CPJ condemns Iran’s espionage charges against Jason Rezaian
New York, April 20, 2015–CPJ is alarmed by reports of official charges levied against Washington Post Tehran bureau chief Jason Rezaian. The charges included espionage, “collaborating with hostile governments,” “propaganda against the establishment,” and allegations that he gathered information “about internal and foreign policy,” the Post reported today. His case file presents no evidence to…
CPJ to Mexican president: case of jailed journalist violates free expression
Dear President Peña Nieto: The Committee to Protect Journalists is writing to express its concern at the continued detention of an independent journalist and Mayan activist in the Mexican state of Quintana Roo. Pedro Celestino Canché Herrera has been imprisoned since August 30, 2014, when he was arrested by state security forces and charged with sabotage.
Jailed journalist Gao Yu saw what was coming. So should the IOC
Gao Yu was right, I was wrong. Gao, who was handed a seven-year prison sentence in a Beijing court on Friday, and I met at a conference organized by the World Association of Newspapers and News Publishers in Paris in April 2008, a few months before the Beijing Olympic Games were to get underway. CPJ…
Mission Journal: Fewer arrests but fear still lingers for Somaliland’s press
Conditions for the press in the semi-autonomous republic of Somaliland may, on the surface, appear to be improving. But without a functioning media law to lend protection, and pending legislative elections, journalists remain wary of state harassment.
CPJ requests information about alleged detention of two journalists in Egypt
New York, April 17, 2015–The Committee to Protect Journalists wrote to the Egyptian Ministry of Justice on Thursday requesting information about two journalists who were allegedly arrested on Tuesday while attempting to cover the bombing of two electrical pylons that transmit power to the Media Production City in Cairo.
Chinese journalist Gao Yu sentenced to seven years
New York, April 17, 2015–A Beijing court today convicted Chinese journalist Gao Yu of leaking state secrets and handed her a seven-year sentence, according to news reports. Gao, a freelance journalist, has written about Chinese politics, the economy, and social trends for Chinese media in Hong Kong and overseas. She was arrested in April 2014,…
Glitz of Formula One must not divert attention from Bahrain’s jailed journalists
When the Bahrain International Circuit (BIC) hosted Formula One for the first time in 2004, it was nearly a false start for the $150 million facility. Drivers told the BBC they feared desert sand would damage their racecars. So track employees began a perpetual fight against nature, even spraying glue over the surrounding desert in…
Veteran Chinese journalist Gao Yu awaits her fate
A verdict is expected Friday in the case of veteran journalist and staunch government critic Gao Yu. The 71-year-old freelance journalist, who writes about politics, the economy, and social trends for Chinese media in Hong Kong and overseas, was tried in November for disclosing state secrets.
Egypt sentences three journalists to life in prison
New York, April 11, 2015–A court in Cairo sentenced three Egyptian journalists to life in prison today, according to news reports. The Committee to Protect Journalists condemns the convictions and sentences and calls on authorities to stop persecuting the news media.
