Haitian television station owner disappears days after brief abduction of his journalist wife
New York, June 22, 2023—The Committee to Protect Journalists on Thursday called on Haitian authorities to investigate the reported kidnapping of Pierre-Louis Opont, the president of Haiti’s independent Télé Pluriel channel 44, and the brief abduction of his journalist wife Marie Lucie Bonhomme. The disappearance of Opont on Tuesday, June 20, came days after Bonhomme,…
CPJ’s support to exiled journalists jumped 227% in 3 years, reflecting global press freedom crisis
Keep closely connected to your homeland and don’t despair: that is advice Syrian journalist Okba Mohammad said he would offer to Afghan journalists who fled after the August 2021 Taliban takeover. Mohammad knows firsthand the challenges of exile. In 2019, he made a new life in Spain after fleeing the Syrian civil war with CPJ’s…
Mahoney: The lingering legacy of China’s COVID-19 censorship
One time she drew flowers on a letter to her ailing mother from her Chinese prison cell. Another time it was pictures of penguins. The drawings were a good sign. Zhang Zhan, the journalist jailed for her COVID-19 reporting from Wuhan, is maybe doing better. The 39-year-old Shanghai lawyer-turned social media reporter was one of…
Ethnic Albanian journalists attacked, vehicles vandalized during Serb protests in northern Kosovo
Berlin, June 5, 2023—Kosovo authorities must investigate the recent attacks on multiple news crews covering protests in the country and ensure journalists can cover demonstrations safely, the Committee to Protect Journalists said Monday. In late May, protests broke out throughout northern Kosovo over the election of several ethnic Albanian mayors to represent Serb-majority areas, after…
Journalists harassed, 1 beaten after opposition protest coverage in Pakistan
New York, May 24, 2023—Pakistani authorities must cease harassing journalists covering the country’s political unrest and respect the media’s right to report freely and safely, the Committee to Protect Journalists said Wednesday. Since May 16, police have visited the homes of at least three journalists who reported from the scene of a May 9 protest…
Malawi journalist Francis Mzindiko assaulted while covering political event
Lusaka, May 24, 2023—Malawi authorities should thoroughly and speedily investigate the recent assault of journalist Francis Mzindiko and hold those responsible to account, the Committee to Protect Journalists said Wednesday. On the morning of May 17, political activists attacked Mzindiko, a photographer with the privately owned Times Group newspaper, while he covered a fight between supporters…
Sudanese paramilitary soldiers assault at least 3 journalists, hold 2 overnight
New York, May 23, 2023—All parties to the conflict in Sudan must stop detaining and assaulting members of the press for their work and ensure that journalists can cover newsworthy events without fear, the Committee to Protect Journalists said Tuesday. Since May 16, soldiers with the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces have beaten and robbed at…
In Marcos Jr.’s Philippines, milder tone belies harsh media reality
At a waterfront courthouse in Tacloban City, a long-time hotbed of communist insurgency in the Philippines’ Eastern Visayas island region, heavily armed guards were escorting jailed journalist Frenchie Mae Cumpio to trial. The picturesque setting belied the harsh reality of the April 17 hearing. Cumpio could be put behind bars for life if found guilty…
Journalists arrested and attacked, media offices set ablaze amid Pakistan protests
New York, May 12, 2023—Pakistan authorities and the leadership and supporters of the opposition Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf party must respect the rights of journalists covering the country’s political unrest, the Committee to Protect Journalists said Friday. Amid protests following the arrest of former Prime Minister Imran Khan on Tuesday, May 9, authorities and supporters of Khan’s…
In Turkey, cautious optimism that tough election could be good for press freedom
Turkey’s powerful Recep Tayyip Erdoğan and his Justice and Development Party (AKP) are facing one of the toughest challenges of their two decades in office. Polls ahead of the country’s May 14 presidential and parliamentary elections suggest that the president and his long-ruling party could lose to the opposition coalition of Kemal Kılıçdaroğlu, leader of…