Burma’s media landscape shifts, but self-censorship remains
CPJ has consistently advocated for Burma’s government to repeal restrictive media laws. In a recent report, CPJ research shows all privately run news publications in Burma are forced to publish weekly rather than daily due to stifling pre-publication censorship requirements. Irrawaddy reports on the media censorship climate in Burma–despite reformed media laws, and quotes CPJ Senior Southeast Asia representative,…
Military correspondent Yves Debay killed in Aleppo
New York, January 18, 2013–An international journalist was killed by a sniper while covering fighting in Aleppo in Syria on Thursday, according to local and international press reports. The Committee to Protect Journalists calls on all sides of the conflict to stop targeting journalists and allow them to report freely within the country.Debay, a Belgian-born…
Shabelle journalist gunned down in Somalia
Nairobi, January 18, 2013–A veteran producer for the Shabelle Media Network was gunned down today in Mogadishu, the fifth Shabelle journalist killed in 13 months. The Committee to Protect Journalists condemns this murder and calls on Somali authorities to not only investigate, but to follow up on the investigative task force on journalist murders that…
Authorities block news websites, Facebook in Tajikistan
New York, January 17, 2013–Tajik authorities must lift their order blocking domestic access to at least three news websites that have reported critically about issues such as energy shortages, rising unemployment, and human rights abuses, the Committee to Protect Journalists said today. The order, which also applied to Facebook, is at least the fourth such…
Burundi journalists march to support Ruvakuki
At 8 o’clock Tuesday morning roughly 50 Burundian journalists silently marched around the courthouses in the capital, Bujumbura, and the offices of the justice minister, protesting the imprisonment of their colleague, Hassan Ruvakuki. “They sentenced him to three years without following the law,” said Patrick Nduwimana, one of the protest organizers and the interim director…
Greek journalists targeted from all sides
Greek journalists are on the alert since five small bombs exploded Friday on the doorsteps of the homes of several journalists in Athens. Although the makeshift devices only damaged the buildings’ entrances and no one was hurt, the attacks appear to be warning shots in a tense social context where journalists are increasingly in the…
Israeli soldiers obstruct journalists during eviction
New York, January 15, 2013–Israeli soldiers prevented journalists from covering the eviction of a Palestinian campsite in the West Bank on Sunday, according to news reports and local press freedom organizations. The journalists worked for international news outlets including The Associated Press, Reuters, Agence France-Presse, CNN, and Al-Jazeera, as well as local media including Raya…
Editor charged with defamation in Morocco
New York, January 15, 2013–Authorities should drop the criminal defamation charges against an editor in Morocco who reported that a government official had ordered champagne to his hotel room while on a taxpayer-funded trip outside the country, the Committee to Protect Journalists said today. The official has disputed the account.