Thursday, December 12, 2013



Iran

Emad Baghi has urged France not to block a deal that could leave to the lifting of sanctions. (file photo)

Prominent Iranian Rights Defender Calls on France Not to Undermine Talks

Emad Baghi, a prominent Iranian human-rights defender who has been jailed in the Islamic Republic over his activities, has called on French President Francois Hollande not to undermine nuclear negotiations in Geneva aimed at finding a peaceful solution to the crisis over Iran's nuclear program. More

A screengrab of an article in the Iranian "Vatan-e Emruz" claiming that America supported a terrorist attack.

Iranian Newspaper Runs Fake Radio Farda Terrorist Interview

An Iranian newspaper has published an interview with an extremist group that it claims was conducted by RFE/RL's Radio Farda. An audio version of the interview has been posted online, apparently in an effort to discredit RFE/RL's Persian-language service. The interview has been re-posted by hard-line websites. Radio Farda has denied conducting the interview with the group "Jeish al Adl," which took responsibility for last week's deadly attack against Iranian border guards. More

A noose in Iran (file photo)

Would A Nuclear Deal Help Or Hurt Human Rights?

"No one is executed in Iran for political motives; our judiciary is independent," said Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif in a November 6 interview with the French daily, "Le Monde." More

Iranian Journalist Masih Alinejad, after receiving her AIB award for Radio Farda's production "Victims of 88" on Wednesday, London, November 6, 2013.

Radio Farda and Radio Free Afghanistan Honored By AIB

Radio Farda and Radio Free Afghanistan have both received "Highly Commended" awards at the AIBs. More

New York - Censorship and Power in Iran Panel, 08May2013.

Tehran Targets Iranian Journalists Abroad

A media watchdog has accused Iranian authorities of coordinating intimidation campaigns targeting Iranian journalists abroad. More


Azerbaijan

Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev

Crackdown Under Way In Wake Of Azerbaijani Presidential Election

In the five weeks since incumbent Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev was reelected for a third consecutive term, the authorities have cracked down on a prominent NGO, an opposition newspaper, and several bloggers, journalists, and academics in what Amnesty International’s John Dalhuisen has branded “[a] ruthless and relentless attack on any dissenting voices in the media.” More

Council of Europe Commissioner for Human Rights, Nils Muiznieks

Rights Official Calls For Baku Reform

The Council of Europe's human rights commissioner says he wants Azerbaijan to implement a series of reforms before Baku takes over the chairmanship of the Council of Europe (CoE). More

Rauf Arifoglu, editor of the "Yeni Musavat" newspaper, has appealed for support amid government pressure.

Azeri Newspaper Appeals For Support

Azerbaijan's opposition "Yeni Musavat" (New Equality) newspaper has started a campaign to sustain its operations amid pressure from authorities.More


Central Asia

Popular Kyrgyz TV Host Found Dead

A popular television journalist and host in Kyrgyzstan has been found dead in suspicious circumstances in his apartment in Bishkek. More

A television tower looms over a section of the Uzbek capital, Tashkent

More Uzbek TV Channels Off The Air

Five television channels of Uzbekistan's Nongovernmental Television Network (NTT) have ceased broadcasting, bringing the total number of darkened Uzbek television channels to nine. More

Tajik Candidates Make Campaign Promises Before The November 6 Vote

Tajik Elections Are All About Rahmon

Ahead of Tajikistan's November 6 presidential election, five candidates -- none of whom poses a significant challenge to incumbent President Emomali Rahmon -- toured the country to present their political platforms. At a campaign stop in Khujand, the main issues under discussion were aid to small businesses and emigration to Russia.More


EU/Eastern Partnership

This is a press conference at the Belarus Association of Journalists to discuss media freedom in the Eastern Partnership initiative. Belarus placed last in the survey.

Moldova Leading In Media Freedom

Moldova has come out on top in the latest press-freedom index among six former Soviet republics included in the European Union's Eastern Partnership initiative. More

Pakistan

Malala Yousafzai's book, "I Am Malala," is seen on sale in Islamabad.

Pakistan Ban On Malala Book Disputed

Pakistani private school authorities have banned private schools from having copies of the book by Malala Yousafzai, the teenage education activist who was seriously injured when she was shot by the Taliban in 2012. More


Resources

Article 19 and International Media Support - No Justice for Journalists in Ukraine, Belarus and Russia

This report, issued upon the 10th anniversary of the murder of Ukrainian journalist Georgiy Gongadze, looks at the emergence of a climate of impunity and the chilling of freedom of expression in Ukraine, Belarus and Russia.
More

Committee to Protect Journalists - Attacks on the Press 2010

This annual survey shows that intimidation is the tool of choice by governments and groups that seek to control information. Scaring journalists works, and it's the local correspondents who bear the brunt of the threat.
More

Freedom House - Freedom in the World 2011

Freedom House's annual survey of global rights and liberties finds that 2010 was the 5th consecutive year in which global freedom suffered a decline, and highlights the truculence of the world's most authoritarian regimes.
More

Human Rights Watch - World Report 2011

HRW's 21st annual report surveys human rights conditions in over 90 countries. The authors claim that, with increasing frequency, governments that might exert pressure for human rights improvement are accepting the rationalizations and subterfuges of repressive governments, favoring private “dialogue” and “cooperation” over more hard-nosed approaches.
More

Human Rights Watch - Hungary's Media Law

HRW calls Hungary's newly enacted media law 'problematic' in a recent statement and warns that the country is moving in the wrong direction with regard to EU principles and values.
More

Committee to Protect Journalists - 2010 Prison Census

In its annual census of imprisoned journalists, CPJ named Iran and China the 'world's worst jailers of the press,' each responsible for the imprisonment of 34 journalists in a year that was the worst on record since 1996. Uzbekistan is also cited for jailing journalists. CPJ identified 145 reporters, editors, and photojournalists behind bars on December 1, 2010.
More

Kazakhstan

Supporters say the law is in line with global norms.

Journalists Express Concern Over Kazakh Data-Protection Law

Kazakh citizens have a new legal tool to protect them against the publication of their personal information. But journalists say the new Personal Data Protection law, which goes into effect on November 25, could be used against them. More

Belarus

Ihar Lohvinau, owner of the private LohvinaU publishing house

Publisher Loses Suit Against Belarus Authorities

The Supreme Economic Court of Belarus has rejected a lawsuit filed by a Minsk-based independent publisher against the Information Ministry. More

Media Freedom

Macedonia - A woman, with a sticker on her mouth reading "Freedom", stands in front of a police cordon during a protest in Skopje against the imprisonment of a journalist.

Leading Media Raise Alarms about Impunity and Threats

In statements today, the Broadcasting Board of Governors (BBG) and six other international media organizations decried violence against journalists and suppression of media freedom, and urged the UN to take affirmative steps ensuring that member states meet their obligations to guarantee free speech rights and protections. More

About This Page

This page is about the threats and obstacles independent journalists face - our RFE/RL colleagues and other journalists in our broadcast region - to give and get the news. We focus on individual cases and broader developments that signify the high price of reporting in places where the media is unfree.