Mission Journal: Why Turkey matters
Turkey is hardly a press freedom paradise, but what makes the country so exciting for journalists is the amount of news it generates on any given day. The domestic story is huge, with near-daily street protests, the booming economy beginning to sag, and the prospect of regional conflict looming with Syria. And Istanbul is a…
Angolan police assault, detain journalists
New York, September 20, 2013–At least three journalists were assaulted by police and briefly detained today while covering the release of seven individuals who were arrested during a protest on Thursday, according to the journalists and news accounts. Protesters had staged a demonstration against what they called the authoritarian regime of President José Eduardo dos…
Journalists and imperfect justice in Bangladesh
Bangladesh’s Supreme Court has hardened the sentence against Abdul Quader Molla, a top Islamist of a key opposition party, from a life term to death for his role in mass killings committed during the country’s war of independence from Pakistan in 1971. But what caught my eye in particular was that Molla was also convicted…
In Azerbaijan, journalist arrested, newsroom raided
New York, September 19, 2013–Authorities in Azerbaijan must immediately release a journalist who was arrested on Tuesday on fabricated charges and ordered detained for two months, the Committee to Protect Journalists said today. The press in Azerbaijan must be allowed to freely cover the country’s next presidential vote, scheduled for October 9, if it is…
Radio anchor murdered in Philippines
Bangkok, September 19, 2013–A radio anchor was shot dead in the central region of Cebu City on Saturday, the latest death in a steady stream of killings of journalists in the Philippines. The Committee to Protect Journalists calls on the relevant authorities to thoroughly investigate the murder of Jesus “Jessie” Tabanao and bring his killer…
CPJ: Turkey Press Freedom Crisis Worsens Post-Gezi
Ankara, September 17, 2013–Heated anti-press rhetoric, the firing of leading journalists, threats to restrict online speech, and a series of physical and legal assaults further damaged the press freedom environment in Turkey in the months following the Gezi Park protests that began last May. In a letter to Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdoğan, the Committee…
CPJ calls on Erdogan to embrace press freedom
Dear Prime Minister Erdoğan, as an independent international press freedom advocacy organization, we are concerned about the continued press freedom crisis in Turkey. We believe the government’s failure to safeguard press freedom undermines the great strengths of your nation.