Asia

New York, April 8, 2024 – The Committee to Protect Journalists is alarmed by reports that the Taliban plans to restrict or block access to Facebook in Afghanistan and calls on authorities not to move ahead on a measure that would further impede the free flow of information in the country. On April 6, Najibullah Haqqani, the Taliban’s acting…

New York, April 4, 2024—Pakistani authorities must promptly investigate Wednesday’s shooting of exiled Afghan journalist Ahmad Hanayesh by two gunmen on a motorcycle and bring the assailants to justice, the Committee to Protect Journalists said Thursday. Hanayesh, also known by his birth name Abdul Aleem Saqib, was returning home on the evening of April 3…

Award-winning Myanmar documentary filmmaker Shin Daewe is serving a life sentence on charges of illegal possession of an unregistered drone, a criminal offense under the country’s Anti-Terrorism Law, according to news reports. Shin Daewe was arrested on October 15, 2023, while picking up a video drone she had ordered online to use for filming a documentary, according…

New York, March 29, 2024—Sri Lankan authorities must immediately drop their investigations into journalists G.P. Nissanka and Bimal Ruhunage and allow them to report without fear of reprisal, the Committee to Protect Journalists said Friday. On the evening of March 5, officers with the Sri Lanka police service’s Criminal Investigation Department arrested G.P. Nissanka, owner…

Police blocked and harassed reporters from the state-owned broadcaster CCTV at the site of a fatal gas explosion in Sanhe, a city in China’s northern Hebei province, on March 13, 2024, according to news reports. The explosion was triggered by a gas leak at a restaurant, which killed seven and injured 27. During a live…

New York, March 22, 2024— Pakistani authorities must thoroughly investigate the killing of journalist Jam Saghir Ahmed Lar and ensure that his murderers are brought to justice, the Committee to Protect Journalists said Friday. On March 14, Lar, a correspondent for the Daily Khabrain newspaper and contributor to local news outlets in the city of…

New York, March 22, 2024—As a new national security law goes into effect in Hong Kong on Saturday, CPJ was among 145 groups across the globe that denounced the legislation, which could deepen a crackdown on human rights and further suppress media freedom in the city. Enacted under Article 23 of Hong Kong’s mini-constitution, the…

New York, March 20, 2024—Bangladesh authorities must immediately drop all charges against journalist Md Shofiuzzaman Rana and investigate the harassment of five journalists in northern Lalmonirhat district, the Committee to Protect Journalists said Wednesday. Rana was held in jail for a week after police arrested the journalist on March 5. Rana, who works for the…

New York, March 19, 2024—Nepali authorities must swiftly and impartially investigate the attack on journalist Padam Prasad Pokhrel and hold the perpetrators to account, the Committee to Protect Journalists said Tuesday. On the evening of February 28, up to 15 police officers attacked Pokhrel, editor-in-chief of the news website Pranmancha, while the journalist was filming…

Taipei, March 19, 2024—The Committee to Protect Journalists condemns the Hong Kong legislature’s hasty passing of a national security law on Tuesday which could lead to the suppression of press freedom and prosecution of journalists. The city’s lawmakers unanimously passed the Safeguarding National Security Bill, enacted under Article 23 of the Basic Law, the city’s…