Two Radio Bilal journalists sentenced in Ethiopia on terror charges
New York, January 4, 2017–The Committee to Protect Journalists today condemned the prison sentences handed down to two journalists from the Ethiopian faith-based station Radio Bilal. Khalid Mohamed and Darsema Sori were sentenced yesterday to prison terms of five years and six months and four years and five months respectively, the independent news website Addis…
Turkey Crackdown Chronicle: Week of December 25
Investigative reporter arrested on propaganda charges The prominent investigative journalist Ahmet Şık was arrested yesterday on allegations of spreading terrorist propaganda. Şık, who was detained in relation to his published writings and posts on social media, was also accused of “publicly humiliating the Republic of Turkey, its judicial organs; military and police organizations,” Cumhuriyet reported.…
Two Ethiopian radio journalists convicted on terror charges
Nairobi, December 21, 2016–Ethiopian radio journalists Khalid Mohammed and Darsema Sori, who have been imprisoned since February 2015, were today convicted on terrorism charges by the High Court’s 19th Criminal Bench, according to the independent Addis Standard newspaper.
Russia jails blogger over post criticizing military action in Syria
New York, December 20, 2016–The Committee to Protect Journalists today called on Russian authorities to release Aleksei Kungurov, a blogger from Siberia who was convicted of “calling for terrorism.” A regional court in Tyumen today sentenced Kungurov to two years in a prison colony over a blog post that criticized Russia’s actions in Syria, according…
Dutch journalist Okke Ornstein due to be freed from Panama prison
New York, December 20, 2016–Dutch journalist Okke Ornstein is due to be released unconditionally from a Panamanian prison by December 23, his lawyer Manuel Succari told CPJ today. The journalist was named in a list published by the government today of people whose sentences were reduced as part of a presidential pardon. Ornstein was arrested…
Uzbek journalist in solitary confinement after 17 years in prison
New York, December 19, 2016–Uzbek authorities should immediately release editor Muhammad Bekjanov and reporter Yusuf Ruzimuradov, the Committee to Protect Journalists said today. Bekjanov’s relatives today told CPJ that they learned that Bekjanov had been moved to solitary confinement. The two have been imprisoned longer than any other journalists in the world, according to CPJ…
How CPJ researches the killing and jailing of journalists
Who is a journalist? In the era of citizen journalism, activist journalism and now “fake” journalism, the question is not academic. The Committee to Protect Journalists has just published its annual census of journalists in prison and next week it will release its survey of killed journalists.
