Sudan passes freedom of information law but journalists remain wary
The Sudanese government has boasted that its freedom of information law, passed by parliament at the end of January, will increase transparency by giving citizens the right to access and publish public information. But with a long history of censorship and harassment from authorities, journalists suspect the law will be used as another way to…
Police raid, seize books from Malaysian cartoonist’s office
Bangkok, February 2, 2015–The Committee to Protect Journalists calls on Malaysian authorities to halt the legal harassment of a Malaysian cartoonist. Zulkiflee Awar Ulhaque, also known as Zunar, is a frequent contributor to the news website Malaysiakini and the author of several volumes of political cartoons.
Azerbaijan continues press crackdown with jail term and arrest extension
New York, January 29, 2015–The Committee to Protect Journalists calls on Azerbaijani authorities to end their crackdown on the press after a five-year sentence was handed to reporter Seymur Hazi, according to news reports. The pre-trial detention of investigative reporter Khadija Ismayilova was also extended this week, news reports said.
Press threatened and detained as Egypt marks uprising anniversary
New York, January 26, 2015–The Committee to Protect Journalists is alarmed by the harassment and detention of journalists in Egypt on Sunday during mass demonstrations to mark the fourth anniversary of the uprising that ousted President Hosni Mubarak in 2011.
Classifying media and encryption as a threat is danger to press freedom
The U.K. prides itself on its commitment to free expression, but the latest revelations of surveillance of journalists and calls by Britain’s Prime Minister, David Cameron, to ban secure messaging belie the country’s drift toward a more restrictive environment for the press. The revelations further underscore the threat surveillance by Western democracies poses to journalism,…
How Ecuador’s plans to make communications a public service is threat to free press
Attempts to amend Ecuador’s constitution to categorize communications as a “public service” has sparked a fierce debate, with one critic drawing comparisons to the way dictators such as Stalin and Hitler used the press as a propaganda tool, and supporters of President Rafael Correa’s government arguing that the proposed reforms will make journalism more accountable…
In South Korea, deportation and defamation cases mark slide in press freedom
South Korea has been hailed by many as a bastion for democracy and press freedom, especially in comparison to its twin to the north, which for years has been featured on the Committee to Protect Journalists’ most censored list. However the recent stifling of critical voices in South Korea, including cases of arrests, deportation, and…
How Sri Lanka’s new president can ease decade of repressive press measures
The stunning defeat of Sri Lanka’s incumbent president Mahinda Rajapaksa by challenger Maithripala Sirisena on Friday has given way to questions about what changes, if any, will come for press freedom in a country that had grown deeply repressive under the previous leadership.
News rationed as Venezuela seeks to control newsprint imports
Venezuelan newspapers have traditionally handed out hundreds of courtesy copies in their lobbies and at hotels. But Correo del Caroní, an independent daily in the industrial city of Ciudad Guayana, treats every edition as if it were precious and now gives away just 14 copies, including one to the owner.