Bangladeshi authorities arrest journalist Rozina Islam under Official Secrets Act
New York, May 17, 2021—The Committee to Protect Journalists today called on Bangladeshi authorities to immediately release journalist Rozina Islam, withdraw the investigation into her, and to stop arresting journalists under the Official Secrets Act. Islam, a senior correspondent for the daily newspaper Prothom Alo, was arrested today after the Health Ministry filed a complaint…
Uzbek blogger Otabek Sattoriy sentenced to 6.5 years in prison
Stockholm, May 10, 2021 – Uzbekistan authorities should immediately release journalist Otabek Sattoriy, not contest his appeal, and allow all journalists to work freely and without fear of reprisal, the Committee to Protect Journalists said today. Earlier today, the Muzrabot District Court in the southern Surkhondaryo region convicted Sattoriy, a blogger who covers local corruption…
Vietnam sentences independent reporter Tran Thi Tuyet Dieu to 8 years in prison
Bangkok, April 26, 2021 – The Committee to Protect Journalists today strongly condemned the conviction and severe prison sentence given to Vietnamese journalist Tran Thi Tuyet Dieu and called for her immediate and unconditional release. On April 23, the People’s Court in Phu Yen province convicted Dieu under Article 117 of the penal code, an anti-state provision that bans “creating, storing and disseminating information and materials” against the state, and sentenced her…
Uzbek journalist Sid Yanyshev charged over corruption reporting
Stockholm, April 22, 2021 – Uzbek authorities should drop all charges against journalist Sid Yanyshev and allow him to work freely, the Committee to Protect Journalists said today. Yesterday afternoon, police in Tashkent, the capital, arrested Yanyshev, who works as a freelance contributor to the independent news website Fergana, according to a report by Fergana…
‘The Cartel Project’ investigates crimes against reporters in Mexico
Forbidden Stories—a network of journalists whose mission is to continue the work of reporters who are threatened, censored, or killed—yesterday published a new investigation into the murder of Mexican journalist Regina Martínez. The report, part of five-part series about the killings of reporters in Mexico, lays bare serious flaws in the investigation in a context…
Algerian Ennahar TV director Anis Rahmani sentenced to 5 years in prison
New York, November 17, 2020 – The Committee to Protect Journalists today expressed disappointment at the conviction and sentencing of Algerian journalist Anis Rahmani for his work as director of Ennahar TV. On November 15, the Bir Mourad Rais First Instance Court in Algiers sentenced Rahmani, director of the privately owned news broadcaster Ennahar TV, to five…
Azerbaijani journalist Polad Aslanov sentenced to 16 years on treason charges
New York, November 16, 2020 – The Grave Crimes Court in Baku, Azerbaijan’s capital, today sentenced Polad Aslanov, the chief editor of the independent news websites Xeberman and Press-az, to 16 years in jail on the charge of high treason, his wife Gulmira Aslanova told the Committee to Protect Journalists via messaging app and the…
Colombia court’s ruling in Vicky Dávila, RCN defamation case sets dangerous precedent for investigative reporting
Bogotá, October 29, 2020 – The Committee to Protect Journalists today condemned a Colombian appellate court’s decision ordering journalist Vicky Dávila Hoyos and media outlet RCN to pay damages for reports broadcast in 2014 on alleged police corruption. On October 15, a Bogotá appellate court ordered Dávila, one of Colombia’s best-known journalists, and the private…
Honduran journalist Luis Alonzo Almendares shot and killed
Miami, September 29, 2020 — Honduran authorities must thoroughly investigate the killing of journalist Luis Alonzo Almendares, and hold those responsible to account, the Committee to Protect Journalists said today. At about 6 p.m. on September 27, in the central Honduran city of Comayagua, two unidentified individuals on a motorcycle shot Almendares, a local freelance…
Indigenous journalist Anastasia Mejía arrested in central Guatemala
Managua, Nicaragua, September 28, 2020 – Guatemalan authorities should immediately release radio journalist Anastasia Mejía, drop the charges against her, and guarantee that journalists can report freely without persecution, the Committee to Protect Journalists said today. On September 22, the Guatemalan National Civil Police (PNC) arrested journalist Anastasia Mejía Tiriquiz, director of the radio station…