muckraking media. On Friday, the Home Ministry ordered the suspension of two local news publications, The Edge Weekly and The Edge Financial Daily, for three months on the grounds that their reporting on the fund, known as 1Malaysia Development…
Tunisia charges editor with complicity in terrorist attack
New York, July 23, 2015–Tunisian authorities should drop charges against an editor accused of complicity in the June 27 terrorist attack on Sousse beach that killed at least 39 people, the Committee to Protect Journalists said today. Noureddine Mbarki was charged in connection with publishing a photograph of a car that purportedly transported the gunman.…
CPJ calls on Azerbaijan to free jailed journalist Khadija Ismayilova
New York, July 23, 2015–The Committee to Protect Journalists calls on Azerbaijani authorities to immediately release Khadija Ismayilova, an investigative journalist who has been imprisoned since December on charges of embezzlement, tax evasion, and abuse of power, among others. Ismayilova’s trial is scheduled to be held on Friday in Baku, according to news reports. If…
How patriotism with a Cold War tinge is damaging Crimea’s press
“You should move to Kiev,” I was trying to persuade a friend of mine to leave Crimea. I first met him at the time when cassettes were used in voice recorders, there were no e-mail addresses on business cards, and people preferred to make acquaintances in bars, not online. He asked me not to make…