Journalist in Rohingya refugee camp describes bracing for coronavirus without access to internet
Ro Sawyeddollah has lived in a refugee camp in Cox’s Bazar, Bangladesh, since he fled Myanmar along with thousands of other ethnic Rohingya in 2017, where the U.N. found that Rohingya live under threat of genocide.
Network shutdowns restrict reporting during COVID-19 crisis
The Global Network Initiative, a coalition of nongovernmental organizations of which CPJ is a member, issued a statement yesterday calling on governments to refrain from shutting down internet access amid the spread of the COVID-19 pandemic.
To cement internet control, Iran helps journalists get online
In early 2020, a journalist in Iran received a form from Iran’s National E-commerce Union, a nominally independent group that is close to the government, requesting their name, the news website they work for, and their IP address. “With all due respect,” it read, “provide the following information to prevent any potential problem during future…
CPJ joins letter calling on Togo government not to shut down internet
The Committee to Protect Journalists joined 27 other press freedom and human rights organizations in a letter dated February 19 calling for authorities in Togo to maintain the stability and openness of the internet and social media platforms.
Lawyer Mishi Choudhury on what India shutdowns ruling means for journalists
On January 14, the Jammu and Kashmir administration partially restored mobile internet in a handful of districts, according to news reports. The administration, which is directly controlled by the Indian government, had imposed a complete communication ban in the restive region after withdrawing its special status under the Indian constitution in August 2019, as CPJ…
India should restore internet in Kashmir as court orders shutdown review
New York, January 10, 2020–The Indian Supreme Court ordered a review of the legal process used to implement the ongoing shutdown in Indian-controlled Kashmir today. The ruling affirmed that freedom of speech “using the medium of internet is constitutionally protected.”
Tanzanian authorities ban online TV station, fine 2 others
On September 27, 2019, Tanzania’s broadcasting regulator suspended the privately owned internet-based broadcaster Kwanza Online TV for six months and fined two other online stations, Watetezi TV and Ayo TV, according to statements by Kwanza Online TV and the Tanzania Human Rights Defenders Coalition, a network of local nongovernmental organizations, which owns Watetezi TV.
Iraq media regulator orders closure of 12 broadcast news outlets
Beirut, November 25, 2019 — Iraq’s media regulator should reverse its decision to order the closure of 12 broadcasters over a licensing dispute and should allow media outlets to freely cover protests in the country, the Committee to Protect Journalists said today.
