attack on journalist
Wednesday 8.7.2020 Afghanistan - Latest Developments
Afghan human rights and media workers face attacks while new NGO law threatens civil society
Over the last few months, human rights workers and journalists have been attacked and killed. 24 were killed when a group of heavily armed militants stormed a Médecins Sans Frontiéres run maternity wing in Kabul. A new NGO law could lead to undue regulations, oversight and interference for civil society while government backtracks on proposed amendments to a media law. Protests in Afghanistan have been met with deadly force from the authorities. Read more
Tuesday 7.7.2020 Guatemala - Latest Developments
Indigenous defender killed and others threatened and attacked in Guatemala
On 15th June 2020, Indigenous land defender Medardo Alonzo Lucero was found dead with signs of torture in Olopa, Chiquimula department. Read more
Tuesday 7.7.2020 Azerbaijan - Latest Developments
Critics detained for COVID-19 related remarks
Civic activists, opposition leaders and journalist under attack amid COVID-19 pandemic, Azerbaijani journalist Afgan Mukhtarli released from detention, Azeri activist detained for a Facebook post one day after release from psychiatric clinic , Azeri activist detained for demonstrating police brutality on social media, March for women rights ends with police violence, Student protest ends with arrests, Protesters, journalists beaten during protest in Baku, Civil society publishes report highlighting challenges faced by NGOs and issues recommendations, Read more
Friday 3.7.2020 Albania - Latest Developments
PM condemned for negative rhetoric against media, attempts to shut down TV station
Although the citizens and activists of Tirana called on the authorities to halt the plan to demolish a cultural heritage site of the city, their attempts were unsuccessful. Many people from different backgrounds took to the streets to protest the decision to demolish the National Theatre. They furthermore accused the authorities of starting the demolition while some of the protesters were in the building, thus endangering their lives. Police also used force to push back masses of protesters. A journalist was also detained during the protest. In a separate development, Prime Minister Edi Rama has been criticised for his negative rhetoric towards reporters and journalists in relation to the COVID-19 pandemic. The State Health Inspectorate has requested the closure of the RTV Ora Television station for violating the instructions by the Ministry of Health to allow only two people in television studios at a time. This is viewed as an attempt to silence critical journalism under the guise of the pandemic. Read more
Friday 3.7.2020 Nepal - Latest Developments
Protests in Nepal around COVID-19 met with excessive force while journalists face attacks
Protests expressing discontent with the COVID-19 response have been met with excessive force and arrests. There have also been ongoing threats and attacks against journalists in Nepal for their reporting on the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic. Online critics have also been targeted for defamation using the Electronic Transaction Act. A proposed Intelligence Bill gives the national intelligence agency unlimited surveillance and search powers. Read more
Thursday 2.7.2020 Ecuador - Latest Developments
Austerity measures during COVID-19 lead to protests in Ecuador
On 16th March 2020, Ecuador’s government published a decree declaring a "state of exception" in response to the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic. This suspended some individual rights related to freedom of association and assembly, and provided government with authority to use digital tools to monitor individuals under mandatory isolation or quarantine. Read more
Tuesday 30.6.2020 Kosovo - Latest Developments
Journalists continue to face physical and verbal attacks
Due to the COVID-19 pandemic and its impact on the daily work of civil society organisations (CSOs), government has taken measures to assist the sector. Namely, the Ministry of Finance included CSOs as a separate group in the list of entities eligible for the economic measures under the Emergency Fiscal Package. During the reporting period, the Association of Journalists of Kosovo (AJK) documented several cases of physical and verbal attacks against journalists. Read more
Thursday 25.6.2020 Bolivia - Latest Developments
Protests repressed and disinformation legislation revoked in Bolivia
At the beginning of June 2020, Bolivia began easing quarantine measures and lifting some restrictions on movement. Local governments were allowed to establish additional measures according to the public health situation in their regions. Read more
Monday 22.6.2020 United States of America - Latest Developments
Countrywide protests to end police brutality in the United States met by militarised law enforcement
Massive protests erupted in cities across the United States following the death of George Floyd, a Black man, by a Minneapolis police officer on 25th May 2020. A harrowing video filmed by witnesses shows the officer pressing his knee into the handcuffed man's neck for almost nine minutes while Floyd repeatedly said, “I can’t breathe.” Outrage brimmed over, bringing hundreds of thousands to the streets to protest entrenched racism and the US’s long history of killings of Black and Brown people by law enforcement agents. Read more
Friday 19.6.2020 Bosnia & Herzegovina - Latest Developments
Decree prohibits the spread of fake news about COVID-19, raising concerns of media censorship
As a response to the COVID-19 crisis, the government drafted a Law on Mitigation of Economic Consequences, which did not include CSOs (civil society organisations) as beneficiaries of the economic assistance measures. Despite the ban on public gatherings, a few protests took place during the reporting period. A group of 20 people in Foča blocked the construction of small hydroelectric power plants Bjelava and Mala Bjelava, which they claim will pose ecological damage to their locality. Several members of "Justice for David" gathered at Krajina Square to symbolically mark the victory over fascism. They were warned that public gatherings without approval would not be tolerated by the police in the future. The government of Republika Srpska enacted a decree which prohibits the spread of panic and disorder during a state of emergency. The Bosnian Journalists Association says that the decree promotes media censorship.
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