CPJ welcomes South African Constitutional Court’s ruling condemning surveillance
New York, February 4, 2021 – In response to the South African Constitutional Court’s decision today to uphold a 2019 High Court ruling that invalidated legislation allowing for the surveillance of members of the press, the Committee to protect Journalists issued the following statement: “Journalist Sam Sole’s communications should never have been intercepted, but the…
Myanmar’s military should lift Facebook, WhatsApp censorship, enable news broadcasts following coup
Bangkok, February 4, 2021 – Myanmar’s military should rescind an order to block social media platforms being used to share information about this week’s coup and lift ongoing restrictions on broadcasters, the Committee to Protect Journalists said today. The military obstructed news stations and temporarily shuttered phone and internet access when it seized power from…
Kazakh police detain, harass editor of independent weekly Uralskaya Nedelya
New York, February 3, 2021 — Kazakhstan authorities should immediately cease harassing journalist Lukpan Akhmedyarov and allow him to work freely and without fear of reprisal, the Committee to Protect Journalists said today. On February 1, police in the Abai district of the western city of Uralsk summoned Akhmedyarov, chief editor of independent weekly newspaper…
Police attack journalists with tear gas and rubber bullets at Istanbul protest
Istanbul, February 3, 2021 — Turkish authorities should immediately investigate and prosecute law enforcement officers who attacked members of the press covering recent protests in Istanbul, the Committee to Protect Journalists said today. Yesterday, Istanbul police in the city’s Kadıköy district fired tear gas at journalists covering student protests against a new university rector, and…
Russian police detain or harass more than 100 journalists amid January 31 pro-Navalny protests
New York, February 2, 2021 – Russian authorities should immediately and unconditionally release all journalists detained during recent protests, and allow members of the press to cover political demonstrations without fear, the Committee to Protect Journalists said today. During nationwide protests by supporters of jailed opposition leader Alexei Navalny on January 31, as well as…
CPJ Insider: February 2021 edition
CPJ in 2020 In US, threats to journalists persist after transition of power For months, CPJ’s Emergencies team has been issuing safety advice for journalists covering the U.S. election and election-related protests. When on January 6 pro-Trump supporters stormed the Capitol in Washington, we immediately published a statement urging all people to respect the work…
Indian police arrest, investigate journalists covering farmers’ protests
New Delhi, February 1, 2021 – Indian authorities must immediately release journalist Mandeep Punia and refrain from detaining and investigating members of the press covering protests, the Committee to Protect Journalists said today. On the evening of January 30, Delhi police detained Mandeep Punia, a contributor to The Caravan magazine and Junputh news website, and…
How Vietnam-based hacking operation OceanLotus targets journalists
In early 2020, Vietnamese writer Bui Thanh Hieu told Marina Mai, a freelancer based in Berlin, that he was closing his blog to protect his family. In 2009, Hieu was detained for a week for his critical writing on Vietnam’s territorial disputes with China, as CPJ documented. In 2013, he fled to Germany, but continued writing…
Iraqi Kurdish security forces arrest photojournalist Qaraman Shukri
New York, February 1, 2021 – Iraqi Kurdish security forces should immediately release photojournalist Qaraman Shukri and cease harassing members of the press, the Committee to Protect Journalists said today. At about 8:30 a.m. on January 27, Asayish security forces affiliated with Iraqi Kurdistan’s ruling Democratic Party of Kurdistan arrested Shukri at his home in…
Pakistani journalists charged with criminal defamation over tweets in sexual harassment case
On September 28, 2020, Pakistan’s Federal Investigation Agency filed criminal defamation charges against Maham Javaid, a freelance journalist, and Haseem uz Zaman Khan, an editor and writer for the English-language news website of local broadcaster GEO News, along with seven others, for their involvement in an alleged “smear campaign” against the singer and actor Ali…