In Cameroon, journalist threatened with defamation charge
Abuja, Nigeria, December 12, 2012–A state prosecutor in the city of Bamenda in Cameroon has threatened to file defamation charges against an editor if he does not reveal his sources for a series of articles, according to news reports. The Committee to Protect Journalists calls on authorities to immediately stop the harassment against Aaron Kah…
Jailed Rwandan editors turn to African Commission
Among the 232 journalists imprisoned around the world are Rwandan editors Agnès Uwimana and Saidati Mukakibibi, who are serving years-long terms on charges they defamed the president, Paul Kagame, and incited violence. Their crime? The women had published a series of stories in 2010 on several sensitive issues the Kagame government doesn’t want scrutinized. The…
Benin TV station censored amid presidential pressure
Abuja, December 7, 2012–The Committee to Protect Journalists condemns censorship of Beninese private television station Canal 3 and defamation charges against its director for coverage of a corruption scandal involving aides of President Boni Yayi, who appears to have pressured the media regulator into taking action against the station.
In Cameroon, journalists given suspended prison terms
New York, December 6, 2012–The Committee to Protect Journalists condemns Monday’s criminal convictions of three Cameroonian journalists who tried to investigate a purported government memo that suggested corruption in the management of a state oil company. One of the defendants said he was tortured in custody, while a fourth journalist accused in the case died…
Kazakh court bans broadcaster, suspends news website
New York, December 6, 2012–A court in Kazakhstan has banned an independent news outlet on charges of extremism, a ruling that comes within weeks of the country’s election to the U.N. Human Rights Council, according to news reports. Dozens of other independent and opposition news outlets face similar charges that could result in their being…
Proposed Egyptian constitution would limit media freedom
New York, December 4, 2012–The proposed Egyptian constitution would impose several new restrictions on press freedom–including the creation of a new government regulator and new governmental authority to shut media outlets–while doing nothing to halt the criminal prosecution of journalists, which was a hallmark of the Hosni Mubarak regime, the Committee to Protect Journalists said…
In battle with Argentine president, a misstep by Clarín
The debut of the HD version of Grupo Clarín’s cable news station TN could not have come at a worse time for the Argentine media conglomerate. Conspicuously missing from Monday’s premiere was coverage of a new criminal complaint in which Clarín’s lawyers accused the government of President Cristina Fernández de Kirchner of inciting violence against the…
In Kazakhstan, news outlets face charges of extremism
New York, November 28, 2012–The politicized prosecution of dozens of independent news outlets in Kazakhstan is at odds with the country’s commitment to press freedom and deeply stains its recent election to the U.N. Human Rights Council, the Committee to Protect Journalists said today. CPJ calls on Kazakh authorities to dismiss the case and allow…