Cameroonian journalist Martinez Zogo jailed since January on defamation charges
New York, February 18, 2020 — Authorities in Cameroon should immediately release journalist Martinez Zogo, drop all charges against him, and reform the country’s penal code to decriminalize defamation, the Committee to Protect Journalists said today.
‘I feel like a weight has been lifted’ freelance journalist Santosh Yadav says as Chhattisgarh court ends four-year legal nightmare
On January 2, freelance journalist Santosh Yadav got his life back when the National Investigation Agency court in Jagdalpur acquitted him of charges of helping Maoists militants. The ruling marked the end of a legal nightmare that lasted over four years for Yadav, who says that he was threatened and beaten in custody, before being…
Venezuelan photojournalist Jesús Medina released after 16 months in prison
New York, January 7, 2020 — The Committee to Protect Journalists today welcomed the release of Venezuelan freelance photojournalist Jesús Medina after more than 16 months of arbitrary detention, and called for Venezuelan authorities to drop all charges against him.
Chadian journalist detained since December 26 over defamation complaint
Vancouver, Canada, January 6, 2020 — Authorities in Chad should release journalist Ali Hamata Achène, and stop pursuing criminal defamation and retaliatory cases against reporters, the Committee to Protect Journalists said today.
Burundi prosecutor seeks 15-year prison term for Iwacu journalists
Nairobi, January 3, 2020—Burundi’s public prosecutor on December 30 asked for a 15-year prison term for four journalists for privately owned online news outlet Iwacu and their driver who are charged with undermining state security, according to Iwacu and other news reports. The prosecutor is also seeking to have the five stripped of their right…
Algeria sentences cartoonist Benabdelhamid Amine to 3 months in prison
Washington, D.C., December 19, 2019 — A court in Oran, in northwest Algeria, sentenced cartoonist Benabdelhamid Amine to one year in prison on December 11 after finding him guilty of insulting the president, “violating territorial integrity,” and “disseminating publications harmful to national security,” according to news reports. The Djamal City Criminal Court suspended nine months…
Journalist extradited from Turkey and sentenced to 10 years in Iran
Turkish intelligence agents arrested Arash Shoa-Shargh, an Iranian journalist living in exile in Turkey, on January 5, 2018, in Van, a city near Iran’s border, a friend of the journalist, who asked not to be named to protect their safety, told CPJ on December 16, 2019.
Iranian journalist imprisoned, fired, and forced into exile over a single word
In October 2018, authorities arrested Pouyan Khoshhal as he drove through the northern Iranian city of Rasht, by the Caspian Sea. The reason for the journalist’s arrest: his use of the word “death” instead of “martyrdom” to describe a Shiite saint in an article for the reformist newspaper Ebtekar.
For the sake of press freedom, Julian Assange must be defended
Nine years ago this month, the Committee to Protect Journalists took a stand on one of the most polarizing figures in journalism. We wrote President Barack Obama and his attorney general, Eric Holder, urging them not to prosecute Julian Assange.
CPJ launches 2019 #FreeThePress campaign
Instagram campaign to focus on jailed journalists in Kyrgyzstan, Egypt, Eritrea, Vietnam, and elsewhere New York, December 2, 2019–The Committee to Protect Journalists today launched its annual #FreeThePress campaign to raise awareness of jailed journalists globally. The campaign will highlight the plight of several journalists via CPJ’s Instagram account.