Iran must disclose identities of detained Germans
New York, October 12, 2010–The Committee to Protect Journalists calls on Iranian authorities to immediately disclose the names of two Germans who were arrested on Sunday and described as journalists in several news reports. CPJ also asked Iranian officials to clarify the circumstances surrounding the arrests of the two individuals and to state what, if…
Cuba frees 17th journalist jailed in Black Spring
New York, October 12, 2010–Cuban journalist Alfredo Felipe Fuentes, left, was freed from prison on Friday and exiled to Spain as part of a July agreement between the Havana government and the Catholic Church. Seventeen journalists jailed in the 2003 Black Spring crackdown have now been freed and exiled as part of the agreement. “I feel…
China seeks to block news of Liu’s Nobel
New York, October 8, 2010–The Committee to Protect Journalists calls on the Chinese government to end its pointless attempts to block the news by blacking out domestic and foreign media coverage of the Norwegian Nobel Committee’s announcement awarding jailed human rights activist Liu Xiaobo the 2010 Nobel Peace Prize. According to foreign news agencies’ reports from…
A Golden Pen for Iran’s Zaid-Abadi
The World Association of Newspapers on Wednesday honored the jailed Iranian journalist, Ahmad Zaid-Abadi with its Golden Pen of Freedom Award in the German city of Hamburg. Zaid-Abadi, right, was sentenced in 2009 to six years in prison, five years of internal exile, and a lifetime ban on working as a journalist. He is behind…
Derakhshan case: When keeping quiet does not work
The severity of the nearly 20-year jail sentence handed down to veteran Iranian blogger Hossein Derakhshan, left, has shocked many exiled Iranian journalists and bloggers with whom I’ve spoken. It’s also reinforced their belief that the best way to help jailed colleagues is not through quiet diplomacy but by making a lot of noise.
‘Blogfather,’ columnist get heavy prison terms in Iran
New York, September 28, 2010–The Committee to Protect Journalists condemns the government’s ongoing offensive against critical journalists in Iran. A Revolutionary Court today sentenced blogger Hossein Derakhshan, left, to 19 and a half years in prison, the International Campaign for Human Rights in Iran quoted the Farsi news website Mashreq as saying. And on Monday, Iranian authorities informed the lawyer of Issa…
Cuban journalist released, exiled; 16 now free
New York, September 27, 2010–Imprisoned Cuban journalist Miguel Galván Gutierrez was released from jail and flown to Madrid on Saturday as part of a July agreement between the Havana government and the Catholic Church. Sixteen journalists jailed in the 2003 Black Spring crackdown have now been freed and exiled as part of the agreement.
Yemen should free Shaea, repudiate abuse
Your Excellency: The Committee to Protect Journalists calls on you to ensure the immediate release of Abdulelah Hider Shaea, a Yemeni journalist known for his coverage of Islamist groups, including Al-Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula. We also call on you to publicly repudiate the abusive treatment to which Shaea has been subjected while in state custody.
CPJ alarmed by detention of Syrian blogger
Your Excellency: The Committee to Protect Journalists is deeply concerned about the ongoing extrajudicial detention of Tal al-Mallohi, a Syrian blogger who has been held incommunicado for the past nine months. We call on you to instruct the proper authorities to ensure that al-Mallohi is afforded all her rights in accordance with Syrian law.