Jailed under Digital Security Act, Bangladeshi cartoonist Kabir Kishore says he was tortured
Bangladeshi cartoonist Kabir Kishore’s first stop after he was released from prison on March 4 after 10 months in custody was the hospital, where he was treated for a burst eardrum, leg injuries, diabetes, and other ailments after being taken from his home, jailed, and allegedly tortured. Days before his release, his colleague Mushtaq Ahmed, a co-accused…
‘I had escaped death’: 64 Tianwang journalist Wang Jing recounts her traumatic imprisonment in China
Most journalists jailed in China are afraid to speak out after their release. In a rare interview, Wang Jing, who is now in the United States seeking asylum, has recounted her imprisonment and alleged torture in China. Wang was arrested in 2014 when she was reporting on a protest for the now-defunct news outlet 64 Tianwang. In…
CPJ joins calls for tech firms and Indian government to ensure free access to information
The Committee to Protect Journalists today joined nine other human rights and free expression groups in a statement urging social media platforms to respect human rights, and for the Indian government to withdraw new regulations that could stifle free speech online. The statement listed some of the Indian government’s recent efforts to silence criticism and…
Foreign correspondents in China face COVID-19 restrictions and expulsions, FCCC finds
The Foreign Correspondents’ Club of China found that “media freedoms deteriorated significantly in 2020” in its annual report, released Monday. The report, titled “Track, Trace, Expel: Reporting on China Amid a Pandemic,” surveyed 150 club members representing news organizations from 30 countries and regions. In 2020, China used the COVID-19 pandemic to impose restrictions on…
Irrawaddy editor Aung Zaw speaks to fears of a post-coup media crackdown in Myanmar
On February 1, Myanmar military overthrew the country’s democratically elected government and imposed a year of emergency rule until new elections are held and democracy restored. News reports have shown the coup has been met with spirited and widespread anti-military street protests, reportage the now-ruling military has tried to blackout through heavy handed measures including…
CPJ joins call for accountability in attacks on journalists in Sri Lanka
The Committee to Protect Journalists joins the Center for Justice and Accountability in calling on the United Nations Human Rights Council to take action against impunity in attacks on journalists in Sri Lanka. In a report released today, the Center for Justice and Accountability, with support from CPJ, outlined the Sri Lankan government’s systematic and…
How Vietnam-based hacking operation OceanLotus targets journalists
In early 2020, Vietnamese writer Bui Thanh Hieu told Marina Mai, a freelancer based in Berlin, that he was closing his blog to protect his family. In 2009, Hieu was detained for a week for his critical writing on Vietnam’s territorial disputes with China, as CPJ documented. In 2013, he fled to Germany, but continued writing…
Journalist safety in 2020
In this unforgettably tumultuous year, journalists across the world covered the ongoing pandemic, dangerous protests, natural disasters, active conflicts, elections, and other life-changing events. The reporters, anchors, photographers, camera operators, producers, and technicians who brought 2020’s biggest stories to the public often risked their own physical safety and psychological well-being and found themselves the subjects…
Journalists jailed for social media “terrorism” highlight content moderation challenges
A journalist in China uploaded a video to YouTube criticizing the Chinese government’s response to the coronavirus outbreak in Wuhan. Another, in Vietnam, left a state-owned newspaper but continued posting stories they wouldn’t let her cover on Facebook. In Egypt, a freelance photographer streamed an anti-government protest from his balcony on Facebook Live. In Iran,…
Philippines makes premature claim to end of impunity in journalist murders
When the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural classified the 2009 Maguindanao massacre — the deadliest attack on the press ever recorded by CPJ — as “resolved,” Philippine authorities were quick to echo and tout this designation. Too quick, as it turned out. UNESCO’s then-assistant director-general for communication and information, Moez Chackchouk, made the official…