State Control

On the 21st anniversary of the coup that brought Tunisian President Zine El Abidine Ben Ali to power, the Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ) has called on the longtime leader to end his government's repressive media tactics. Ben Ali, who seized power from Habib Bourguiba in a bloodless coup, has pursued some of the most restrictive press tactics in the Arab world, CPJ research shows. Through...

Moderate Iranian weekly Shahrvand Emrouz has been suspended at the behest of the country's Ministry of Culture and Islamic Guidance after publishing four issues in a row with portraits of politicians seen as potential presidential candidates, Reporters sans Frontières (RSF) has reported. In a separate development, an online journalist has been sentenced to six months in prison on a national...

Reporters sans Frontières (RSF) has condemned Sri Lankan government pressure that led to the debate programme “Ira Anduru Pata” being cut short as it was being broadcast live on the evening of November 4 on state TV station Rupavahini. It ended a discussion of a new broadcasting law by three guests, including Free Media Movement convenor Uvindu Kurukulasuriya. The presenter announced a break for...

Civil society groups have urged the Council of Europe not to ignore calls by its Parliamentary Assembly to send the draft Convention on Access to Official Documents back for redrafting so that it provides strong recognition of the right of access to information. The Parliamentary Assembly's opinion is due to be considered on November 12 by representatives of the 47 European governments that make...

Reporters sans Frontières (RSF) and the Burma Media Association have obtained a copy of a directive (attached file) which the military government’s censorship office recently sent to the Burmese media spelling out 10 rules for editors and the sanctions they will incur for not respecting them. "The directive is a paragon of news control inasmuch as editors are threatened with punishments ranging up...

Sudanese journalists have launched a mass hunger strike and three independent newspapers stopped work for three days in the country's biggest organised media protest against censorship. Over 150 journalists began a 24-hour hungerstrike and the Ajras al-Hurriya, Al-Maidan and Rayal al-Shab newspapers halted production, saying they could no longer accept government restrictions over editorial...

Morocco has banned an issue of French magazine L'Express International, claiming it insults Islam in articles exploring the relationship between that religion and Christianity. Algerian and Tunisian authorities followed suit three days after the October 31 Moroccan decision. Moroccan Information Minister Khalid Naciri said Sunday that he had no choice but to ban the current issue because of the...

Authorities in Azerbaijan have decided to halt local broadcasts by foreign stations by the end of the year. The chairman of Azerbaijan's National Television and Radio Council, Nushiravan Meherremli, told independent news agency Turan that his country is not interested in granting local frequencies to foreign broadcasters. The policy change will affect the the British Broadcasting Corporation, and...

The Zimbabwean government had asked officials to spy on the emails of editors employed by the state-owned Zimpapers group from August 3-15 this year to gauge their loyal to President Robert Mugabe, Reporters sans Frontières (RSF) has reported. “As a result of this illegal decision, editor Bhekinkosi Ncube of the magazine Umthunywa has been suspended for nearly two months and could lose his job...

Reporters sans Frontières (RSF) and the Burma Media Association (BMA) have welcomed the release of Saw Myint Than, the former chief correspondent of Flower News Journal, a privately-owned magazine. He was held for seven weeks without being tried and without having any chance to defend himself. “We are relieved by Saw Myint Than’s release, just a few weeks after the release of U Win Tin, Burma’s...