Articles Written By: Lindsay Ross

Indian journalist, magazine face criminal complaint for investigative report

 Indian authorities should shelve a criminal complaint against the weekly Indian magazine Outlook, its leadership, and freelance journalist Neha Dixit, and ensure the safety of the journalist and Outlook's staff, the Committee to Protect Journalists said on August 11th. On August 4, SC Koyal, an assistant solicitor general of the government of India at the Gauhati High Court, and Bijon Mahajan, a spokesman for the ruling Hindu nationalist Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), filed a criminal complaint against the English-language magazine Outlook, its publisher, Indranil Roy, its editor, Krishna Prasad, and Dixit. The complaint alleged that a July…Read more

New Maldives criminal defamation law threatens press freedom

Maldivian President Abdulla Yameen Abdul Gayoom should veto a criminal defamation law the parliament passed yesterday, the Committee to Protect Journalists said today. The legislation threatens to stifle criticism and investigative reporting. According to press reports, the government had promised to put a draft of the law before a multiparty committee for amendments before putting it to a vote. But lawmakers yesterday approved the legislation in a 47-31 vote and referred it to Yameen for ratification. Under the law, individuals convicted of defamation face a fine of up to 2 million rufiya (US$130,000), and…Read more

At least two journalists killed in Pakistan blast

At least two journalists were among at least 70 people killed in a massive bomb blast at a hospital in Quetta, Pakistan, on August 8th, according to press reports. The Committee to Protect Journalists condemned the attack. Mehmood Khan, a cameraman for DawnNews, and Aaj TV cameraman Shehzad Ahmed were at Quetta Civil Hospital reporting on a gathering of mourners grieving the murder of Bilal Kasi, president of the Baluchistan Bar Association, the reports said. Ahmed died at the scene of the blast, according to the Pakistani advocacy group Freedom Network, which promotes freedom of expression.…Read more

St. Vincent and the Grenadines draft law would allow prison for defamation online

Lawmakers in St. Vincent and the Grenadines should amend or scrap a draft cybercrime law that would allow for prison sentences of up to two years for defamation, the Committee to Protect Journalists said today. Legislators are expected to consider the draft on Thursday, an opposition politician told CPJ. The most recent draft of the law provides for prison sentences of up to two years for "a person who uses a computer system to unlawfully publish any defamatory matter concerning another person, whether negligently or with intent to defame that other person," Anesia…Read more

Proposed law on contempt of court threatens press freedom in Singapore

  Singaporean lawmakers should scrap proposed legislation on what constitutes contempt of court in news reporting and public commentary, the Committee to Protect Journalists said today. The draft law's penalties for violations, including possible prison terms for criticizing the judiciary, threaten to entrench more self-censorship in Singapore's constrained media environment. The Administration of Justice (Protection) Bill would consolidate existing laws and judicial precedent into a statute on what may be published about court proceedings, judges, and the justice system, and, according to news reports, would allow the attorney general, rather than judges, to accuse writers of contempt,…Read more

Thomson Foundation Launches Search for Best Young Journalist

London, Wednesday, July 20. Entries are invited for the 2016 ‘Young Journalist from the Developing World’ prize sponsored by the Thomson Foundation. Part of the UK Foreign Press Association Awards (FPA), the award  enables journalists aged 30 and under from countries with a Gross National Income (GNI)  per capita of less than $20,000 to enter their work for scrutiny by the Foundation – the world’s longest established international media development organisation – and then the FPA judges. The three finalists will be flown to London, spend two nights in the city and attend…Read more

Journalists’ union condemns police raids on media in Jammu and Kashmir

This statement was originally published on samsn.ifj.org on 17 July 2016. The Indian Journalists Union (IJU) strongly protested against the Jammu and Kashmir police raids on all newspaper offices in the early hours of Saturday [16 July 2016] in Srinagar, stopping the printing of their editions and confiscating the already printed papers. Due to the police action, the Kashmir valley went without newspapers on Saturday. In a statement issued here on Sunday [17 July], the IJU President S N Sinha, Secretary-General Amar Devulapalli, International Federation of Journalists (IFJ) Vice-President Sabina Inderjit, Press Council of India…Read more

Gunshot and charges follow satirical column about commander

Media Institute of Southern Africa The Lesotho Times newspaper editor Lloyd Mutangamiri was shot on Saturday, July 9, at the gate of his lower Thamae residence in Maseru, the capital of Lesotho, just before midnight. Lloyd was returning from his office after completing the Sunday Expressedition, a sister newspaper of Lesotho Times. Police confirmed that a single bullet was fired and that Mutangamiri suffered severe trauma, particularly to his mouth. He was hospitalised under 24-hour police security. Members of the public and his colleagues were not allowed to see him for security reasons. MISA Lesotho was…Read more

Zambian editors arrested trying to enter newspaper’s offices amid tax dispute

Committee to Protect Journalists The editor-in-chief of independent Zambian newspaper The Post was arrested trying to enter his newspaper's offices today, after authorities closed it in a dispute over allegedly unpaid taxes. Fred M'membe, his wife Mutinta, and his deputy managing editor Joseph Mwenda, were released on bail, but face charges of breaking into a building, according to reports. The charges come after the Revenue Appeals Tribunal overturned an order for The Post's property to be seized by the Zambia Revenue Authority, according to reports. M'membe and his co-accused were arrested at around 1 a.m. today when…Read more

South African reporters attacked covering protests, broadcaster suspends journalists

The Committee to Protect Journalists is concerned by media reports that South Africa's public broadcaster suspended three journalists for opposing an editorial decision not to cover a protest. CPJ also calls for credible investigations into reports that police assaulted journalists covering unrest. At least five people have been killed and almost 200 people have been arrested this week as supporters of the ruling African National Congress (ANC) party have taken to the streets of the capital and environs in often-violent protests against the ANC's leadership, according to media reports. Police and protesters have threatened…Read more