2016
Mongolian election unlikely to advance press freedom
During a visit to Mongolia this month, U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry hailed the country as “an oasis of democracy.” Mongolia, sandwiched between powerful autocratic neighbors Russia and China, underwent democratic transition in 1990 when it broke away from Soviet rule, and has since held several elections characterized by the Asia Foundation as “reasonably…
TV station staff who produce satirical news shows arrested in Algeria
New York, June 27, 2016–The Committee to Protect Journalists is alarmed by the arrest of two senior staff at a privately owned television station in Algeria on June 24. Mahdi bin Issa, the manager of KBC, and Riyadh Hartouf, a producer, face charges of falsifying permits and complicity in abuse of position, and were ordered…
Fresh threats to journalists from Islamic State group
New York, June 27, 2016 – Threats made against journalists in a video purportedly showing militants from the Islamic State group murdering five Syrians accused of working with media and nongovernmental organizations underscore the need to protect Syrian and Iraqi journalists fleeing the conflict, the Committee to Protect Journalists said today.
Turkey Crackdown Chronicle: Week of June 26
Columnist freed pending trial Istanbul’s 14th Court of Serious Crimes today ordered Cumhuriyet columnist Ahmet Nesin released, pending trial, the pro-Kurdish daily newspaper Özgür Gündem reported. Police on June 20 arrested Nesin, Erol Önderoğlu, Turkey representative for the press freedom group Reporters Without Borders (RSF), and Şebnem Korur Fincancı, an academic, columnist and human rights…
South African reporters attacked covering protests, broadcaster suspends journalists
New York, June 24, 2014 – The Committee to Protect Journalists is concerned by media reports that South Africa’s public broadcaster suspended three journalists for opposing an editorial decision not to cover a protest. CPJ also calls for credible investigations into reports that police assaulted journalists covering unrest.
Mexican reporter killed covering protests
Oaxaca, Mexico, June 21, 2016 — Mexican federal authorities should thoroughly investigate the case of a journalist killed on Sunday in the southern state of Oaxaca while covering protests, establish a motive, and bring all those responsible to justice, the Committee to Protect Journalists said today.
Vietnamese jailed blogger moved to distant province, wages hunger strike
On May 7, my uncle, imprisoned Vietnamese blogger Tran Huynh Duy Thuc, was unexpectedly moved from the Xuyen Moc prison camp situated near our family in Ho Chi Minh City to another detention facility about 1,500 kilometers away known as Camp No. 6 in central Nghe An province. His family was not informed in advance…
Brazilian newspaper faces judicial harassment
São Paulo, June 20, 2016–A series of court cases filed against journalists and employees at the Brazilian newspaper Gazeta do Povo constitute judicial harassment and should be dropped immediately, the Committee to Protect Journalists said today. Judicial officials in the southern Brazilian state of Paraná have filed 46 individual civil suits against five employees at…