Senegalese journalist Pape Alé Niang arrested over broadcast about opposition politician
Dakar, August 4, 2023—Senegalese authorities must unconditionally release journalist Pape Alé Niang, who began a hunger strike on July 29, and cease all legal proceedings against him related to his work, the Committee to Protect Journalists said Friday. On Tuesday, August 1, Niang, editor of the privately owned news site Dakarmatin, was charged by the…
Zimbabwean reporter Columbus Mavhunga faces jail over drone reporting
Lusaka, August 2, 2023—Zimbabwean authorities should immediately drop illegal drone-flying charges against reporter Columbus Mavhunga and ensure that journalists can freely carry out their work without fear of reprisal, the Committee to Protect Journalists said Wednesday. On July 23, police arrested Mavhunga, a correspondent for the U.S. Congress-funded broadcaster Voice of America (VOA), after a…
Turkish authorities detain 5 journalists over tweet, 1 remains in custody
Istanbul, July 26, 2023—Turkish authorities should immediately release reporter Fırat Can Arslan and stop treating journalists like criminals, the Committee to Protect Journalists said Wednesday. On Tuesday, July 25, Turkish police detained Arslan, a reporter for the pro-Kurdish Mezopotamya News Agency, at his house in the capital city of Ankara, in relation to an investigation…
European Court of Human Rights awards compensation to Azerbaijani journalist Emin Huseynov over 2015 revocation of citizenship
Stockholm, July 25, 2023—In response to a July 13 judgment by the European Court of Human Rights stating that Azerbaijani authorities violated Emin Huseynov’s human rights when they deprived the journalist and press freedom advocate of his citizenship in 2015, the Committee to Protect Journalists issued the following statement: “We welcome the European Court of…
CPJ condemns trials of Iranian journalists Niloofar Hamedi and Elahe Mohammadi
Washington, D.C., July 24, 2023 – The Committee to Protect Journalists strongly condemns the continuation of the closed-door trials of journalists Niloofar Hamedi and Elahe Mohammadi, who were among the first journalists to report on the death in police custody of Mahsa Amini in September 2022. “CPJ stands in solidarity with Niloofar Hamedi and Elahe…
CPJ to hold press conference on José Rubén Zamora and Guatemala’s criminalization of journalists
Washington, D.C., July 21, 2023—The Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ) will hold a press conference on Wednesday, July 26, to mark the one-year anniversary of Guatemalan journalist José Rubén Zamora’s imprisonment. Speakers will include Zamora’s son and a Guatemalan journalist in exile. Zamora, founder of the independent investigative newspaper elPeriódico, was arrested on July 29,…
CPJ condemns Moroccan court’s rejection of appeals by jailed journalists Soulaiman Raissouni and Omar Radi
New York, July 19, 2023 – In response to news reports that the Moroccan court of cassation in Rabat on Tuesday rejected the final appeals of jailed journalists Soulaiman Raissouni and Omar Radi, the Committee to Protect Journalists issued the following statement of condemnation: “We are deeply disappointed by the court’s decision to keep Soulaiman…
In Georgia, poetry, a prison visit, and a pardon for Nika Gvaramia
On the road to Rustavi Prison #12, where the only journalist jailed in Georgia is still serving out his 3.5-year sentence, Sofia Liluashvili is speaking to me about poetry. Liluashvili is the wife of Georgian journalist Nika Gvaramia, who spent more than a year behind bars before a pardon by President Salome Zurabishvili led to…
CPJ urges Bangladesh to stop using Digital Security Act to harass Adhora Yeasmean and other journalists
New York, July 13, 2023—Bangladesh authorities must immediately drop their investigation into journalist Adhora Yeasmean and stop using the Digital Security Act to intimidate journalists in retaliation for their work, the Committee to Protect Journalists said Thursday. On May 13, the Chittagong Cyber Tribunal, which adjudicates alleged cybercrime offenses in southeast Bangladesh, registered a complaint under…