BELARUS Determined to forestall the kind of democratic uprising that toppled the government in neighboring Ukraine, authoritarian leader Aleksandr Lukashenko and his government crushed dissent in the run-up to the March presidential election—and well beyond. Official results showed that Lukashenko collected 83 percent of the vote to gain a third term, but international observers said…
Versão em português Although freedom of expression is enshrined in Brazil’s 1988 constitution, journalists’ ability to cover the news was impeded by judges whose legal interpretations effectively restricted the press. During the run-up to the October 1 general election, electoral courts banned media outlets from covering corruption allegations against political candidates.
BURUNDI Under fire for alleged corruption and human rights abuses, the government of former rebel leader Pierre Nkurunziza cracked down on a wide range of critical voices, including those in the press, during its first year in power. Authorities imprisoned a journalist for five months after he allegedly slandered the state in a private barroom…
BURMA Military-run Burma, also known as Myanmar, remained one of the most repressive places for journalists, trailing only North Korea on CPJ’s 10 Most Censored Countries list. The junta, which calls itself the State Peace and Development Council (SPDC), exerted Orwellian control over all media, harassing or jailing journalists who strayed from the official line…
CHINA In President Hu Jintao’s fourth year in power, his administration effectively silenced some of the best journalists in China by sidelining independent-minded editors, jailing online critics, and moving to restrict coverage of breaking news. The government drew international criticism for its actions against foreign news agencies and their employees–including convictions of Zhao Yan, a…
COLOMBIA Investigative reporting and in-depth coverage of the civil conflict again fell victim to fear in the country’s most troubled areas, where threats and intimidation forced at least seven provincial journalists to flee their homes. The climate of intimidation is the legacy of years of murderous attacks on journalists. With 39 journalists killed since 1992,…
CUBA Facing intense international interest in President Fidel Castro’s hospitalization and the transfer of power to his brother, the Cuban government severely restricted information about Castro’s illness in the name of state security and selectively blocked foreign journalists’ entry into the country. In a July 31 proclamation aired on Cuban television without advance notice, Castro…
DEMOCRATIC REPUBLIC OF CONGO The murder of freelance journalist Bapuwa Mwamba in the weeks before historic national elections cast a deep chill over the media, whose members were already subject to frequent attacks and intimidation. Mwamba was the second journalist to be shot to death in his home in eight months. Attacks on the press…
EGYPT The Egyptian Journalists Syndicate mounted a widespread campaign to pressure President Hosni Mubarak to fulfill a February 2004 promise to decriminalize press offenses. More than 20 newspapers went on strike for a day in July as part of the campaign, which many journalists credit with the last-minute deletion of a controversial amendment to the…
ETHIOPIA As it launched cross-border attacks in support of a shaky transitional government in Somalia, Addis Ababa maintained a repressive media climate at home by jailing some journalists, intimidating other reporters, and forcing still others into exile. CPJ’s annual census found 18 journalists jailed for their work in Ethiopia, at least 15 of whom were…