‘The Cartel Project’ investigates crimes against reporters in Mexico
Forbidden Stories—a network of journalists whose mission is to continue the work of reporters who are threatened, censored, or killed—yesterday published a new investigation into the murder of Mexican journalist Regina Martínez. The report, part of five-part series about the killings of reporters in Mexico, lays bare serious flaws in the investigation in a context…
Philippine soldiers shoot and kill journalist Ronnie Villamor at checkpoint
Bangkok, November 23, 2020 – Philippine authorities should independently investigate the circumstances surrounding the killing of journalist Ronnie Villamor, and hold those responsible to account, the Committee to Protect Journalists said today. In the afternoon of November 14, Philippine Army soldiers shot and killed Villamor, a contributor to the local independent Dos Kantos Balita weekly tabloid, outside…
Legal setbacks could thwart progress in resolving journalist murders
Global Impunity Index spotlights countries where killers of journalists go free New York, October 28, 2020—Fragile gains toward reducing the murders of journalists worldwide could be thwarted by legal appeals and lack of political leadership, the Committee to Protect Journalists found in a new report published today. The 2020 Global Impunity Index spotlights countries where…
Despite convictions, justice for murdered journalists in Mexico remains abstract
Some recent convictions in the cases of journalists murdered in Mexico may give the impression that the state is making significant progress in the fight against impunity. While CPJ has welcomed the convictions as an important step, the outlook for breaking the cycle of impunity and violence in Mexico has grown more dim under President…
Philippines makes premature claim to end of impunity in journalist murders
When the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural classified the 2009 Maguindanao massacre — the deadliest attack on the press ever recorded by CPJ — as “resolved,” Philippine authorities were quick to echo and tout this designation. Too quick, as it turned out. UNESCO’s then-assistant director-general for communication and information, Moez Chackchouk, made the official…
CPJ, Human Rights Watch, and Amnesty International express concern over Somalia’s amended media law
The Committee to Protect Journalists, Human Rights Watch, and Amnesty International today sent a joint letter to the president of the Federal Republic of Somalia, Mohamed Abdullahi Mohamed, expressing concern over a restrictive amended media law and asking the president to take concrete steps to safeguard press freedom and journalist safety during upcoming elections. The…
Doubts over investigation plague Pavel Sheremet trial as Ukraine journalists cite continued fear
The trial of three people charged for the 2016 killing of Pavel Sheremet is set to begin before year’s end, but friends and colleagues of the journalist wonder if the right people are facing justice. It has been more than four years and two months since a powerful car bomb killed journalist Pavel Sheremet in…
Appeals court overturns murder convictions in 1999 killing of Serbian journalist Slavko Ćuruvija
New York, September 9, 2020 – The Belgrade Appeals Court announced on September 7 that it had overturned the convictions of four former Serbian State Security officers involved in the 1999 killing of journalist Slavko Ćuruvija, according to news reports. “CPJ is troubled and disappointed by a Serbian court’s decision to overturn the convictions of…
CPJ disappointed by verdict in trial for murder of Slovak journalist Ján Kuciak
Brussels, September 3, 2020—In response to the acquittal of businessman Marián Kočner in the trial for murder of Slovak journalist Ján Kuciak and his fiancée, Martina Kušnírová, the Committee to Project Journalists issued the following statement: “We are surprised and disappointed that the long investigation into Ján Kuciak’s murder has ended with the acquittal of…
Amicus briefs support CPJ’s appeal in Khashoggi lawsuit
Nearly three dozen media and press freedom organizations, as well as 10 major human rights organizations and experts, have signed on to amicus briefs in support of CPJ’s appeal in its lawsuit seeking documents on whether U.S. intelligence agencies knew of threats to Washington Post columnist Jamal Khashoggi before his murder by the Saudi government….