Journalist Arrest

104 media workers killed this year, Gaza stands out for 2nd year: IFJ

The International Federation of Journalists said Tuesday that 104 journalists and media workers have been killed so far in 2024, with more than half of them perishing during the Israel-Hamas war in the Gaza Strip. The group said that since the Oct. 7, 2023 start of the war, at least 138 had been killed, including 55 Palestinian media professionals in the calendar year. On top of the global fatalities, the IFJ said that the number of journalists in prison was also on the rise, with a sharp increase to 520, compared to 427 last year. "These sad figures show once again how fragile is press freedom and how risky and dangerous is the profession of journalism," said IFJ General Secretary Anthony Bellanger, adding the bad situation came at a critical time. The public's need for information is very real at a time when authoritarian regimes are developing all over the world, he said. When it came to imprisonments, the group said China and Hong Kong kept 135 journalists behind bars. Overall

China sentences journalist detained at meal with Japanese diplomat to 7 yrs

A court in Beijing on Friday sentenced a prominent Chinese journalist to seven in years in prison for espionage, his family said. Dong Yuyu, a commentator and editor, was taken away by police while meeting a Japanese diplomat at a restaurant in February 2022. He has been in police custody since then. The Beijing Number 2 Intermediate People's Court read the verdict but did not share a copy with Dong's lawyers or family. No announcement was available on the court's website or its Weibo account. The verdict named then-Japanese ambassador Hideo Tarumi and Shanghai-based chief diplomat Masaru Okada as agents belonging to an espionage organization, according the family's statement. Dong had served as the deputy head of the editorial department at Guangming Daily, one of the five major state-owned papers in China. The paper was once considered more liberal than other state-backed papers. Dong also contributed to the Chinese edition of the New York Times. In his published writings, inclu

Chinese court sentences journalist to seven years for espionage

He wrote opinion articles in Chinese media and liberal academic journals on topics from legal reforms to social issues, and co-edited a book promoting the rule of law in China

SC relaxes bail condition on Kerala-based journalist Kappan in UAPA case

The Supreme Court on Monday allowed a plea by Kerala-based journalist Siddique Kappan seeking relaxation of a bail condition of reporting to police every week in a UAPA case registered against him. A bench of Justices P S Narasimhan and Sandeep Mehta relaxed the bail condition imposed by the top court on Kappan while granting bail in September 2022. "The order dated September 9, 2022, is modified and it shall not be necessary for the petitioner to report to the local police station. The other prayers made in the present application can be agitated independently," the bench said. The top court had on September 17 asked the state government to file its reply on the plea of Kappan, who was arrested in October 2020 while on his way to Hathras in Uttar Pradesh after a Dalit woman from there died following gangrape. On September 9, 2022, the top court granted bail to Kappan, who was in jail for almost two years, while observing that every person has the right to free expression. It had

Hong Kong journalists face harassment amid national security law crackdown

On social media, there were posts featuring images of journalists and HKJA executive committee members alongside graphics of knives, blood, shooting targets, and 'memorial' signs

Journalist among 14 held for grabbing govt land worth Rs 1,000 cr in Kanpur

Fourteen people, including a TV journalist, have been arrested on charges of grabbing government land having a market value of over Rs 1,000 crore, police said on Monday. Journalist Avneesh Dixit and others were arrested on Sunday after they were named in complaints lodged by the revenue officer and Samuel Gurudev Singh, to whom the land had been leased, they said. Additional Commissioner of Police (Law and Order) Harish Chandra said Dixit has been arrested and FIRs have been registered at Kotwali police station in the matter. Efforts are being made to nab other accused. The FIRs have been lodged under sections 61(2) (criminal conspiracy), 74 (criminal force to any woman intending to outrage modesty), 127(2) (wrongful confinement), 191(2) (rioting), 308(5) (extortion), 310(2) (dacoity), 324(4) (mischief causes loss), 329(4) (house trespass), 351(2) (criminal intimidation), 352 (intentional insult) of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita and under the Prevention of Damage to Public Property .

WSJ reporter Gershkovich's closed trial for espionage to begin in Russia

Fifteen months after Wall Street Journal reporter Evan Gershkovich was arrested in the Russian city of Yekaterinburg on espionage charges, he returns there for his trial starting Wednesday behind closed doors. The 32-year-old Gershkovich, the American-born son of immigrants from the USSR, is the first Western journalist to be arrested on espionage in post-Soviet Russia. Both his employer and the US government vigorously deny the allegations; the State Department has declared him wrongfully detained, thereby committing the government to assertively seek his release. The newspaper has worked diligently to keep the case in the public eye and it has become an issue in the combative months leading up to the US presidential election. Since his arrest on March 29, 2023, Gershkovich has been held in Moscow's notoriously dismal Lefortovo Prison. He has appeared healthy during court hearings in which his appeals for release have been rejected. Evan has displayed remarkable resilience and ..

Russia to hold trial of 'CIA asset' US WSJ reporter Gershkovich in secret

Gershkovich was detained by the Federal Security Service on March 29, 2023, in a steak house in Yekaterinburg on charges of espionage that carry up to 20 years in prison

NC, PDP oppose prosecution sanction against Arundhati Roy under UAPA

The National Conference and Peoples Democratic Party have expressed their disapproval of the prosecution sanction against author Arundhati Roy and a former professor in Kashmir under the stringent UAPA for allegedly making provocative speeches at an event in Delhi in 2010. According to officials, the FIR against Roy and former Central University of Kashmir professor Sheikh Showkat Hussain was registered following the orders of the Court of Metropolitan Magistrate, New Delhi. Expressing disapproval of the move, the National Conference (NC) stressed the need to uphold the fundamental right of every citizen to free speech as guaranteed by Article 19 of the Constitution. "The NC expresses its strong disapproval of the prosecution of author Arundhati Roy and Dr Sheikh Showkat Hussain under the UAPA (Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act). The use of anti-terror laws to suppress dissent and criminalize speech is deeply concerning," it said in a post on 'X'. "It is also imperative to note

Many journalists have fled homelands due to repression, conflict, says UN

Thousands of journalists have fled their home countries in recent years to escape political repression, save their lives and escape conflict but in exile they are often vulnerable to physical, digital and legal threats, a UN investigator said on Wednesday. Irene Khan said in a report to the UN General Assembly that the number of journalists in exile has increased as the space for independent and critical media has been shrinking in democratic countries where authoritarian trends are gaining ground. Today, she said, free, independent and diverse media supporting democracy and holding the powerful to account are either absent or severely constrained in over a third of the world's nations, where more than two-thirds of the global population lives. The UN independent investigator on the promotion and protection of the right to freedom of opinion and expression said most journalists and some independent media outlets have left their countries so they can report and investigate freely ..

Sandeshkhali case: Calcutta HC grants bail to television journalist

The Calcutta High Court on Thursday granted bail to a television journalist, who was arrested on duty at the restive Sandeshkhali, observing that the press must be allowed to function freely and independently, without any fear of reprisal or intimidation. Santu Pan, who works for Republic Bangla news channel, was arrested on February 19 on the basis of a complaint by a woman alleging that he had trespassed into her house in Sandeshkhali. Justice Kausik Chanda also stayed all proceedings in connection with the case against him at Sandeshkhali police station in North 24 Parganas district till disposal of his petition seeking quashing of the FIR. The court noted that Sandeshkhali garnered public attention across the country over the assault of Enforcement Directorate (ED) officials allegedly by aides of Trinamool Congress leader Shajahan Sheikh on January 5. Sandeshkhali has witnessed prolonged protests by local women alleging sexual atrocities at gunpoint by certain local political .

Newsclick case: Court extends judicial custody of Purkayastha, Chakravarty

The court earlier had dismissed Newsclick's founder and Editor-in-Chief Prabir Purkayastha's application, which sought directions to release his electronic devices seized by Delhi Police

More than 300 journalists around world imprisoned for their work: Report

An estimated 320 journalists around the world were imprisoned because of their work toward the end of 2023, according to a report issued Thursday by the Committee to Protect Journalists, which called it a disturbing attempt to smother independent voices. That's the second-highest number of jailed journalists since the committee began its annual census in 1992. It's down from 367 in 2022, due primarily to the release of many in Iran, either on bail or as they await sentencing, the committee said. Our research shows how entrenched authoritarianism is globally, with governments emboldened to stamp out critical reporting and prevent public accountability, said Jodie Ginsberg, the committee's chief executive officer. More than a third of the journalists in jail according to the CPJ's Dec 1, 2023, census were in China, Myanmar and Belarus, the report said. Israel is tied with Iran for sixth place, the country's highest ranking ever on CPJ's annual list. Each of the 17 that were held in .

Congress deplores arrest of 2 editors in Manipur, demands their release

The Congress on Sunday strongly deplored the reported arrest of two editors of vernacular newspapers in Manipur and demanded their immediate release, alleging a "double engine assault" by the Modi government and the Manipur dispensation on the state. In a statement, Congress' media and publicity department head Pawan Khera said that in yet another crackdown on press freedom, two editors from two language newspapers have been arrested by the Manipur government. On December 31, 2023, the BJP-controlled police arrested Wangkhemcha Shyamjai, the editor of vernacular daily Kangleipaki Meira, for allegedly publishing "provocative news", Khera said. On January 5, the Manipur Police also arrested Meitei language newspaper Hueiyen Lanpao's editor Dhanabir Maibam for "promoting enmity on the ground of religion and race", the Congress leader said. In a joint statement, the All-Manipur Journalists' Union, of which Shyamjai was a former chief, and the Editors Guild Manipur (EGM) condemned his .

Correspondent's house raided for reports on PTI leaders in Pakistan

Following the incident, senior Pakistani journalist Hamid Mir said that journalism is becoming "very difficult" in Pakistan

Russian court extends detention of WSJ reporter Gershkovich until Jan end

A court in Moscow has extended the detention of Wall Street Journal reporter Evan Gershkovich, arrested on espionage charges, until Jan. 30, Russian news agencies reported. The hearing took place on Tuesday behind closed doors because authorities say details of the criminal case against the American journalist are classified. Gershkovich was detained in March while on a reporting trip to the Russian city of Yekaterinburg, about 2,000 kilometers (1,200 miles) east of Moscow. Russia's Federal Security Service alleged that the reporter, acting on the instructions of the American side, collected information constituting a state secret about the activities of one of the enterprises of the Russian military-industrial complex. Gershkovich and the Journal deny the allegations, and the U.S. government has declared him to be wrongfully detained. Russian authorities haven't detailed any evidence to support the espionage charges.

Journalist detained in China for 3 yrs for espionage returns to Australia

A Chinese-Australian journalist who was convicted on murky espionage charges and detained in China for three years has returned to Australia, Prime Minister Anthony Albanese said Wednesday. Cheng Lei, 48, worked for the international department of China's state broadcaster CCTV. She has reunited with her two children in Melbourne, Albanese said. Her return comes ahead of Albanese's planned visit to Beijing this year on a date yet to be announced. Albanese's government has been lobbying for the release of Cheng and Yang Hengjun, another Chinese-Australian held in China since 2019. Bilateral relations have improved since Albanese's centre-left Labour Party was elected after nine years of conservative rule. Beijing has lifted several official and unofficial trade barriers on Australian exports. Albanese suggested that Cheng had recently been sentenced after she was convicted in a closed-court trial last year on national security charges. Her return brings an end to a very difficult

Newsclick crackdown: Delhi Police question 25 journalists for 2nd time

Delhi Police Special Cell has questioned about 25 journalists and contributors of the NewsClick for a second time in connection with a UAPA case registered against the online news portal for allegedly peddling "anti-national" agenda in the country, sources said on Monday. An officer said that the investigation into the case is still on and no one has been given the clean chit so far. About 46 people, including nine women journalists, were questioned on October 3, the day the Special Cell raided several locations connected to the website in Delhi and NCR. "Since the arrest took place, everyone was called for the second round of questioning. About 25 of them have appeared so far," said a police officer. On October 3, the Delhi Police arrested portal's editor-in-chief Prabir Purkayastha and human relations head Amit Chakravarty and seized more than 300 electronic gadgets from the office of NewsClick and residences of its journalists. An official said these gadgets were sent to the FS

NewsClick case: Urmilesh, Abhisar questioned again, court asks for FIR copy

The Delhi Police Thursday questioned journalists Urmilesh and Abhisar Sharma for a second time this week in the NewClick foreign funding case, even as a court here directed the authorities to provide the copy of FIR to two persons arrested in the case under anti-terror law UAPA. This comes two days after NewsClick founder Prabir Purkayastha and HR head Amit Chakravarty were arrested in connection with the alleged funding to the NewsClick from China to peddle fake narrative about the central government. Urmilesh and Sharma reached the Delhi Police Special Cell's office at Lodhi Colony and joined the investigation on Thursday afternoon, the officials said. A total of 46 journalists and contributor to the NewsClick were questioned on Tuesday and their mobile phones and other electronic gadgets were seized. Journalists' bodies On Thursday expressed concern about the raids, saying while the law must take its course, the government and its agencies should respect the freedom of the press

'Disgrace to democracy': Shashi Tharoor on NewsClick raids, arrests

Attacking the BJP-led central government, Congress leader Shashi Tharoor said that confiscating journalists' laptops and depriving them of access is not right