Reporter who covered Yemeni unrest is held without charge
New York, December 28, 2009—A Yemeni reporter is being held without charge after being arrested on Sunday while covering clashes between security forces and separatists in Yemen’s southern province of Dhala, according to local news reports. The arrest is the latest attempt by the government to silence media outlets and journalists covering civil unrest in…
Critical TV station suspended in Ecuador
We issued the following statement today after Ecuadoran authorities took critical private broadcaster Teleamazonas off the air for three days on Tuesday. In a story aired in May, Teleamazonas reported that natural gas exploitation on Puná Island could force the suspension of fishing for six months…
Journalists beaten in Sudan after covering protests
New York, December 16, 2009—The Committee to Protect Journalists is deeply concerned by the detention and beating of several journalists who were attempting to report on clashes this week and last between government forces and protesters in Khartoum and the nearby city of Omdurman. Police detained more than 100 people during the clashes, according to…
Tunisian journalist loses ‘airport immunity’ after award
My country’s international airport—as some may not know—has become the scene of the Tunisian regime’s score-settling with its opponents. Opponents are no longer banned from traveling; this is a move to promote the idea that they are “free.” However, if they do travel, they face difficulties at the airport, port, or border crossing in question.
Newsweekly reveals twist in Colombian wiretapping scandal
Last week’s cover story in the leading Colombian newsweekly Semana—known for investigations that have shaken the core of the administration of President Alvaro Uribe Vélez—revealed further evidence of illegal wiretapping of journalists by the Administrative Department of Security (DAS), the country’s national intelligence service. The article, titled “A handbook for threats,” disclosed outrageous details about the intimidation techniques…
Tunisian authorities mistreating imprisoned journalist
New York, December 11, 2009—The Committee to Protect Journalists is deeply concerned about the health and detention conditions of Tunisian journalist Taoufik Ben Brik and the flagrant and recurrent violations of his right to see his wife and lawyers.
American journalist interrogated at Canadian border
New York, December 2, 2009—The Committee to Protect Journalists is concerned by the detention and interrogation of a U.S. journalist crossing the border into Canada. News host Amy Goodman of the syndicated, community-oriented radio and television program “Democracy Now!” was detained on Nov. 25 as she tried to cross the Canadian border south of Vancouver and questioned about her work. Goodman…
Tunisia jails two critical journalists and harasses others
New York, December 1, 2009—The Committee to Protect Journalists condemns the rising imprisonment of critical journalists in Tunisia. Harassment has been escalating since President Zine El Abidine Ben Ali threatened to prosecute anyone who casts doubt on his reelection for a fifth five-year term in office on October 25. Journalists Zuhair Makhlouf and Taoufik Ben…
Morocco silences the pens of its journalists
On the eve of Hillary Clinton’s departure to Morocco for the Forum of the Future on November 3, CPJ urged her to “impress upon the Moroccan authorities that a free press is a crucial component of any free society.” The forum is a gathering of political, business, and social leaders from the Middle East and…