Court in Algeria sentences blogger to 10 years in prison
New York, May 24, 2018–In a one-day trial today, a criminal court in Béjaïa sentenced Algerian blogger Marzoug Touati to 10 years in prison and fined him 50,000 Algerian dinar (US$427) for communicating with a foreign entity and inciting civil disobedience, Touati’s lawyer, Salah Dabouz, told CPJ. The conviction is related to Touati’s interview with…
Military court in Egypt sentences journalist to 10 years in jail
New York, May 22, 2018–The Committee to Protect Journalists strongly condemned the sentencing today of Egyptian freelancer Ismail Alexandrani. A military court in Cairo found Alexandrani guilty of being a member of a banned organization and spreading false news, and sentenced the journalist to 10 years in prison, according to news reports.
CPJ welcomes positive development in Kyrgyzstan, calls for Askarov’s release
New York, May 18, 2018–The Committee to Protect Journalists today welcomed former Kyrgyz President Almazbek Atambayev’s decision to drop defamation charges he pressed last year against independent news website Zanoza and its journalists Naryn Idinov and Dina Maslova, and urged the country’s new administration to release Azimjon Askarov, a Kyrgyz journalist jailed since 2010.
CPJ joins calls for Congress to make human rights a focus of Uzbek president’s US visit
The Committee to Protect Journalists joined a coalition of 11 other international press freedom and human rights advocacy groups, in calling on U.S. Congress to require lasting human rights protection in Uzbekistan during President Shavkat Mirziyoyev’s first official visit to the U.S. on May 16 and 17.
People need to know why our journalists were arrested in Myanmar, Reuters tells CPJ
Reuters journalists Wa Lone and Kyaw Soe Oo have spent nearly five months in detention in Myanmar, on charges of violating a colonial-era Official Secrets Act. At the time of their arrest in Yangon on December 12, the reporters were investigating a mass killing of Rohingya men by Buddhist villagers and Myanmar troops that took…
Police in China arrest farmer over article alleging corruption at Yili Group
Taipei, May 9, 2018–The Committee to Protect Journalists today called on Chinese authorities to immediately release Guo Yuzhen, a dairy farmer in Shanxi province whom police detained after she wrote an article alleging that one of the country’s largest dairy producers exploited farmers.
Thai magazine editor freed after seven years in prison
News editor Somyot Prueksakasemsuk was released from Bangkok Remand Prison in the Thai capital on April 30, 2018 after serving a sentence for lèse majesté, according to news reports. Reports said that Somyot was greeted by a small group of family and supporters and appeared to be in good spirits.
Reporter arrested covering Memphis protest held in US immigration detention
Manuel Duran, the founder of Spanish-language news site Memphis Noticias, was arrested on April 3, 2018, while reporting on a protest against immigration detention in Memphis, Tennessee. Although the charges against Duran were dropped, Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) transferred the reporter to a facility in Louisiana two days after his arrest.
Prosecution witness: Myanmar police planned ‘trap’ for Reuters reporter
New York, April 20, 2018–A prosecution witness in the case against two imprisoned Reuters journalists in Myanmar today testified that a police chief ordered officers to trap one of the reporters by handing him “secret documents” during a meeting, according to Reuters and other news reports.
CPJ calls on Niger to stop persecuting journalist Baba Alpha
New York, April 5, 2018–Nigerien authorities should reverse the expulsion of journalist Baba Alpha and ensure his safety, the Committee to Protect Journalists said today. After jailing him for a year, authorities on April 3 released Baba Alpha, a journalist with the privately owned radio and television news agency Bonferey, and drove him to Labbezanga,…