Americas

  
Colombian police officers are seen in Soacha, near Bogota, on March 31, 2020. CPJ recently joined a letter calling on the Colombian government to strengthen protections for journalists amid the COVID-19 pandemic. (AFP/Raul Arboleda)

CPJ joins letter calling on Colombia to strengthen protections for journalists

The Committee to Protect Journalists on May 4 joined more than 100 civil society organizations in an open letter calling on Colombia’s National Protection Unit to adopt measures to ensure the safety of journalists and other human rights defenders under increased threat due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

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Two Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP) officers leave the Nova Scotia RCMP Headquarters in Dartmouth, Nova Scotia, on April 20. Journalists in the province have struggled to cover a mass shooting due to COVID-19 containment measures. (Reuters/John Morris)

Halifax Examiner’s Tim Bousquet on covering a mass shooting in a pandemic

When news broke that a gunman had killed at least 22 people in Nova Scotia on April 18 and 19, the Halifax Examiner, a small independent local news website, began piecing together how the deadliest mass shooting in Canada’s history had occurred.

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CPJ sends letter calling on Puerto Rico governor to respect press freedom

CPJ writes to the Puerto Rican governor to express concern about a recent amendment to the island’s public security law.

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A police officer is seen in Mexico City on April 25, 2020. The Mexican Interior Secretariat recently threatened two news companies over their coronavirus coverage. (AP/Fernando Llano)

Mexican government threatens outlets over COVID-19 coverage

On two occasions in April 2020, the Mexican federal Interior Secretariat issued warnings to news outlets over their coverage of the COVID-19 pandemic and threatened to file administrative sanctions against them.

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A banner reading “300,000 cases in the world, 15,000 deaths because of coronavirus! Stay at home and save lives!” hangs at the Cidade de Deus favela in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, on April 7, 2020, during the COVID-19 outbreak. Rio’s community journalists face daily challenges informing favela residents about COVID-19. (AFP/Mauro Pimentel)

In Brazil, Rio’s community journalists face daily challenges informing favela residents about COVID-19

Before the COVID-19 pandemic hit, Gizele Martins and Raull Santiago—community journalists from Rio de Janeiro’s favelas—worked to bring accurate news and information to the local population and to give visibility to their struggles. Their organizations are among dozens of media groups founded by residents of Rio’s favelas and other marginalized areas aiming to challenge stereotypes,…

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CPJ, 192 partner organizations urge UN Secretary General to take action to secure release of jailed journalists amid COVID-19

The #FreeThePress campaign, made up of 193 press freedom and human rights organizations and the more than 11,337 concerned citizens who signed the petition, urges the UN secretary general to take immediate action to secure the release of journalists jailed around the world whose lives are risk due to the spread of COVID-19.

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The U.S. Capitol Building is seen on April 28, 2020, in Washington. CPJ recently joined several letters urging senators to increase Global Magnitsky Act funding. (AP/Andrew Harnik)

CPJ joins letters calling on US Senate to increase Magnitsky Act funding

The Committee to Protect Journalists recently joined 50 democracy, human rights, and anti-corruption organizations and experts in three letters urging U.S. Congressional leaders to retain and increase funding and capacity for the enforcement of the Global Magnitsky Act.

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CPJ, Amnesty International, Article 19 urge Cuban President Díaz-Canel to release jailed journalist Roberto Quiñones

CPJ, Amnesty International, and Article 19’s Mexico and Central America office write to Cuban President Miguel Díaz-Canel Bermúdez to call for the immediate release of jailed journalist Roberto de Jesús Quiñones Haces amid the sweeping COVID-19 pandemic.

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Colombian soldiers wearing masks as a preventive measure against the spread of COVID-19 are deployed on Simon Boliviar square in Bogota on April 21, 2020. A report by Colombian newsweekly Semana released May 1 found that Colombian military intelligence had surveilled local and international journalists. (AFP/Juan Barreto)

Colombian military monitored local, international journalists, Semana reports

New York, May 1, 2020 — The Committee to Protect Journalists today expressed alarm at a new report alleging that Colombian military intelligence officials carried out an extensive monitoring operation targeting more than 130 individuals including more than 30 national and international journalists, and called on authorities to immediately undertake a transparent investigation into the…

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People wait in line for a coronavirus test at a new walk-in testing sites that opened in the parking lot of NYC Health + Hospitals/Gotham Health Morrisania in the Bronx section of New York on April 20, 2020. Photographers in New York and around the U.S. have had to navigate a new reality under COVID-19. (AFP/Timothy A. Clary)

Q&A: U.S. photographers navigate a new reality under COVID-19

As newsrooms across the United States gradually shut their doors in March and sent many journalists into the safety of their homes, others have no choice but to remain outside. Photojournalists throughout the U.S. and around the world are continuing to visually document how the world is adjusting to this historic moment amid the COVID-19…

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