Wednesday 8 July 2009

Iran now 'worst jailer of journalists'

With at least 30 journalists currently in prison, Iran replaces China as the world's worst jailer of journalists, the Committee to Protect Journalists has declared.
CPJ has called on the Iranian authorities to release all journalists who have been detained following the country's disputed June 12 presidential elections.
CPJ research shows that at least 24 detained in the aftermath of the elections remain in custody, in addition to at least six journalists who were in detention prior to the disputed elections. In the past few days three journalists have been freed, while at least three others have been arrested.
Of the 30 journalists currently behind bars, 13 work primarily for print publications, three work for online publications, two work for television stations, six are primarily bloggers, and an additional six are freelancers or with unknown affiliations.
"The Iranian authorities have orchestrated a campaign against journalists of all types since the June 12 presidential elections," said CPJ Middle East and North Africa program coordinator Mohamed Abdel Dayem. "Despite some isolated releases, the number of journalists behind bars is at an all time high. The authorities should immediately release all the detained journalists."

1 comment:

Anonymous said...

Hey, the US deliberately targetted and bombed TV stations in Serbia, killing several journalists, so the Iranians have something to aspire to.