One Free Press Coalition’s Most Urgent Cases of Injustice Against Journalists
Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty (RFE/RL) is a member of the One Free Press Coalition, a group of 33 prominent media organizations from around the world committed to using their collective muscle to shine a massive light on the plight of threatened journalists all over the world.
WASHINGTON — Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty (RFE/RL) is a member of the One Free Press Coalition, a group of 33 prominent media organizations from around the world committed to using their collective muscle to shine a massive light on the plight of threatened journalists all over the world.
“RFE/RL has worked for decades to support independent media and the individual journalists who, despite every imaginable challenge, work every day to champion a free press,” said RFE/RL Acting President Daisy Sindelar. “By standing together as part of the One Free Press Coalition, we hope that we can reduce threats, support journalists, and strengthen media freedom.”
RFE/RL joined the coalition in May 2019, along with 15 other media companies including AméricaEconomía, Bloomberg News, BuzzFeed, Estadão, India Today, Insider Inc., Middle East Broadcasting Networks, Office of Cuba Broadcasting, Quartz, Radio Free Asia, RFE/RL, The Straits Times, TV Azteca, Voice of America, The Washington Post, and WIRED. The other members of the Coalition, which was conceived during a meeting of the International Media Council at the World Economic Forum, are: The Associated Press, Boston Globe, CNN Money Switzerland, Corriere Della Sera, De Standaard, Deutsche Welle, EURACTIV, The Financial Times, Forbes, Fortune, HuffPost, Le Temps, Republik, Reuters, Süddeutsche Zeitung, TIME, and Yahoo News. The Coalition also works with partner organizations the Committee to Protect Journalists and the International Women’s Media Foundation.
Every month, the One Free Press Coalition releases updates to its “10 Most Urgent” cases of journalists under attack for pursuing the truth. The list for June 2019 includes Vietnamese Radio Free Asia (RFA) blogger Truong Duy Nhat, who is being held in a detention center in Hanoi after going missing in January 2019 in Bangkok.
- Azory Gwanda, a freelance journalist working in rural Tanzania, has been missing since November 21, 2017 following his investigation of mysterious killings in his community. The Tanzanian government has yet to launch a credible investigation into his case.
- Jamal Khashoggi, the Washington Post columnist who was brutally murdered at the Saudi Arabian consulate in Istanbul, has yet to see an independent UN criminal investigation, despite CIA findings that point to the Saudi crown prince’s involvement.
- Aasif Sultan, a reporter for Kashmir Narrator, was arrested on “anti-state” charges in August 2018, and has been repeatedly interrogated by police, demanding that he reveal his sources.
- Claudia Duque, a local Columbian journalist has been subjected to kidnapping, illegal surveillance, and psychological torture for decades. Several high-ranking security service officers have been named in the case, but none have served a day in prison.
- Miguel Mora and Lucía Pineda, station director and news director of Nicaragua’s 100% Noticias, have been heldfor over five months on charges of “inciting hate and violence,” and while behind bars have been denied access to their lawyers.
- Truong Duy Nhat, a blogger with the U.S. Congress-funded Radio Free Asia (RFA), went missing in January in Bangkok, where he had applied for refugee status. The Vietnamese blogger is currently held without charge in a detention center in Hanoi.
- Sevinc Osmanqizi has been subject to harassment and attempted extortion by the pro-government Azerbaijani news channel Real TV in retaliation for her political reporting, forcing her to live in exile in the U.S.
- Abderrahmane Weddady and Cheikh Ould Jiddou have been behind bars since March after being accused of spreading false news due to their reporting on corruption in Mauritania.
- Seyoum Tsehaye was arrested after the government summarily banned the privately owned press in 2001, in response to criticism of President Isaias Afwerki. Eritrean authorities have never accounted for his whereabouts, health, or legal status.
- Mina Karamitrou, a police reporter for CNN’s Greek edition, was the target of a makeshift explosive device detonated under her car in May 2019. No one was injured in the explosion, but as of late May, no arrests had been made.
News organizations throughout the world can join the coalition by emailing info@onefreepresscoalition.com.
About RFE/RL
RFE/RL relies on its networks of local reporters to provide accurate news and information to 34 million people in 26 languages and 22 countries where media freedom is restricted, or where a professional press has not fully developed. Its videos were viewed over 2.6 billion times on Facebook and YouTube in FY2018. RFE/RL is an editorially independent media company funded by a grant from the U.S. Congress through the U.S. Agency for Global Media.
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FOR MORE INFORMATION, CONTACT:
Joanna Levison in Prague, levisonj@rferl.org, +420.221.122.080
Martins Zvaners in Washington, zvanersm@rferl.org, +1.202.457.6948