CPJ calls on UN to demand jailed journalists’ release amid pandemic
The Committee to Protect Journalists submitted a call to several U.N. special mandate holders yesterday encouraging them to join CPJ’s effort to secure the release of all jailed journalists globally in the face of the coronavirus pandemic.
Jordan arrests 2 Roya TV journalists over COVID-19 coverage
New York, April 10, 2020 — In response to Jordanian authorities’ arrest of Fares Sayegh, general manager of the privately owned satellite station Roya TV, and Mohammad Alkhalidi, the channel’s news director, the Committee to Protect Journalists issued the following statement:
Journalist Gautam Navlakha tells CPJ he fears imprisonment amid COVID-19 pandemic
New Delhi, April 9, 2020 — Indian authorities should stop pursuing the arrest of journalist Gautam Navlakha, and should cease holding journalists in jail during the COVID-19 pandemic, the Committee to Protect Journalists said today.
Iranian journalist detained over coronavirus coverage
On April 2, 2020, security agents in the western Iranian city of Kermanshah arrested and detained Kurdish Iranian journalist Gholamreza Noori Ala for several hours and then released him, according to a report posted to Telegram by the Tehran Journalists Association, a local trade group, and an employee of the association, who spoke to CPJ…
Bolivia enacts decree criminalizing ‘disinformation’ on COVID-19 outbreak
Bogotá, April 9, 2020 — Bolivian authorities should reform the country’s lockdown decree to ensure that journalists cannot face jail time for reporting on the COVID-19 pandemic, the Committee to Protect Journalists said today.
Journalists assaulted while covering COVID-19 measures in Haiti
Miami, April 9, 2020 — Haitian authorities should conduct a thorough and transparent investigation into the assault on a group of journalists at the National Identification Office in Port-au-Prince, the capital, and hold those responsible to account, the Committee to Protect Journalists said today.
Tanzanian court convicts Maxence Melo of obstructing investigation, levies fine
Nairobi, April 9, 2020— In response to a Tanzanian court’s conviction yesterday of Maxence Melo, founder of the online discussion and whistleblowing platform Jamii Forums, on charges of obstructing police investigations, the Committee to Protect Journalists issued the following statement: