Russian authorities request 19-year prison term for journalist Abdulmumin Gadzhiev
New York, June 29, 2023—Russian authorities should release journalist Abdulmumin Gadzhiev and stop prosecuting reporters for their work, the Committee to Protect Journalists said Thursday. On June 22, during a hearing in the Yuzhniy Military Court in the southern city of Rostov-on-Don, a prosecutor requested a 19-year prison term for Gadzhiev, the religion editor of…
Nicaraguan journalist Hazel Zamora arrested, charged with spreading false news
Guatemala City, May 9, 2023—Nicaraguan authorities should drop all criminal charges against journalist Hazel Zamora and end their legal harassment of the press, the Committee to Protect Journalists said Tuesday. On May 5, police arrested Zamora while she traveled on a bus with her two children in the capital city of Managua, according to multiple…
French reporter Toufik-de-Planoise charged over protest coverage
Berlin, May 3, 2023—French authorities should drop all criminal charges against journalist Toufik-de-Planoise and ensure that members of the press do not face legal retaliation for their work, the Committee to Protect Journalists said Wednesday. On April 26, police summoned de-Planoise, a reporter with the privately owned local outlets Média 25 and Radio Bip, to…
Nigerian journalists Gidado Yushau and Alfred Olufemi convicted of conspiracy, defamation
Abuja, April 14, 2023–The conviction of Nigerian journalists Gidado Yushau and Alfred Olufemi on conspiracy and defamation charges sends a chilling message to the Nigerian press and highlights the urgent need for authorities to reform the country’s laws and ensure journalism is not criminalized, the Committee to Protect Journalists said Friday. On February 7, a…
Turkey charges 17 Kurdish journalists, media worker with membership in a terrorist organization
Istanbul, April 14, 2023 – Turkish authorities must immediately release all imprisoned members of the press and stop prosecuting journalists who cover Kurdish issues, the Committee to Protect Journalists said Friday. On Wednesday, April 12, the 4th Court of Serious Crimes in the southeastern city of Diyarbakır charged 17 Kurdish journalists and a media worker…
Russian authorities charge journalist Roman Ivanov with ‘fake news,’ raid Prufy.ru office
Paris, April 13, 2023 – Russian authorities should immediately release journalist Roman Ivanov and stop harassing and prosecuting members of the press for their reporting, the Committee to Protect Journalists said Thursday. On Wednesday, April 12, a court in the city of Korolyov ordered Roman Ivanov, a reporter with independent news website RusNews who had…
Journalist Alyaksandr Mantsevich charged with ‘discrediting Belarus’
Paris, April 5, 2023—Belarusian authorities should drop all charges against journalist Alyaksandr Mantsevich, release him immediately, and stop prosecuting members of the press for their work, the Committee to Protect Journalists said Wednesday. Authorities detained Mantsevich, the founder and editor-in-chief of the regional independent newspaper Regyonalnaya Gazeta, on March 15. On Monday, April 3, multiple…
Nigerian journalist Agba Jalingo detained on cybercrime charges
Abuja, March 27, 2023 – A federal court in Abuja, Nigeria’s capital, on Monday ordered the detention of CrossRiverWatch publisher Agba Jalingo for allegedly publishing false news that caused “annoyance, ill will and insult,” in violation of Nigeria’s Cybercrimes Act, according to a report by the outlet and CrossRiverWatch editor Jonathan Ugbal, who spoke to…
Zimbabwe journalist Garikai Mafirakureva charged with publishing false information
On January 18, 2023, police in the southeastern Zimbabwe city of Masvingo arrested journalist Garikai Mafirakureva, according to media reports, a statement by the Zimbabwean chapter of the regional press freedom group Media Institute of Southern Africa, and Mafirakureva, who spoke to CPJ via messaging app. Authorities charged Mafirakureva, editor of the Masvingo Mirror newspaper,…