Journalist flees home after learning of alleged plot to kill him
JANUARY 15, 2008 Alexander Guerrero, Magangué Hoy, El Comunicador THREATENED Guerrero, a reporter for the Magangué-based dailies Magangué Hoy and El Comunicador, left his home in the northern Bolívar province after learning of an alleged plot to kill him, the journalist told CPJ. Guerrero said he believed the threats were retaliation for his reporting on…
CAR journalist imprisoned over corruption editorial
New York, January 15, 2008—A court in the Central African Republic’s capital, Bangui, today sent the director of a private newspaper to prison to await trial on criminal charges in connection with an editorial about a political scandal. Faustin Bambou of the biweekly Les Collines de l’Oubangui was transferred to Bangui’s main Ngaraba prison after…
Arrests made in Kabul hotel suicide bombing
New York, January 15, 2008—Afghan authorities swiftly arrested four suspects following the attack on the Serena Hotel in Kabul yesterday, according to The Associated Press. The suicide blast took the lives of at least six people, including that of Norwegian journalist Carsten Thomassen, 38, a journalist from the Oslo daily newspaper Dagbladet.
Angola: Two journalists beaten by police
November 29, 2007 Alexandre Neto, Radio Despertar Antonio Cascais, Deutche Welle Radio HARASSED Two journalists were detained and beaten by police in Angola’s capital city, Luanda, while reporting on forced evictions of residents from the Kilamba Kiaxi area of Luanda. Neto, the director of Radio Despertar, and Deutche Welle reporter Antonio Cascais were held and…
Security forces arrest two Somaliweyn Radio staff
New York, January 14, 2008—National security agents for the Transitional Federal Government of Somalia arrested two journalists for the independent, Mogadishu-based Somaliweyn Radio on Sunday. According to Somaliweyn Radio sources, security agents seized reporter Bashir Mohammed Abdulkadir at the station and took him to National Security Agency headquarters for questioning. Local journalists said the arrests…
Journalist faces death in Afghanistan
New York, January 14, 2007—The Committee to Protect Journalists is greatly concerned by the detention and upcoming trial of Sayed Parwez Kambakhsh in Mazar-i-Sharif, Balkh province, northern Afghanistan. The 23-year-old journalism student and brother of prominent journalist Sayed Yaqub Ibrahimi will be tried in a religious Islamic court on charges of blasphemy, according to Rahimullah…
Authorities crack down on freelancers after a protest rally in Minsk
New York, January 14, 2008—The Committee to Protect Journalists is concerned about the detention of one freelance journalist and the interrogation of three others in Minsk, and it calls on Belarusian authorities to halt persecution of the independent press. Arseny Pakhomov, a freelance photographer working for the independent weekly Nasha Niva, was arrested and sentenced…
Several journalists arrested in Vietnam
Dear President Nguyen, The Committee to Protect Journalists is greatly concerned by the recent spate of arrests, detentions, and trials of journalists in Vietnam. Even though Article 69 of your country’s constitution broadly protects press freedom and freedom of expression, your government has continued to use criminal and national security laws to arbitrarily stifle these essential freedoms.
Two arraigned in 2001 Philippines killing
New York, January 11, 2008—The Committee to Protect Journalists applauds the arraignment yesterday of two suspects in the 2001 killing of Philippine radio reporter Rolando Ureta. In a December 21 alert, CPJ called on the government to “vigorously prosecute” the case of the two suspects, Amador Raz and Jessie Ticar, who were arrested separately on…