Nigerian police detain, charge two journalists for WhatsApp messages
On October 13, 2022, police officers at Ilorin, the capital of the southern Kwara State, detained Abdulrasheed Akogun with his brother Dare Akogun on criminal charges for comments they posted in a popular WhatsApp group titled “Kwara Commission,” according to a copy of the charge sheet reviewed by CPJ and Ibrahim Sheriff Gold, a Fresh…
Press accreditation for International Press Freedom Awards 2022 open
Committee to Protect Journalists is pleased to invite members of the press to register to cover this year’s awards New York, October 28, 2022 – The Committee to Protect Journalists is proud to recognize the courage and integrity of five inspirational journalists on November 17, 2022, at the 32nd annual International Press Freedom Awards (IPFA)….
Belarusian journalist Aliaksandr Lyubyanchuk sentenced to 3 years in prison
Paris, October 27, 2022 – Belarusian authorities must immediately release Aliaksandr Lyubyanchuk, who was sentenced today to three years in prison, and stop retaliating against journalists for their work with banned Poland-based independent broadcaster Belsat TV, the Committee to Protect Journalists said Thursday. On Thursday, October 27, a court in Minsk, the capital, convicted Lyubyanchuk…
In Greece, reporters’ killings unsolved, critical journalists complain of growing threats
In Greece, two unsolved journalist killings over the last 12 years as well as threats of violence and physical attacks against reporters have contributed to a climate of fear and self-censorship. Adding to the sense of insecurity is the wiretapping of two reporters by Greek intelligence services; a phone belonging to one of the two reporters was also infected by spyware. On a fact-finding mission…
CPJ: Kyrgyzstan’s block of RFE/RL website ‘a flagrant act of censorship’
Stockholm, October 27, 2022 – Kyrgyzstan’s Ministry of Culture, Information, Sports, and Youth Policy on Wednesday announced a two-month block of the website of Radio Azattyk, the local service of U.S. Congress-funded broadcaster Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty, under the country’s false information law after the outlet refused to remove a video report on recent border…
Guinea-Bissau journalist goes into hiding after armed men seek to arrest him
On October 10, 2022, armed men in police uniform arrived at privately owned Rádio Galáxia de Pindjiguiti in Bissau, the capital of Guinea-Bissau, to arrest Tiano Badjana, the station’s acting director. When they could not find him, they continued to his home, prompting the journalist to go into hiding, according to media reports and the journalist,…
Haitian journalist Roberson Alphonse survives shooting attack in Port-au-Prince, missing radio host found dead in Les Cayes
New York, October 26, 2022 — Haitian authorities must immediately investigate a shooting attack on investigative journalist Roberson Alphonse, bring those responsible to justice, and make sure Haiti’s journalists can report safely, the Committee to Protect Journalists said Wednesday. Unidentified attackers shot at Alphonse’s car while he drove through the Delmas 40B neighborhood of the…
CPJ to release 2022 Global Impunity Index
New York, October 26, 2022 – On Tuesday, November 1, the Committee to Protect Journalists will publish its annual Impunity Index, a list of countries where journalists are routinely murdered and their killers often go free. The launch of the report, “Killing with Impunity: Vast Majority of Journalists’ Murderers Go Free,” comes one day before…
CPJ welcomes new US Justice Department guidelines protecting journalists’ sources
Washington, D.C., October 26, 2022—In response to U.S. Attorney General Merrick Garland’s decision Wednesday revising Justice Department regulations to restrict federal prosecutors’ ability to obtain journalists’ phone and email records in government leak investigations with narrow exceptions, the Committee to Protect Journalists issued the following statement: “This is an important step to protect press freedom in the…
Vietnamese journalist Le Manh Ha harshly sentenced to 8 years in prison
Bangkok, October 26, 2022 – Vietnamese authorities must immediately and unconditionally release journalist Le Manh Ha and stop treating independent journalists as criminals for merely doing their jobs of reporting the news, the Committee to Protect Journalists said Wednesday. On Tuesday, October 25, the People’s Court of Tuyen Quang province sentenced Ha after a two-day…