BURUNDI
JULY 15, 2005 Posted: July 18, 2005 Radio Publique Africaine HARASSED Burundi’s National Communications Council ordered the popular independent station Radio Publique Africaine off the air indefinitely, alleging that RPA’s recent election coverage was biased and that it had insulted the council. Alexis Sinduhije, RPA’s director, called the suspension unjust and said the station intended…
CHAD
JULY 18, 2005 Updated: October 17, 2005 Ngaradoumbé Samory, L’Observateur IMPRISONED, LEGAL ACTION Samory, editor of the private weekly L’Observateur, was sentenced to three months in prison and a fine of 100,000 CFA francs (about U.S.$176) on charges of defaming the president and “inciting hatred.”
IVORY COAST
JULY 15, 2005 Posted: July 18, 2005 Radio France Internationale CENSORED A media regulatory agency ordered Radio France Internationale (RFI) to halt its FM broadcasts in Ivory Coast until it retracted two disputed reports and paid a fine. The order was the latest incident pitting Ivoirian authorities against the France-based public broadcaster, whom President Laurent…
IRAQ
JULY 14, 2005 Posted: July 18, 2005 Al-Iraqiya news crew ATTACKED A gunman fired on a car carrying an Al-Iraqiya television crew in Baghdad, wounding three staffers, according to news reports. The crew was on its way to cover the funerals of car-bomb victims when a masked assailant walked up to its car in the…
SERBIA and MONTENEGRO
JULY 14, 2005 Posted: July 18, 2005 B92 THREATENED An anonymous caller told a security guard at the Belgrade-based independent radio and television station that a bomb would explode in an hour inside the station’s offices because of its “anti-Serb campaign,” according to local news reports and CPJ interviews.
International Press Freedom and Freedom of Expression Mission to Nepal
July 2005 From 10 to 16 July 2005, twelve international organisations, including UN agencies, global media associations, freedom of expression advocates and media development organisations, undertook a mission to Nepal concerning freedom of expression and press freedom. These twelve organisations met with persons and institutions with a broad spectrum of opinion on the current media…
Independent radio station faces government ban
New York, July 15, 2005—Burundi’s National Communications Council has ordered the popular independent station Radio Publique Africaine off the air indefinitely, alleging that RPA’s recent election coverage was biased and that it had insulted the council. Alexis Sinduhije, RPA’s director, called the suspension unjust and said the station intended to stay on the air despite…
Publisher enters 5th day of detention
New York, July 15, 2005—The Committee to Protect Journalists is troubled by the continued detention of Jean Marie Kanku, publisher of the private newspaper L’Alerte in the capital, Kinshasa. Kanku has been charged with criminal defamation stemming from a July 8 article alleging that a DRC official had misused humanitarian reconstruction funds, according to the…
Al-Iraqiya crew attacked by gunman
New York, July 15, 2005—A gunman fired on a car carrying an Al-Iraqiya television crew in Baghdad on Thursday, wounding three staffers, according to news reports. The crew was on its way to cover the funerals of car-bomb victims when a masked assailant walked up to its car in the New Baghdad neighborhood and opened…
Radio France Internationale suspended
New York, July 15, 2005—A media regulatory agency has ordered Radio France Internationale (RFI) to halt its broadcasts in Ivory Coast until it retracts two disputed reports and pays a fine. The order is the latest incident pitting Ivoirian authorities against the France-based public broadcaster, whom President Laurent Gbagbo’s supporters accuse of being biased against…