Asia

Bangkok, April 30, 2018–In a verdict with grave implications for press freedom, a Malaysian court today handed down the nation’s first conviction under its recently enacted “fake news” law, according to press reports.

Washington, D.C., April 30, 2018–The Committee to Protect Journalists strongly condemned today’s double suicide bombing attack in Kabul, Afghanistan, in which at least 25 people were killed, including at least eight journalists, according to media reports. The second blast, about 30 minutes after the first, appeared targeted at journalists who arrived to cover the first…

New Delhi, April 26, 2018–Indian authorities must immediately conduct a swift and thorough investigation into threats against the investigative freelance journalist Rana Ayyub, the Committee to Protect Journalists said today. Ayyub began receiving an onslaught of anonymous, graphic threats via social media after a parody Twitter account on April 22 falsely stated that Ayyub was…

New York, April 26, 2018–The Committee to Protect Journalists today called on Afghan authorities to thoroughly investigate the killing of journalist Abdul Manan Arghand and to ensure that those responsible for his death are brought to justice.

New York, April 20, 2018–A prosecution witness in the case against two imprisoned Reuters journalists in Myanmar today testified that a police chief ordered officers to trap one of the reporters by handing him “secret documents” during a meeting, according to Reuters and other news reports.

New Delhi, April 19, 2018–Authorities in India’s northeast Meghalaya state must identify and bring to justice those who attacked the house of Patricia Mukhim, editor of the local Shillong Times newspaper, the Committee to Protect Journalists said today. Two unidentified persons on April 17 threw a gasoline bomb at Mukhim’s house in Shillong city, according…

New Delhi, April 11, 2018–Authorities in West Bengal state must identify and bring to justice those who assaulted Biplab Mondal, a photojournalist with the Times of India Kolkata city bureau, and Manas Chattopadhyay, a reporter with the regional ETV Bharat television channel, the Committee to Protect Journalists said today. Mondal and Chattopadhyay were covering a…

The media is in the worst state India has ever seen. That is how several journalists described the current climate in dozens of conversations with CPJ during a trip to Mumbai, Bangalore, and Delhi earlier this year. While the threats they outlined–political pressure, self-censorship, defamation suits, and attacks–are not a new phenomenon in India, many…

Taipei, April 6, 2018–Chinese authorities should immediately release from custody journalist Zou Guangxiang and stop harassing the media for doing its job, the Committee to Protect Journalists said today.

Washington, D.C., April, 3, 2018–CPJ today expressed concern over reports that the privately owned Pakistani television channel Geo TV is not accessible throughout parts of the country including Karachi, Lahore, and Multan, despite government assertions that authorities have taken no steps to block it.