On July 1, 2020 the Coalition launched the 17th monthly “10 Most Urgent” list (ranked in order of urgency), calling attention to the most pressing cases of journalists under attack for pursuing the truth.

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1. Maria Ressa (Philippines)

Filipino-U.S. dual citizen sentenced in cyber libel case. On June 15, a Manila court convicted Maria Ressa, editor of the privately owned Rappler news website, and Reynaldo Santos, a former researcher at the outlet, of cyber libel. The criminal offense requires each journalist to pay $7,950 in fines and moral damages as well as serve a jail term of six months to six years. Both are free on bail pending their appeal. The case arose from a public interest article Rappler published in 2012 about a local businessman’s alleged ties to a former judge, who was later impeached for corruption, and purported links to drug and human trafficking rings.

2. Azimjon Askarov (Kyrgyzstan) 

Award-winning human rights reporter imprisoned 10 years. June 15 marked ten years since ethnic Uzkek Azimjon Askarov was arrested on trumped-up charges that included incitement to ethnic hatred and complicity in the murder of a police officer. A Kyrgyz court heard the final appeal in his case in May and upheld his life sentence. His health is deteriorating in detention, with limited access to medication and mistreatment by prison officials. His wife, Khadicha Askarova, has written to Kyrgyzstan’s president pleading for his release. 

3. Solafa Magdy (Egypt)

Nearly four months without updates from imprisoned journalist in deteriorating health. No one has received news from freelance reporter Solafa Magdy since March 9. She has been imprisoned alongside her husband for six months and endured deliberate medical neglect while at heightened risk of contracting COVID-19 due to overcrowding and inhumane conditions in Egypt’s prisons. Officials have again delayed trial for charges of “membership of a banned group” and “spreading false news” for her multimedia reporting on human rights and illegal immigration.

4. Abdulkhaleq Amran, Akram al-Waleedi, Hareth Hameed and Tawfiq al-Mansouri (Yemen)

Four journalists detained five years, now sentenced to death. On April 11, Yemeni journalists Abdulkhaleq Amran, Akram al-Waleedi, Hareth Hameed and Tawfiq al-Mansouri were sentenced to death by the Ansar Allah group, known as the Houthis, after nearly five years in detention. The journalists were charged with spreading false news “in support of the crimes of Saudi aggression and its allies against the Republic of Yemen.” In June, the UN joined over 150 organizations calling for their release. Their lawyer plans to appeal.

5. Jean Bigirimana (Burundi)

Four years pass without information regarding journalist’s disappearance. July 22 marks four years since reporter Jean Bigirimana went missing in the middle of the day after leaving his home in Bujumbura. He had received a phone call from a source in the country’s national intelligence service. He was working as a newspaper and online journalist with the independent Iwacu Press Group and previously with the pro-government radio station Rema FM. He has not been seen or heard from since 2016.

6. Norma Sarabia Garduza (Mexico)

Investigation idling in case of journalist murdered at her home one year ago. June 11 marked one year since unknown attackers shot and killed reporter Norma Sarabia in her Huimanguillo residence, yet there has been little movement in the investigation announced on Twitter by the state attorney general’s office at the time. Sarabia, 46, was a correspondent in the Tabasco town near the border with Guatemala for newspapers Diario Presente and Tabasco HOY. She is one of 54 journalists killed in Mexico between 1992 and 2020.

7. Mohamed Monir (Egypt)

Journalist in poor health being held in pretrial detention without court date. Plainclothes security officers in Giza arrested veteran journalist and freelance columnist Mohamed Monir on June 15 and ordered pretrial detention for 15 days, a period that can be renewed or extended at the court’s request. Egypt’s national security prosecutor charged Monir with joining a terrorist group, spreading false news and misusing social media. The 65-year-old suffers from diabetes, high blood pressure and severe heart problems. He had recently written for Al Jazeera and criticized the government’s handling of the COVID-19 pandemic.

8. Samuel Wazizi (Samuel Ajiekah Abuwe) (Cameroon) 

Officials reveal journalist died in custody last August. In June, Cameroonian military announced that news anchor Samuel Wazizi died last August, days after being transferred from police to military custody and held incommunicado. They denied any torturous treatment and alleged that Wazizi died of “severe sepsis.” Lawyers say he was accused of hosting separatist fighters on his farm, an allegation he dismissed. He had worked as a freelance photographer and cameraman as well as a news anchor for privately-owned broadcaster Chillen Muzik and TV (CMTV) covering military atrocities.

9. Abdulmumin Gadzhiev (Russia)

Authorities bring additional allegations against editor in pretrial detention. Since his arrest on terrorism charges in June 2019, authorities have also charged Abdulmumin Gadzhiev with participation in an extremist organization and extended his pretrial detention. The new allegation could add 10 years in prison to the potential 20 years Gadzhiev faces on the original charges. He had been working as editor of the religious section of the independent Chernovik newspaper.

10. Jamal Khashoggi (Saudi Arabia)

Calls for continued investigation into journalist’s death at the hands of government. Democrats in the U.S. House of Representative are reportedly working on new legislation to push for the release of secret findings regarding the full extent of Saudi Arabia’s role in Jamal Khashoggi’s killing. The Washington Post columnist died inside Istanbul’s Saudi consulate in 2018. Calls remain for the executive branch to release an intelligence report as well as for an independent criminal investigation and probe into the crown prince’s ordering of the extrajudicial killing.

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On June 1, 2020 the Coalition launched the 16th monthly "10 Most Urgent" list (ranked in order of urgency), calling attention to the most pressing cases of journalists under attack for pursuing the truth.

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1. Abdulkhaleq Amran, Akram al-Waleedi, Hareth Hameed and Tawfiq al-Mansouri (Yemen)

Yemeni journalists held five years and sentenced to death. After death sentencing in April, June 9 will mark 5 years in detention for Yemeni journalists Abdulkhaleq Amran, Akram al-Waleedi, Hareth Hameed and Tawfiq al-Mansouri. The Ansar Allah group, known as the Houthis, charged the four with spreading false news “in support of the crimes of Saudi aggression and its allies against the Republic of Yemen.” Their lawyer, who plans to appeal, has been allowed limited courtroom access. More than 150 organizations have called for the decision to be overturned.

2. Azimjon Askarov (Kyrgyzstan)

Life sentence upheld in case of journalist jailed 10 years in worsening health. Last month a Kyrgyz court heard the final appeal, and upheld the life sentence, in the case of award-winning journalist Azimjon Askarov. June 15 marks 10 years since the ethnic Uzbek was arrested on trumped-up charges that included incitement to ethnic hatred and complicity in the murder of a police officer. His wife, Khadicha Askarova, has written a letter to Kyrgyzstan’s president pleading for his release as his health deteriorates with limited access to medication. 

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Ibraimo Abu Mbaruco (Credit Juma Abu Mbaruco)

3. Ibraimo Abú Mbaruco (Mozambique)

Reporter missing for nearly two months. Ibraimo Abú Mbaruco, a reporter and news presenter for Palma Community Radio broadcaster, has not been heard from since April 7, when he left work in the northern Cabo Delgado province and texted a colleague saying he was “surrounded by soldiers.” Civil society organizations have sent a letter to Mozambican President Filipe Jacinto Nyusi expressing concern about the deteriorating human rights situation exemplified by Mbaruco’s apparent military-enforced disappearance.

4. Nariman Memedeminov (Russia)

Journalist punished for writing about human rights violations against indigenous Crimeans. In mid-May a Russian appeals court upheld charges against Nariman Memedeminov, a Ukrainian freelance journalist who was sentenced last October to 2.5 years in prison. He had already served 1.5 years in pre-trial detention between his arrest in Russian-controlled Crimea and conviction for making “public calls to terrorism” in his reporting. His defense team plans to file a complaint to the European Court of Human Rights.

5. Nouf Abdulaziz (Saudi Arabia)

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Wawa Jackson Nfor (Credit Derrick Bakah)

Writer imprisoned two years for writing on women’s rights. June 6 marks two years since Saudi blogger and postgraduate student Nouf Abdulaziz was arrested at her home, among a broad wave of activists silenced for their work relating to gender equality. Trial is pending for the public prosecutor to present several charges including “contact with foreign entities. Abdulaziz is being held in Riyadh’s al-Hair Prison, one of 26 journalists imprisoned in Saudi Arabia according to CPJ’s 2019 prison census, tying it with Egypt for the third-leading jailer of journalists.  

6. Wawa Jackson Nfor (Cameroon)

Court date set for journalist held in pretrial detention two years. Journalist Wawa Jackson Nfor faces arraignment before a new judge on June 8, after more than two years held in pretrial detention on accusations of publishing secessionist information. A guilty verdict could carry a maximum penalty of life imprisonment. National gendarmes in Nkambe, a city in Cameroon’s English-speaking Northwest region, arrested Nfor without a warrant in May 2018.

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Arphine Helisoa (Credit Nadia Raonimanalina)

7. Arphine Helisoa (Madagascar)

Trial threatens imprisonment and revocation of journalist’s rights. The director of Madagascar’s Ny Valosoa (The Reward) newspaper, Arphine Helisoa, faces trial for allegations of “incitement” and spreading “false news” regarding President Andry Rajoelina. Though she has been released since April 4 arrest, a conviction could carry up to five years in prison and possible prohibition of additional rights, including voting, for up to 10 years. Helisoa was previously detained in 2019 for “defamation” for a report alleging improper use of military equipment.

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Masrat Zahra (Courtesy of Masrat Zahra)

8. Masrat Zahra (India)

Police investigate, harass and intimidate photojournalist for images posted to Facebook. Masrat Zahra, a freelance photojournalist in Kashmir, could face a fine or up to seven years in prison under a law permitting India’s counterterrorism police to detain suspects for extended periods without a formal charge. Police summoned her for questioning in April, opening an investigation of photographs posted on social media “glorifying anti-national activities” without specifying which images were deemed “an offense against the state.”

9. Jamal Khashoggi (Saudi Arabia)

Calls persist for investigation into journalist’s high-profile, brazen murder. Democrats in the U.S. House of Representatives are reportedly working on new legislation to push the Trump administration to release secret findings on the full extent of Saudi Arabia’s role in Jamal Khashoggi’s death. In the time since the Washington Post columnist was killed inside Istanbul’s Saudi consulate in 2018, there has been no independent criminal investigation, and the U.S. executive branch ignored a mandated release of an intelligence report due January, 19 2020.  

10. Óscar Parra and the Rutas del Conflicto team (Colombia)

Government obtained personal information from dozens of national and international journalists. Media outlet Rutas del Conflicto, which is dedicated to documenting Colombia’s armed conflict, and its director, Óscar Parra, have been targeted by military intelligence officials in an extensive monitoring operation. The information collected from more than 130 individuals, including 30-plus journalists included personal information such as professional contacts, family and friends, according to a May 1 report from Colombian newsweekly Semana, titled “The Secret Files” (Las carpetas secretas).

On May 1, 2020 the Coalition launched the 15th monthly "10 Most Urgent" list (ranked in order of urgency), calling attention to the most pressing cases of journalists under attack for pursuing the truth.

At least half of the journalists on this month’s list are currently behind bars. The #FreeThePress campaign and World Press Freedom Day (Sunday, May 3) call for the immediate release of all jailed journalists. In light of the threat posed by coronavirus, their freedom is now a matter of life or death.

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1. Azimjon Askarov (Kyrgyzstan)

Jailed journalist in deteriorating health at high risk for contracting COVID-19. On May 11, a Kyrgyz court is scheduled to hear the final appeal in the case of Azimjon Askarov which has been drawn out during his nine years imprisoned, despite persistent international condemnation. The award-winning ethnic Uzbek journalist had been reporting on human rights when he was arrested on trumped-up charges that included incitement to ethnic hatred and complicity in the murder of a police officer. Askarov’s wife Khadicha recently wrote a letter to the Kyrgyzstan President pleading for the journalist’s release, saying he is “absolutely innocent” and suffers from painful bone and joint inflammation. 

2. Abdulkhaleq Amran, Akram al-Waleedi, Hareth Hameed and Tawfiq al-Mansouri (Yemen)

Yemeni journalists long held captive in prison now sentenced to death. On April 11, four Yemeni journalists—Abdulkhaleq Amran, Akram al-Waleedi, Hareth Hameed and Tawfiq al-Mansouri—were sentenced to death on charges of spreading false news. The individuals have been detained for nearly five years by the Ansar Allah group, known as the Houthis, at war with the internationally recognized government, a Saudi-led military coalition. The journalists’ lawyer says they were allowed no representation in the courtroom during sentencing, which was put off so long because Houthi leaders were trying to release them as part of an exchange deal with the Yemeni government.

3. Mahmoud al-Jaziri (Bahrain) 

Imprisoned reporter punished for telling media about inmates’ coronavirus fears. Mahmoud al-Jaziri was moved to solitary confinement on April 8 as retaliation for an audio clip that surfaced on dissident-run media channel Bahrain Today3 in which he disputed reports that Bahraini authorities had taken measures to protect prisoners from the spread of COVID-19. A reporter for the now-defunct independent newspaper Al-Wasat, the last of the country’s independent newspapers, Al-Jaziri has been imprisoned since December 2015 on a 15-year sentence on charges of belonging to a terrorist group.

4. Solafa Magdy (Egypt)

Prison conditions heighten COVID risk for journalist in deteriorating health. The overcrowding of Egyptian prisons—such as the one in Al-Qanater housing Solafa Magdy—and inhumane conditions threaten to turn detention places into clusters of disease. Magdy, a freelance multimedia journalist, and her husband have been jailed since November 2019 on charges of “membership of a banned group” and “spreading false news.” She has endured medical neglect and even declined treatment for fear of contracting an infection in the facility’s unhygienic hospital. In April, prison authorities prohibited Magdy’s mother from visiting and from contributing money and food for her.

5. Darvinson Rojas (Venezuela) 

Freelance journalist and parents arrested for his reporting on COVID-19. Venezuelan freelance journalist Darvinson Rojas spent 13 days detained after police agents showed up at his home claiming to be conducting a COVID-19 test. In reality, they broke in, violently arrested him and later interrogated him about sources of his reporting on COVID-19. According to local press freedom organization Espacio Publico, Rojas was secretly presented before a judge on March 22 and charged under the controversial “Anti-Hate Law” with incitement to hate and instigation. Rojas was denied the right to his private lawyer, instead represented by a court-appointed public defender.

6. Truong Duy Nhat (Vietnam) 

Authorities switch charges to sentence blogger to 10 years behind bars. Truong Duy Nhat, a blogger with Radio Free Asia’s Vietnamese language service funded by U.S. Congress, disappeared from a Bangkok shopping mall in January 2019 and two days later was in pretrial detention where he remained 15 months before sentencing March 9 to ten years in prison. After police initially charged him with illegally acquiring property but failed to procure enough evidence, a half-day trial brought him up on charges of “abusing his position and power while on duty” as a reporter. Previously he served two years in prison for blogging critical of the Communist Party.

7. Elena Milashina (Russia)

Journalist fears for her life, after leader rebuffs her coronavirus reporting. On April 12, independent newspaper Novaya Gazeta correspondent Elena Milashina wrote that quarantined Chechens had stopped reporting coronavirus symptoms for fear of being labeled “terrorists.” Republic leader Ramzan Kadyrov called that “nonsense” and blamed the Federal Security Service for not silencing her. She has sought protection from the Investigative Committee of Russia and the prosecutor general’s office but gotten no response and has told CPJ by phone that she is “really afraid, as Kadyrov’s threats are really serious.” Six journalists who cover Chechnya have been murdered in Russia since 1992.

8. Mir Shakil ur Rehman (Pakistan)

To silence criticism of pandemic preparedness, government targets broadcast outlet and its CEO. The CEO, owner and editor-in-chief of Jang Media Group, Mir Shakil-ur-Rehman, was arrested March 12 over a case involving allegations that he illegally acquired land in 1986. The next day, the Pakistan Electronic Media Regulatory Authority ordered cable distributors throughout the country to stop transmitting Geo TV, which is owned by Jang Media Group and is the nation’s largest TV news channel, or move its broadcasts to a higher, harder-to-find channel. Despite no charges filed, Shakil-ur-Rehman was denied bail on April 7. The channel has criticized the government’s coronavirus preparations.

9. Yayesew Shimelis (Ethiopia) 

Journalist charged with “hate speech and disinformation” for COVID coverage. On March 26 journalist Yayesew Shimelis published to Facebook and YouTube a report about the COVID-19 virus which Ethiopia’s Ministry of Health condemned as false. He told a friend he feared government retaliation—and the next day was arrested at a relative’s home. On three occasions April 15 to 21, police failed to respect court orders to release Yayesew, instead introducing new allegations against him. He was eventually released on bail until a May 15 hearing on charges of distributing disinformation, punishable with up to three years in prison or a fine of up to $3,000 under a recently-enacted law.  

10. Jamal Khashoggi (Saudi Arabia)

Pressure persists for Kingdom to release jailed journalists—and bring justice for brazen murder. Saudi Arabia imprisoned  26 journalists in 2019, according to CPJ tracking. And has yet to deliver justice in the 2018 killing of The Washington Post columnist Jamal Khashoggi. Findings from the U.S. and UN point to an “extrajudicial killing” involving the Saudi crown prince and demanding an independent criminal investigation. For its part, Turkey indicted 20 Saudi nationals on March 25 on charges of murder and incitement linked to Khashoggi’s murder.

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