CPJ deeply disappointed by retrial verdict for murder of Slovak journalist Ján Kuciak
Berlin, May 19, 2023 —The Committee to Protect Journalists has called for Slovak authorities to continue seeking justice for the 2018 murder of Slovak journalist Ján Kuciak and his fiancée, Martina Kušnírová, following Friday’s decision by a criminal court to acquit businessperson Marián Kočner, the suspected mastermind of the killing. The court convicted Alena Zsuzsová,…
In Marcos Jr.’s Philippines, milder tone belies harsh media reality
At a waterfront courthouse in Tacloban City, a long-time hotbed of communist insurgency in the Philippines’ Eastern Visayas island region, heavily armed guards were escorting jailed journalist Frenchie Mae Cumpio to trial. The picturesque setting belied the harsh reality of the April 17 hearing. Cumpio could be put behind bars for life if found guilty…
In Turkey, cautious optimism that tough election could be good for press freedom
Turkey’s powerful Recep Tayyip Erdoğan and his Justice and Development Party (AKP) are facing one of the toughest challenges of their two decades in office. Polls ahead of the country’s May 14 presidential and parliamentary elections suggest that the president and his long-ruling party could lose to the opposition coalition of Kemal Kılıçdaroğlu, leader of…
Mahoney: UN can help journalists beyond World Press Freedom Day
New York, May 1, 2023–Evan Gershkovich and Jimmy Lai are about to spend World Press Freedom Day behind bars. Gershkovich, a Wall Street Journal Moscow correspondent, and Lai, a pro-democracy Hong Kong media magnate, are among record numbers of journalists in prison as the United Nations marks the 30th anniversary of its special day for…
Burkina Faso expels journalists Sophie Douce and Agnès Faivre
New York, April 3, 2023 – Authorities in Burkina Faso on Saturday, April 1, expelled Agnès Faivre and Sophie Douce, correspondents for the French privately owned Liberation and Le Monde newspapers respectively, according to statements published by both outlets condemning the decisions and other media reports. The previous day, state security officials had summoned the…
CPJ, media organizations, and partners call for release of Evan Gershkovich
New York, March 31, 2023—More than 30 global media organizations and press freedom groups recently sent a letter to Anatoly Antonov, the Russian ambassador to the United States, calling for the immediate release of Wall Street Journal reporter Evan Gershkovich. The signatories, including the Associated Press, BBC, New York Times, and Wall Street Journal, said…
CPJ submits evidence on Hong Kong media freedom to UK parliamentary group
Hong Kong has seen a dramatic decline in media freedom since Beijing implemented a national security law on June 30, 2020, with a significant impact on the city’s freedom of expression and media pluralism, which saw journalists arrested, jailed, and threatened, according to evidence CPJ submitted earlier this month to the All-Party Parliamentary Group (APPG)…
Indian journalist Jaspal Singh arrested in Haryana
On March 18, 2023, police in the Indian state of Haryana arrested Jaspal Singh, a TV journalist who reports part-time for the local broadcaster News18 Haryana, from his home in the city of Ratia, according to news reports and Rajesh Kundu, editor of the news website The Ink, who is familiar with the case and…
CPJ welcomes US court ruling that Haitian mayor was responsible for 2008 radio station attack
Washington, D.C., March 22, 2023—In response to a Boston court’s ruling Tuesday finding former Haitian Mayor Jean Morose Viliena responsible for attacking the New Vision Radio community radio station in 2008, the Committee to Protect Journalist issued the following statement: “It is heartening to see the recognition of former Haitian Mayor Jean Morose Viliena’s crimes,…
Bangladeshi journalist Mamunur Rashid Nomani faces hearing over Digital Security Act charges
New York, March 22, 2023–Police in Bangladesh’s southern city of Barisal should immediately drop all charges against journalist Mamunur Rashid Nomani and allow him to report without fear of reprisal, the Committee to Protect Journalists said Wednesday. Nomani, chief news editor of the privately owned newspaper The Daily Shahnama and editor of the Barisal Khabar…