Cameroon sports journalist Eyong Macdella Bessong assaulted over accreditation card dispute
Dakar, May 26, 2022–Cameroonian authorities must identify and hold to account the policeman who assaulted journalist Eyong Macdella Bessong while she was covering a May 18 football match in Buea, the capital of the Southwest Region, and should hold accountable the stadium official who manhandled her and asked police to remove her from the property,…
Colombia’s Indigenous ‘communicators’ face special challenges reporting for their communities
Mabel Quinto Salas is a reporter for Radio Pa’yumat, a station in the Northern Cauca region of Colombia. But she doesn’t identify as a journalist. Instead, she calls herself a “community communicator,” a category that is common among Colombia’s Indigenous communities. “Communication is seen as a tool for visibility, for denunciation of human rights violations, but also for…
‘Disastrous for press freedom’: What Russia’s goal of an isolated internet means for journalists
Russia’s invasion of Ukraine presents a danger not only for reporters operating in the war zone. The campaign could also pose a broader threat to press freedoms and other civil liberties if it brings the Kremlin closer to its dream of creating a domestically controlled internet. Russia’s internet regulator, Rozkomnadzor, has long been able to…
Tajikistan outlet threatened with closure; 4 journalists attacked during unrest coverage
New York, May 20, 2022 – Tajikistan authorities must withdraw their official warning against independent outlet Asia Plus, swiftly and transparently investigate attacks on four journalists, and ensure that reporters can freely cover events of public importance, the Committee to Protect Journalists said Friday. On Tuesday, May 17, Asia Plus announced that it was ceasing…
Brazilian journalist says city councilor attacked him with rocks in Minas Gerais state
Rio de Janeiro, May 20, 2022 – Authorities in Minas Gerais state must thoroughly investigate the attack on journalist Alexandre Megale and hold the perpetrator to account, the Committee to Protect Journalists said Friday. In the early afternoon of May 16, journalist Alexandre Megale said he was assaulted and hit with rocks by Paulo Luiz…
Journalists stabbed, assaulted in Bangladesh
New York, May 18, 2022– Bangladesh authorities must conduct a swift and transparent investigation into two separate attacks on journalist Md Rashid Chowdhury and bystander Jashim Uddin, and on journalists Azim Nihad, Rahul Mahajan, and Lokman Halim, the Committee to Protect Journalists said Wednesday. On the evening of Friday, May 13, a group of teenagers…
Hezbollah supporters beat Lebanese video journalist covering elections
Beirut, May 17, 2022 – Lebanese authorities must conduct a transparent investigation into the assault of video journalist Hussein Bassal by Hezbollah supporters while he was covering Sunday’s elections and allow all journalists to work freely without any fear of reprisal, the Committee to Protect Journalists said Tuesday. On Sunday, May 15, Bassal, who works…
Kashmir media at a ‘breaking point’ amid rising number of journalist detentions
Sajad Gul’s mother had prepared his favorite dishes as she anxiously awaited his return home. The Kashmiri journalist, who had been granted bail the day before, on January 15, 2022, was to be released following his arrest earlier that month in a criminal conspiracy case, according to a journalist friend who spoke on condition of…
Azerbaijan journalist Aytan Mammadova threatened at knifepoint
New York, May 11, 2022 – Azerbaijan authorities must swiftly and thoroughly investigate threats and a recent attack against journalist Aytan Mammadova and ensure her safety, the Committee to Protect Journalists said Wednesday. Around midnight on May 8, an unidentified man grabbed Mammadova in the elevator of her apartment building in the Binagadi district in…
Pakistan police assault, detain journalist Jahangir Hayat in Punjab province
New York, May 10, 2022 – Pakistan authorities must conduct a swift and impartial investigation into the police assault of journalist Jahangir Hayat, as well as the detention of Hayat and his family, and hold those responsible to account, the Committee to Protect Journalists said Tuesday. On May 1, police officers in the Icchra area…