Sedition dropped, but Indian cartoonist faces other charges
After intense public pressure, the Maharashtra state government last week dropped the charge of sedition against Indian cartoonist Aseem Trivedi. However, Trivedi still faces other charges as his case resumes tomorrow at the Bombay High court. The 25-year old cartoonist, who was arrested on September 8, could have been sentenced to life imprisonment if convicted of sedition.…
Q&A: Yavuz Baydar on Turkey’s press freedom climate
For the past several months, CPJ staff has been researching pervasive press freedom problems in Turkey, including the criminal prosecution of journalists, the use of governmental pressure to engender self-censorship, and the presence of a repressive legal structure. This month, CPJ will release an in-depth report on Turkey’s press freedom crisis. In advance of our…
Puntland authorities close down radio and website
Nairobi, October 9, 2012–Security agents in the semi-autonomous region of Puntland shuttered private broadcaster Horseed FM on Saturday morning and ordered Internet service providers in the region to block the station’s website, according to local journalists.
Judicial intimidation of editor and newspaper in Chad
Lagos, Nigeria, October 5, 2012–Chadian authorities are abusing the judicial and law enforcement systems to silence news coverage critical of the government’s performance, censoring publications and targeting one editor with an unjust criminal conviction. The Committee to Protect Journalists calls on the government to immediately halt its actions.
Iran steps up its campaign against the press
New York, October 3, 2012–In a flurry of new anti-press actions in Iran, a jury has voted to convict a Reuters bureau chief on anti-state charges while authorities have jailed the head of the state’s official news agency, blocked Google services, and shut one reformist newspaper.
Latin American press faces violence, legal harassment
Violence and legal harassment: the two greatest obstacles to press freedom in Latin America today. That’s the message that CPJ Executive Director Joel Simon is delivering this morning in Washington, D.C., at a briefing hosted by Congressman Sam Farr. Farr, a California Democrat, hosts a monthly series looking at emerging trends in the Western Hemisphere.…
For India, celebrations not in order on Singh’s birthday
This week, Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh marked his 80th birthday. He spent the day, Wednesday, in the company of family and at public events, according to news reports. “There are no celebrations. He prefers to be with his family in the morning–then work as usual,” Singh’s spokesman told the media.
Receding hopes for press freedom in Tunisia
These days, press freedom in Tunisia feels ever more distant. Many journalists believed that media freedoms, which were virtually nonexistent under former President Zine el-Abidine Ben Ali, would grow after his ouster. During the aftermath of the December 2010 uprising, an independent press blossomed and special commissions were set up to reform the media sector.…