Clinton helps two, but more journalists need help
Bill Clinton 2, Kim Jong Il 0.
The former American president has landed in Burbank, California, after securing the release of CurrentTV reporters Laura Ling and Euna Lee.
The duo was arrested in March and subsequently sentenced to 12 years of hard labor in North Korea. They were arrested while reporting about human rights issues near the China-North Korea border.
But many journalists who have become entangled in the lairs of oppressive regimes aren't coming home today. In fact, today is a particularly busy day in the world of disturbing news about threatened journalists:
Africa
In Gambia today, six journalists charged with "sedition, defamation and conspiracy" are facing judgment. If they are found guilty, they face fines and jail time of up to two years.
Elsewhere in Africa, two journalists who have been held in police custody since Saturday may be formally charged today. The pair of editors from Niger are detained after publishing reports about "corruption charges involving the national human rights commission."
Russia
In a courtroom in Russia today, the four men charged with the 2006 murder of journalist Anna Politkovskaya are being retried after a successful appeal by the prosecution. According to Reporters Without Borders, "The Russian justice system’s inability to punish those who use murder to silence critics and protect their interests just feeds the cycle of violence and serves as licence for the killers to continue killing."
China
AsiaMedia, a daily digest of media news from that region, is reporting today that a Chinese journalist has been sentenced to three years in prison on charges of corruption. It is a "rare case of a female journalist working for the powerful state broadcaster, CCTV, being sent to prison."
Iran
Good news today from Iran, though, the world's leading jailer of journalists with 36 in jail. The Islamic state released five journalists from its prisons today. One of the quintet had been in prison for a year; the rest were arrested in the protests following the June elections in Iran.
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Suddenly, the "furloughcations" facing many a journalist in the United States and Europe don't look so bad.
Check out this CPJ report for more information on detained reporters.
Flickr image from user 4PIZON
The former American president has landed in Burbank, California, after securing the release of CurrentTV reporters Laura Ling and Euna Lee.
The duo was arrested in March and subsequently sentenced to 12 years of hard labor in North Korea. They were arrested while reporting about human rights issues near the China-North Korea border.
But many journalists who have become entangled in the lairs of oppressive regimes aren't coming home today. In fact, today is a particularly busy day in the world of disturbing news about threatened journalists:
Africa
In Gambia today, six journalists charged with "sedition, defamation and conspiracy" are facing judgment. If they are found guilty, they face fines and jail time of up to two years.
Elsewhere in Africa, two journalists who have been held in police custody since Saturday may be formally charged today. The pair of editors from Niger are detained after publishing reports about "corruption charges involving the national human rights commission."
Russia
In a courtroom in Russia today, the four men charged with the 2006 murder of journalist Anna Politkovskaya are being retried after a successful appeal by the prosecution. According to Reporters Without Borders, "The Russian justice system’s inability to punish those who use murder to silence critics and protect their interests just feeds the cycle of violence and serves as licence for the killers to continue killing."
China
AsiaMedia, a daily digest of media news from that region, is reporting today that a Chinese journalist has been sentenced to three years in prison on charges of corruption. It is a "rare case of a female journalist working for the powerful state broadcaster, CCTV, being sent to prison."
Iran
Good news today from Iran, though, the world's leading jailer of journalists with 36 in jail. The Islamic state released five journalists from its prisons today. One of the quintet had been in prison for a year; the rest were arrested in the protests following the June elections in Iran.
--
Suddenly, the "furloughcations" facing many a journalist in the United States and Europe don't look so bad.
Check out this CPJ report for more information on detained reporters.
Flickr image from user 4PIZON
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