South Africa: BBC journalist expelled from press conference
New York, April 9, 2010–The Committee to Protect Journalists welcomes the African National Congress (ANC) party’s condemnation of the expulsion of BBC journalist Jonah Fisher from a press conference on Thursday. ANC Youth League leader Julius Malema referred to Fisher as a “bastard” after the reporter interrupted him.
In Egypt, journalists attacked while covering protests
New York, April 7, 2010—Uniform and plainclothes Egyptian security forces assaulted and obstructed journalists trying to cover protests in Cairo on Tuesday, according to news accounts and interviews. The Committee to Protect Journalists condemns the actions and calls for authorities to stop harassing journalists reporting from the scene of news events.
Newspaper suspended, TV station raided in Kyrgyzstan
New York, April 2, 2010—Authorities in Kyrgyzstan should halt their ongoing crackdown on independent and opposition news outlets, the Committee to Protect Journalists said today. A Bishkek court suspended a pro-opposition newspaper on Wednesday—the third such suspension this month—while financial police confiscated newsroom computers belonging to an independent Web-based television channel on Thursday, effectively taking…
Journalists report Yahoo e-mail accounts hacked in China
New York, March 31, 2010—News reports that the Yahoo e-mail accounts of reporters and others in China and Taiwan have been compromised are a reminder that journalists must be vigilant when communicating over the Internet, the Committee to Protect Journalists said today. CPJ called on Internet companies to reassess their business practices in countries where…
Tunisia blocks journalists from press conferences
New York, March 25, 2010—Tunisian authorities banned journalists from attending two press conferences for the launch of local and international human rights reports this week, and is stepping up harassment of journalists overall, the Committee to Protect Journalists said today.
Ruling obstructs Belarusian Association of Journalists
New York, March 23, 2010—The Belarusian Supreme Court has upheld a government order that will obstruct the work of the Belarusian Association of Journalists, the country’s most prominent press freedom and media support organization. The Committee to Protect Journalists denounced the ruling, which was handed down Monday.
Ugandan photographers take heat after fire at royal tombs
It seemed like déjà vu. Another major protest erupts in Uganda and journalists face the wrath of authorities and the public alike. Tensions between the government and the traditional kingdom of the Baganda, the largest ethnic group based in central Uganda, flared again Tuesday evening after a fire of unknown origin ravaged the tombs of…
Sudanese editors questioned for ‘insulting’ al-Bashir
New York, March 18, 2010—Sudan’s official press regulator, the National Press Council, should drop its investigation of two editors accused of insulting President Omar al-Bashir, the Committee to Protect Journalists said today. Yass Omar al-Imam, editor-in-chief of the pro-opposition daily Rai al-Shaab, and Fayez al-Silaik, acting editor-in-chief of the independent daily Ajras al-Hurriya, were questioned Monday by officials with the…