Imprisoned

After 18 months, Azerbaijan’s vast media crackdown shows no signs of abating, as police arrested two independent journalists, Ulviyya Ali and Ahmad Mammadli, on the night of May 6-7. The arrests bring the total number of journalists and media workers jailed in Azerbaijan since late 2023 to at least 25, with several others facing major…

The Committee to Protect Journalists joined PEN America and other partner organizations in a joint letter Tuesday urging U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio to pressure Vietnam to release all imprisoned journalists in the country, including 2022 International Press Freedom Award winner Pham Doan Trang.   The joint action specifically requests Rubio to call on Vietnam…

Paris, May 6, 2025—The Committee to Protect Journalists condemns the intensifying crackdown on press freedom in Iran, including the recent conviction of six media directors and founders, and urges the Iranian authorities to immediately cease their systematic persecution of journalists and media organizations. “These systematic attacks are clear examples of censorship, media repression, and obstruction…

The Committee to Protect Journalists and a group of Southeast Asian lawmakers have called for the “active engagement” of the regional bloc ASEAN in protecting press freedom and the formation of an inter-parliamentary alliance to safeguard media rights in the region, which includes some of the worst offenders of press freedom. As governments escalate efforts…

Bangkok, Thailand, May 2, 2025—Myanmar authorities must immediately release Myaelatt Athan news agency journalist Than Htike Myint, who was sentenced to five years in prison on terrorism charges, which are being misused to harass, threaten, and imprison reporters, the Committee to Protect Journalists said Friday. On April 3, a Myanaung Township court in southwest Myanmar…

New York, April 15, 2025—The Committee to Protect Journalists calls on Russian authorities to immediately release Russian journalists Antonina Favorskaya, Artyom Krieger, Konstantin Gabov, and Sergey Karelin, who were sentenced by a Moscow court on Tuesday to 5 ½ years in prison on extremism charges. The journalists were all accused of association with the anti-corruption…

Bogotá, April 11, 2025—Venezuelan authorities should immediately release journalist Nakary Mena Ramos and her camera operator husband, Gianni González, drop all charges against them, and ensure they can do their jobs without fear of reprisal, the Committee to Protect Journalists said Friday. “The Venezuelan government’s crackdown on the press has persisted for months, intensifying following…

Lusaka, April 8, 2025—Zimbabwean authorities should stop their victimization of broadcast journalist Blessed Mhlanga, who, after 43 days in jail, was denied bail for the third time on Monday, and must ensure that charges against him are dropped immediately, the Committee to Protect Journalists said. Mhlanga, a journalist for privately owned Heart and Soul Television,…

Istanbul, March 31, 2025—Turkish authorities should immediately release Swedish journalist Kaj Joakim Medin, who was arrested March 27 in Istanbul on accusations of “being a member of a terrorist organization” and “insulting” Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan, the Committee to Protest Journalists said Monday. “Turkey was a haven for foreign journalists covering the region just a…

New York, March 28, 2025—A court in Russia’s southern Altai Krai on Thursday convicted Maria Ponomarenko, a correspondent for independent news site RusNews, of using violence against prison staff and sentenced her to an additional 22 months in prison. Ponomarenko is already serving a six-year prison sentence after being convicted in February 2023 on charges…