CPJ Safety Advisory: Covering 2018 protests in Bangladesh
On July 29, two students were killed, and 12 others injured when a bus plowed into a passengers waiting at a stop in Dhaka. Since then, daily demonstrations that started in Dhaka have spread throughout Bangladesh. Thousands of students have demonstrated on the streets of Dhaka at major traffic intersections, causing congestion that has nearly…
Bangladesh orders Shahidul Alam held 7 days; more than a dozen journalists attacked
New York, August 6, 2018–The Committee to Protect Journalists calls on Bangladeshi authorities to immediately halt widespread attacks on journalists covering ongoing student protests in Dhaka and to release photographer Shahidul Alam from jail.
Bangladeshi photographer Shahidul Alam detained after post about Dhaka protests
New York, August 5, 2018–A group of men who said they were from the detective branch of Dhaka police today took Shahidul Alam, a photographer, commentator, and the founder of the Bangladeshi multimedia organization Drik and Pathshala Media Institute, from his home, hours after he posted a video to Facebook about protests in the city,…
Filipino journalists beaten, arrested while covering labor strike
Bangkok, August 1, 2018–The Committee to Protect Journalists condemned the detention of five Filipino journalists and the attack on at least one reporter by police and private security guards in Bulacan province’s Meycauayan City and called for an independent investigation that brings the perpetrators to justice.
Palestinian photojournalist shot covering Gaza protests
Zaki Yahya Awadallah, a freelance photojournalist, was hit by a live round fired by the Israel Defense Forces while covering a protest east of the southern Gazan city of Rafah on July 20, 2018, according to news reports, the Palestinian press freedom group Palestinian Center for Development and Media Freedom (MADA), and the regional press…
Vietnam suspends local news website on accusation of false news
Bangkok, July 17, 2018 – Vietnamese authorities yesterday suspended and fined local news website Tuoi Tre Online on accusations that it published false information, according to news reports. The Committee to Protect Journalists called on authorities to immediately and unconditionally lift the ban.
Non-white journalists describe risks and repercussions of covering protests in the US
“I was just another in a sea of black faces on the other side of a police line,” said Christian Gooden, a St. Louis Post-Dispatch photographer who was hit by pepper spray while covering a protest on September 29, last year. Gooden said that he turned his head when police sprayed indiscriminately, then resumed photographing…
CPJ Safety Advisory: Covering Pakistan’s election
Pakistan’s general elections are scheduled for July 25. Journalists covering the election may face intimidation or physical aggression, especially when covering political rallies and protests, and the possibility of terrorist attacks. In May, the Pakistan-based media watchdog Freedom Network documented 23 violations against the media. Journalists are also at risk of abduction or increased online…
Palestinian security forces assault journalists at West Bank protest
New York, June 15, 2018–The Palestinian Authority should investigate claims that its security forces assaulted and harassed journalists covering a protest in the West Bank city of Ramallah. Security forces assaulted at least five journalists and confiscated equipment during the unrest on June 13, according to news reports and the local press freedom organization, the…