Nigeria and Ethiopia jail activist-journalists amid crackdown on free expression
The ongoing detentions of Nigerian publisher Agba Jalingo and Ethiopian editor Fekadu Mahtemework–the only journalists behind bars for their work in their countries, according to CPJ’s latest prison census–don’t tell the whole story of their governments’ crackdowns on freedom of expression.
US-Nigerian Sahara Reporters website reports assets frozen amid surveillance, censorship
New York, December 10, 2019—Nigerian authorities should halt all efforts to intimidate journalists working with the U.S.-headquartered, Nigeria-focused Sahara Reporters news website and ensure they are permitted to continue working to report the news, the Committee to Protect Journalists said today.
One journalist killed, another missing amid protests in Iraq
Beirut, December 9, 2019 — Iraqi authorities should conduct a thorough and transparent investigation into the abduction of journalist Zaid Mohammed al-Khafaji, secure his release, and hold the perpetrators to account, the Committee to Protect Journalists said today.
Hungary’s media control unprecedented in EU, joint mission finds
Since 2010, the Hungarian government has achieved a degree of media control unprecedented in an EU member state, seven international organizations, including the Committee to Protect Journalists, said in a statement released today. The organizations urged the EU “to take all available measures to respond.”
Demonstrators block entrance to Dawn newspaper in Pakistan, call for staffers to be hanged
New York, December 3, 2019 — Pakistan authorities must prevent demonstrations against the Dawn newspaper from turning violent, and should investigate death threats made against its staffers, the Committee to Protect Journalists said today.
CPJ Safety Advisory: Covering unrest and elections in Algeria
Protests are taking place across Algeria ahead of a presidential election that is scheduled to take place on December 12, according to reports. The December vote comes after the resignation of President Abdelaziz Bouteflika, who stepped down from power after 20 years of rule amid widespread protests at the start of the year, according to…
Brazilian electoral court sentences 2 journalists to suspended jail time for defamation
On November 21, 2019, Brazilian regional news website Planeta Folha published a report uncovering a previously unreported criminal defamation lawsuit against journalists Donizete Bernardo dos Santos and Josias Brito da Silva.