Montenegro court rejects journalist Jovo Martinović’s appeal
New York, March 31, 2021 – Montenegro authorities should not contest journalist Jovo Martinović’s request to have his case reviewed by the Supreme Court and prosecutor general, and should allow him to work freely and without legal harassment, the Committee to Protect Journalists said today. On March 28, the Court of Appeals in the capital,…
Somali military court sentences journalist Kilwe Adan Farah to 3 years in prison
Nairobi, March 18, 2021 — In response to yesterday’s decision by a military court in the semi-autonomous Somali state of Puntland sentencing journalist Kilwe Adan Farah to three years in prison, the Committee to Protect Journalists issued the following statement: “Sentencing journalist Kilwe Adan Farah to three years in prison, with neither his lawyer nor…
Bangladesh court sentences 5 to death, 1 to life in prison for murder of blogger Avijit Roy
New York, February 16, 2021 — In response to a Bangladesh court’s sentencing today of five people to death for their involvement in the 2015 murder of blogger Avijit Roy, and another to life in prison, the Committee to Protect Journalists issued the following statement: “We welcome the guilty verdicts against those involved in the…
Turkey sentences 4 Özgür Gündem journalists to jail on terror charges
Istanbul, February 16, 2020 – Turkish authorities should cease prosecuting former staffers of the shuttered Özgür Gündem newspaper and not contest their appeals, the Committee to Protect Journalists said today. Yesterday, the 23rd Istanbul Court of Serious Crimes convicted three former editors and the former publisher of pro-Kurdish daily Özgür Gündem on terrorism charges, and…
Deportation for Iranian journalist Mohammad Mosaed ‘not on the table’ in Turkey, official says
Washington, D.C., January 19, 2021 — Iranian journalist Mohamed Mosaed has requested asylum in Turkey, his lawyer Canan Pehlivan told the Committee Protect Journalist today. CPJ is calling on Turkish authorities to conduct an expedited review of his request, as Mosaed faces imprisonment in Iran in reprisal for his journalism. Pehlivan told CPJ that Mosaed…
Vietnam sentences 3 independent journalists to more than 10 years in prison
Bangkok, January 5, 2021 – The Committee to Protect Journalists today strongly condemned the convictions and harsh prison sentences handed down to Vietnamese journalists Pham Chi Dung, Nguyen Tuong Thuy, and Le Huu Minh Tuan, and called for their immediate and unconditional releases. Today, the Ho Chi Minh City People’s Court convicted the three journalists…
Cambodia sentences journalist Sok Oudom to 20 months in prison
Bangkok, December 22, 2020 – Cambodian authorities should not contest journalist Sok Oudom’s appeal and should ensure that journalists do not face prison time for their work, the Committee to Protect Journalists said today. Today, the Kampong Chhnang Provincial Court convicted Sok Oudom of broadcasting false news with intent to cause incitement, and ordered him to…
Turkish journalist Ayşegül Doğan sentenced to 6 years, 3 months in prison
Istanbul, December 7, 2020 – Turkish authorities should not contest journalist Ayşegül Doğan’s appeal, and should cease filing terrorism charges against members of the press, the Committee to Protect Journalists said today. Today, the Ninth Court of Serious Crimes, in the southeastern city of Diyarbakır, convicted Doğan of membership in a terrorist organization, and sentenced…
Ecuadorian journalist Juán Sarmiento sentenced to prison for ‘discrediting’ local official
Bogotá, November 20, 2020 – Ecuadorian authorities should not contest journalist Juan Sarmiento’s appeal of a recent criminal conviction for critical comments about a local politician, and the country should remove speech laws from its penal code, the Committee to Protect Journalists said today. On November 12, the Justice Court of Napo, in central Ecuador,…
Azerbaijani journalist Polad Aslanov sentenced to 16 years on treason charges
New York, November 16, 2020 – The Grave Crimes Court in Baku, Azerbaijan’s capital, today sentenced Polad Aslanov, the chief editor of the independent news websites Xeberman and Press-az, to 16 years in jail on the charge of high treason, his wife Gulmira Aslanova told the Committee to Protect Journalists via messaging app and the…