Iranian Journalist Arash Shoa-Shargh Tops February Ranking Of One Free Press Coalition’s “10 Most Urgent” Press Freedom Cases
NEW YORK – February 3, 2020 – The One Free Press Coalition, a united group of pre-eminent editors and publishers using their global reach and social platforms to spotlight journalists under attack worldwide, today issued its latest “10 Most Urgent” list of journalists whose press freedoms are being suppressed or whose cases are seeking justice. Iranian Journalist Arash Shoa-Shargh tops the February list, as he continues his 10-year prison sentence following extradition from Turkey on multiple charges including insulting the Supreme Leader. As of late 2019, Shoa-Shargh was detained in Lakan prison, in the northern Iranian city of Rasht, but the isolated location and reluctance from authorities to provide updates has left his current status largely unknown.
Notably, The Washington Post journalist Jamal Khashoggi has been featured on the list for nine consecutive months following his brutal murder within the Saudi Arabian consulate in Istanbul, which many have reported was at the direction of the Saudi crown prince himself.
Published this morning by all Coalition members and at www.onefreepresscoalition.com, the 12th “10 Most Urgent” list includes the following journalists, ranked in order of urgency:
1. Arash Shoa-Shargh (Iran)
While living in exile in Turkey, Arash Shoa-Shargh, a reporter for anti-government news channel Amad News, was arrested and sentenced in 2018 to 10 years on charges of “insulting the Supreme Leader,” “acting against national security,” “encouraging the public to misconduct” and “spreading corruption on the land of God.” Friends and family have reportedly been pressured by authorities not to publicize the case.
2. Aleksandr Valov (Russia)
The Editor-in-Chief and founder of local news site BlogSochi, Aleksandr Valov, was arrested in January 2018 and sentenced to six years on trumped-up extortion charges. Valov captured and narrated a video livestream of his arrest as police broke his door, cut off the electricity and beat him, and was placed in solitary confinement last month due to anticipated retaliation and disagreement with the court’s verdict.
3. Samuel Wazizi (Cameroon)
Whereabouts of Cameroonian journalist Samuel Wazizi (whose legal name is Samuel Ajiekah Abuwe) are unknown since he was transferred from police to military custody in August. He has been denied access to his lawyers, family and friends, and held on undisclosed charges which police say are related to the country’s Anglophone armed conflict.
4. Azory Gwanda (Tanzania)
While investigating mysterious killings in rural Tanzania, freelance journalist Azory Gwanda went missing on November 21, 2017, and was reported to have “disappeared and died” by Foreign Minister Palamagamba Kabudi in July. However, the official backtracked amid requests for clarification, and the government has failed to conduct an investigation or disclose information.
5. Azimjon Askarov (Kyrgyzstan)
In July 2019, a Kyrgyz court upheld the life sentence of award-winning journalist Azimjon Askarov, despite persistent international condemnation. The ethnic Uzbek is the only journalist imprisoned in the country and has been held nine years on trumped-up charges for reporting on human rights violations. Letters home detail his deteriorating health, limited access to medication and prison officials punishing detainees after visiting days.
Prison guards have denied medical treatment for reporter Lu Yuyu, diagnosed with severe depression during his four-year prison sentence commenced August 2017. He and his partner were arrested in Dali, Yunnan province on suspicion of “picking quarrels and provoking trouble” for publishing photos, videos and text on topics including corruption protests and environmental pollution. The court maintained its decision in 2017, and Lu is currently lodging a second appeal.
7. Luz Escobar (Cuba)
Since November, Cuban authorities have repeatedly barred Luz Escobar from leaving her Havana home. The reporter for the independent Cuban news website 14yMedio says authorities often prevent independent journalists from working on “significant dates” either by detaining them or threatening detention if they exit their homes. A security agent was stationed outside Escobar’s door multiple times last year, including on the anniversary of Fidel Castro’s death and international Human Rights Day.
8. Jamal Khashoggi (Saudi Arabia)
Last December, Saudi Arabia sentenced eight individuals in connection with the 2018 brazen killing of Washington Post columnist Jamal Khashoggi. What the Kingdom may have considered resolution and closure for the high-profile case, CPJ called a “sham trial” and “mockery of justice. Calls remain for the U.S. and UN to conduct an independent criminal investigation and probe the Saudi crown prince’s role in the “extrajudicial killing.”
9. Patricia Kayuni (Malawi)
Protestors beat and attempted to tear clothing off Tuntufye FM reporter Patricia Kayuni on January 10 while she covered a demonstration in Chitipa, in northern Malawi. No arrests have been made against attackers who believed Kayuni was a police officer sent to photograph demonstrators. The same week, authorities in Malawi detained and charged three journalists seeking to cover the EU delegation’s return.
10. Solafa Magdy, Hossam El-Sayyad and Mohamed Salah (Egypt)
In November of last year, plainclothes Egyptian security forces arrested freelance journalists Solafa Magdy and her husband Hossam El-Sayyad at a cafe in the Dokki area of Giza, as well as freelancer and blogger Mohamed Salah. The officers confiscated their mobile phones and car keys and beat Magdy for refusing to unlock her phone. A state security prosecutor delivered charges of membership in a banned group and disseminating false news. Magdy is experiencing health issues in pre-trial detention, ahead of a February 4 hearing.
The One Free Press Coalition is comprised of 37 prominent international members including: Al Jazeera Media Network, AméricaEconomía; The Associated Press; Bloomberg News; The Boston Globe; BuzzFeed; CNN Money Switzerland; Corriere Della Sera; De Standaard; Deutsche Welle; Estadão; EURACTIV; The Financial Times; Forbes; Fortune; HuffPost; India Today; Insider Inc.; Le Temps; Middle East Broadcasting Networks; NHK; Office of Cuba Broadcasting; Quartz; Radio Free Asia; Radio Free Europe and Radio Liberty; Republik; Reuters; The Straits Times; Süddeutsche Zeitung; TIME; TV Azteca; Voice of America; The Washington Post; WIRED; and Yahoo News.
One Free Press Coalition partners with the Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ) and the International Women’s Media Foundation (IWMF) to identify the most-urgent cases for the list, which is updated and published on the first business day of every month.
The mission of the Coalition is to use the collective voices of its members – which reach more than 1 billion people worldwide – to “stand up for journalists under attack for pursuing the truth.” News organizations throughout the world can join the Coalition by emailing info@onefreepresscoalition.com. Members of the public are also encouraged to join the conversation using the hashtag #OneFreePress and following developments on Twitter @OneFreePress.
One Free Press Coalition
The One Free Press Coalition every month spotlights the “10 Most Urgent” journalists who press freedoms are under threat worldwide. The Coalition uses the collective voices of participating news organizations to spotlight brave journalists whose voices are being silenced or have been silenced by “standing up for journalists under attack for pursing the truth.” To see the “10 Most Urgent” list every month and to view a complete list of participating news organizations and supporting partners, please visit onefreepresscoalition.com or @OneFreePress on Twitter.
Contacts:
One Free Press Coalition PR: pr@onefreepresscoalition.com
Committee to Protect Journalists: Bebe Santa-Wood, press@cpj.com
International Women’s Media Foundation: Charlotte Fox, cfox@iwmf.org