Freedom Forum recorded a total of 96 press freedom violations during 2020. Although the number of violations declined slightly compared to the previous year (111 in 2019), the country still awaits an improvement in the press freedom atmosphere.

In 2020 Pakistani media was confronted with unique new challenges, both in terms of content to cover as well as in the nature of the measures restricting press freedom and the free flow of information in the country.

Six months ago, the Court of Justice of the EU condemned Hungary for the violation of EU law and the EU Charter of Fundamental Rights on grounds of its restrictive legislation on the financing of NGOs. To date, no steps have been taken by Hungary to comply with the judgment.

The mission was organised in the wake of the Covid-19 pandemic, the sharp rise in targeting of media by regulators, increased physical attacks on journalists and a new restrictive law on social media with the potential to impose further limitations on the remaining spaces for independent reporting and public commentary.

On the occasion of the International Day for the Elimination of Violence against Women, celebrated on 25 November, BCHR issued this report which seeks to address the deterioration of the human rights situation in Bahrain, particularly concerning women.

The protesters’ complaints about the government’s anti-democratic nature have been underscored by the authorities’ response to the protests. The government has harassed and obstructed protest organisers at every turn. At least 173 individuals have been charged because of their role in protests this year.

The coronavirus pandemic is accelerating a dramatic decline in global internet freedom. For the 10th consecutive year, users have experienced an overall deterioration in their rights, and the phenomenon is contributing to a broader crisis for democracy worldwide.

The COVID-19 pandemic has fueled a crisis for democracy around the world. Since the coronavirus outbreak began, the condition of democracy and human rights has grown worse in 80 countries.

Media networks have faced closing operations, job losses, and a weakened watchdog role for independent media. This report details the adverse impact of COVID-19 on the state of media in Nepal.

This report details the critical challenges faced by Malaysian journalists and media workers this year.

The aim of this report is to present a series of abuses identified by our organisation during the state of emergency during the COVID-19 crisis. We have identified and exposed in this period actions of state actors that have threatened, affected or directly attacked fundamental rights such as the right to freedom of expression, the right to information and, implicitly, media freedom.

From 1 April 2019 to 31 March 2020, the monitoring report showed that the space to exercise fundamental freedoms continues to be restricted in Cambodia.

Press freedom has clearly become a key issue for Australians. MEAA’s third annual press freedom survey has found that when asked if press freedom in Australia had got better or worse over the past decade, an overwhelming 98% of respondents said it had got worse, compared to 90.9% in 2019.

As individuals have mobilized, state legislatures across the country have begun introducing bills meant to suppress, restrict, or criminalize the right to protest at an ever-increasing rate.

Writers and intellectuals are often among the canaries in the coal mine who, alongside journalists and human rights activists, are first targeted when a country takes a more authoritarian turn.

In responding to the COVID-19 outbreak, many governments have taken measures that limit access to information held by public bodies relating to the pandemic and other crucial areas of public interest.

The October 17 uprising in Lebanon – fueled by rampant corruption and the country’s worst economic crisis since the end of the civil war in 1990 – has sparked a newfound collective consciousness  where the rights and identities of marginalized groups are part and parcel of the protests.

Given the emergence and spread of COVID-19, it is all the more critical that we have access to news and information that we trust and can help in understanding the crisis and what is required to protect ourselves, as well as independent information on how our government is responding to the pandemic.

A s the novel coronavirus made a deadly sweep across the globe from the beginning of 2020, governments in South Asia tightened their iron grip over the media and democratic institutions.

Since the release of ANHRI’s first report in 2004 tackling the Internet and Arab governments, which is published every two years, the fight is still going on. The issue has not been resolved for either of the conflicting parties: whether the governments with their various institutions or the Arab peoples who are using the Internet and seek change in the world.

A study on the conditions of prisons in Bahrain from 2011 to 2020, and it includes a commentary on the violated rights of prisoners, the most dangerous of which is the denial of treatment.

The launch of the European Rule of Law Mechanism in July 2019 marks the renewed opportunity for 1 the European Union (EU) to uphold democracy and overcome the limits of the Article 7 procedure.

The Committee to Protect Journalists submitted a call to several U.N. special mandate holders encouraging them to join CPJ’s effort to secure the release of all jailed journalists globally in the face of the coronavirus pandemic.

This document provides an overview of human rights concerns posed by the coronavirus outbreak, drawing on examples of government responses to date, and recommends ways governments and other actors can respect human rights in their response.

Freedom of expression has been one of the casualties of the epidemic, as some governments have used censorship, arrests and the application of repressive laws to address these challenges and control public narratives about the crisis.

This briefing paper sets forth recommendations for countering ‘hate speech’ in Myanmar, with a focus on draft legislation currently being considered by the Myanmar government.

A brief reading of human rights trends in the Arab region.

Online media at receiving end; press freedom violation highest in seven years according to the 2019 report of Freedom Forum

IMPUNITY, JOURNALIST SAFETY AND WORKING CONDITIONS IN SOUTH EAST ASIA

JOINT INTERNATIONAL PRESS FREEDOM MISSION TO TURKEY (SEPTEMBER 11–13, 2019)

The annual report of the Hong Kong Journalists Association documents events in the past 12 months related to freedom of expression and the press in the city.

A report documenting human rights violations committed by the regime in 2018.

Once a year the PEN International produces a case list (covering the previous year) of individuals around the world who are detained or otherwise persecuted for their peaceful political activities or for the practice of their profession.

There are concerns about how the secret warrant system is run. The flaws in administration give no comfort to journalists who remain fearful that the warrants are being used to identify their confidential sources.

In his inauguration speech on 24 November 2017 following Mugabe’s ouster, President Mnangagwa, said he would strengthen and ensure the pillars of democracy are respected in Zimbabwe. This raised hope that he would move with speed and implement outstanding socio-economic and political reforms ahead of the 2018 elections. It is common cause that the elections came without implementation of the envisaged reforms.

The MISA Annual report for 2018 focuses on the lobby and advocacy work MISA carried out on critical issues throughout 2018.

Annual Report 2019 by the Partner Organisations to the Council of Europe Platform to Promote the Protection of Journalism and Safety of Journalists

Given the unprecedented number of journalists in prison in Turkey at the moment and the increas- ing number of freedom of expression trials, trial monitoring has become an important activity for Turkish civil society over the past few years.

In its report, the Center examines Bahrain’s laws and legislation restricting the freedom of press work and shows the extent of its non-conformity with the international treaties, covenants and agreements. The report also documents violations of media workers since the popular protests beginning in 2011.

The level of internet freedom declined due to the new cybersecurity law which strengthened repressive restrictions on online activities.

Laws passed since Vladimir Putin’s return to the presidency in May 2012 have dramatically strengthened the Russian authorities’ control over the flow of information online and offline. Much of this crackdown has been fuelled by Russia’s foreign policy, in particular its role in the conflict in neighbouring Ukraine and its armed intervention in Syria.

The report is based on the study of Bahraini laws and legislation related to the prosecution of civilians in military courts and shows the compatibility of Bahraini laws with the International Bill and international laws.

Civil society leaders in Egypt are urging the U.S. government to continue to condition and withhold military aid to Egypt until the Egyptian government makes meaningful reforms to its human rights practices.

Journalists say they will be wary until Moreno fulfills his promises to scale back the Communications Law and scrap the regulator that enforced it.

BCHR analyses how the Bahraini judiciary uses the language of ‘anti-terrorism’ law to justify suppressing dissent. They also do a comparative study of the relevant local and international anti-terror legislation, and the extent to which Bahrain is in line with international law, international conventions and human rights treaties.

In Egypt you can be detained, interrogated and tried in the same place without leaving or seeing a court.

Reporters Without Borders (RSF) accuses the Eritrean government of a complete denial of reality in its first-ever report to the African Commission on Human and Peoples’ Rights and announces that it has submitted an alternative “shadow report” with a much darker assessment of the state of press freedom in Eritrea.

The general trend over the past 10 years has been bleak, with an overall negative trajectory for press freedom. The major turning point was the election of Xi Jinping as General Secretary of the Communist Party of China in 2012 and President of China in 2013.

In 2014, Cameroon enacted a broad anti-terror law as part of its effort to counter the extremist group Boko Haram, but authorities are using it to arrest and threaten local journalists who report on the militants or unrest in the country’s English-speaking regions.

MFWA has identified lack of effective internet-specific legal frameworks, inadequate infrastructure and high cost of data as major challenges in the internet sector in West Africa.

Globe International registered a total of 519 freedom of expression violations in Mongolia

According to Freedom Forum, anti-press incidents have declined in Nepal since April 2017 but the policy environment is still regressive.

Since 2013, law enforcement authorities in Bangladesh have illegally detained scores of opposition activists and held them in secret without producing them before courts, as the law requires. In most cases, those arrested remain in custody for weeks or months before being formally arrested or released. Others however are killed in so-called armed exchanges, and many remain “disappeared.”

This study examines the existence of criminal defamation and insult laws in the territory of the 57 participating States of the Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe (OSCE). In doing so, it offers a broad, comparative overview of the compliance of OSCE participating States’ legislation with international standards and best practices in the field of defamation law and freedom of expression.

READ AND DOWNLOADThis study analyses current trends in civil defamation and privacy cases in Hungary involving the media and summarises key challenges for freedom of the press and expression. Written by Hungarian media lawyer Bea Bodrogi, the study examined 250 court decisions related to civil protection of ‘personality rights’, an area in Hungarian law that includes defamation, privacy and personal image.

In this report, Americans for Democracy & Human Rights in Bahrain (ADHRB) examines the contributions of ACPRA within the larger context of the movement for civil and political reform in Saudi Arabia.

With populist and nationalist forces making significant gains in democratic states, 2016 marked the 11th consecutive year of decline in global freedom.

Freedom Forum has issued a review of Nepal’s National Mass Communications Policy 2016. Among others, FF says the policy fails to articulate constitutional provisions relating to freedom of expression and mass communication. The policy, they said, also seems to promote centralided regulation, instead of self-regulation.

The Communist Party of Vietnam (CPV) in 2016 maintained its control over all public affairs and punished those who challenged its monopoly on power. Authorities restricted basic rights, including freedom of speech, opinion, association, and assembly. All religious groups had to register with the government and operate under surveillance. Bloggers and activists faced daily police harassment and intimidation, and were subject to arbitrary house arrest, restricted movement, and physical assaults.

Malaysia’s human rights situation continued to deteriorate in 2016, with human rights defenders, activists, political opposition figures, and journalists facing harassment and politically motivated prosecution. Those criticising the administration of Prime Minister Najib Razak or commenting on the government’s handling of the 1 Malaysia Development Berhad (1MDB) corruption scandal have been particular targets.

Authorities continue to use sedition and criminal defamation laws to prosecute citizens who criticise government officials or oppose state policies. In a blow to free speech, the government in 2016 argued before the Supreme Court in favour of retaining criminal penalties for defamation. The court upheld the law.

Four senior staff members of the Cambodian Human Rights have been detained in Phnom Penh since April 2016. 

After already cracking down on freedom of information in recent years, President Erdoğan has taken advantage of the abortive coup d’état and the state of emergency in effect since 20 July to silence many more of his media critics, not only Gülen movement media and journalists but also, to a lesser extent, Kurdish, secularist and left-wing media.

This publication presents the findings of the media development assessment in Mongolia that began in 2012 to determine the state of the media in the country. The assessment was based on the UNESCO/IPDC Media Development Indicators (MDIs), an internationally recognized analytical tool used to provide detailed overviews of national media landscapes and related media development priorities.

“After the initial optimism during the Euromaidan movement, many journalists have become disillusioned. They are faced with the triple challenge of the war in the Eastern part of the country, the economic crisis and the digitalization of mass media.”

An officer of the Myanmar army recently filed a criminal complaint against two journalists for allegedly sowing disunity among the military. Even though mediation by the Press Council caused the military to withdraw the case, this incident demonstrates how the military continues to throw its weight to get back at what it perceives as negative publicity.

The government uses draconian laws such as the sedition provisions of the penal code, the criminal defamation law, and laws dealing with hate speech to silence dissent. These laws are vaguely worded, overly broad, and prone to misuse, and have been repeatedly used for political purposes against critics at the national and state level.

Comparative Study of Criminal Defamation Laws in the Americas

Media under the chilling effect of political unrest

In recent years, the space afforded to civil society to operate freely has been shrinking dramatically across the world, presenting a serious threat to democracy and human rights. Eastern Europe and Central Asia (EECA) have been especially badly affected by this shrinking political space.

The report is a frank assessment of the recent regime of online censorship and mass surveillance against a backdrop of longstanding, serious abuses of the judicial process and attacks on freedom of expression by Turkish authorities.

The report surveys the rocky landscape for media and public discourse since the ruling military junta lifted the curtain on the southeast Asian nation in 2012 after five decades of isolation from the modern world.

With the environment now recognized as a major challenge for humankind, Reporters Without Borders believes that particular attention should be paid to the journalists who take greats risk to investigate sensitive, environment-related subjects. The report highlights a steady deterioration in the situation for environmental reporters, who are increasingly exposed to many kinds of pressure, threats and violence.

The EU has made press freedom imperative in negotiating with candidate countries, but has been accused of failing to take strong action when member states renege on their press freedom commitments.

A Climate of Fear for LGBT People in Kazakhstan

The Pakistani government has significantly expanded its communication interception activities. This Privacy International report covers the intelligence services plan to capture all IP-traffic in Pakistan and other initiatives, pointing to gaps in the laws governing surveillance.

This report scrutinizes legislation covering freedom of expression and religious freedom in the Balkans, and whether satire and blasphemy are in any way regulated in these countries.

The need to regulate the transfer of surveillance technologies that pose a risk to human rights has been largely recognised by EU institutions and some EU member states. It is no longer a question of if the EU should do more in this area, but how.

In this report, ARTICLE 19 seeks to outline the implications of anonymity and encryption for the right to freedom of expression in the digital age.

Defamation and insult remain criminal offences in Portugal punishable by up to two years behind bars despite the fact that a number of international human rights bodies have found criminal defamation to be a disproportionate restriction on freedom of expression.

Despite its Constitutional commitment to free speech, India’s legal system makes it surprisingly easy to silence others. Routine corruption, inefficiency, and the selective enforcement of vague and overbroad laws allow individuals, or small groups, to censor opinions they find distasteful. – See more at: http://www.pen-international.org/the-india-report-executive-summary-and-key-findings/#sthash.TIIM2xbu.dpuf

Press freedom in the Philippines continued to be under attack from 2014 to 2015. The killing of journalists is continuing, with four journalists killed from May 2014 to May 2015. The trial of the accused masterminds of the Ampatuan (Maguindanao) Massacre and their supposed henchmen is continuing, but with a primary accused was released, while a witness in the same case was killed.

The year 2014 saw Malaysians standing up to exercise the rights guaranteed under the Federal Constitution, including freedom of expression and freedom of assembly. This continues a growing trend of facing up to state oppression. Unfortunately, this has been met with increasing repression. Malaysia has seen a concerted crackdown on the freedom of expression in the year 2014, which has escalated even further in 2015.

As Globe International Center (GIC) reported, from 2012-2014, violations against journalists and the media increased compared to previous years and journalists faced external threats and intervention in their professional work, different types of pressures, threats, censorship in distribution, demands to reveal their information sources, to question and give testimony in mass by law enforcement bodies, especially by the General Intelligence Agency, use of criminal defamation law by politicians and public bodies or public officials censoring the media.

Discarding Democracy: Return to the Iron Fist

Cambodian Internet users overwhelmingly see the country’s Internet as increasingly becoming more accommodating of free expression but remain concerned about the effects of recently proposed government actions related to Internet surveillance and controls, according to the results of a study by CCIM, which surveyed almost 1,000 Cambodian Internet users from 22 provinces.

Despite protecting human rights defenders (“HRDs”) falling under the protection of legally binding international instruments, such as the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (“ICCPR”), many HRDs in the Kingdom of Cambodia (“Cambodia”) remain at high risk of a plethora of threats including arbitrary arrest and detention, physical violence and murder, and threats and intimidation and harassment.

While media freedom in Spain remains robust and certainly comparable to its European neighbours, at such a critical moment for the Spanish public there is a need to ensure maximum access to the free flow of information.

Legal regulation in the field of freedom of expression became more stringent as a result of abrupt introduction of amendments to the already undemocratic law ‘On Mass Media’ in December 2014.

The goal of this report is to provide African governments, civil society, researchers and other stakeholders with a tool that will guide and support the development and advancement of the right to information in Africa.

This report was submitted by Globe International for the second cycle of Mongolia’s UPR (Universal Periodic Review)

Internet intermediaries – such as internet service providers, search engines and social media platforms – play a crucial role in enabling people around the world to communicate with each other. Because of their technical capabilities, internet intermediaries are under increasing pressure from governments and interest groups to police online content.

Global press freedom has fallen to its lowest level in over a decade, according to the latest edition of Freedom House’s press freedom survey. The decline was driven in part by major regression in several Middle Eastern states, including Egypt, Libya, and Jordan; marked setbacks in Turkey, Ukraine, and a number of countries in East Africa; and deterioration in the relatively open media environment of the United States.

Report of the Special Rapporteur on the promotion and protection of the right to freedom of opinion and expression, Frank La Rue

This Outcome Report summarizes the issues raised and the recommendations of participants during the Workshop for Youth on Electoral Reform held on 20-21 June 2014 in Phnom Penh, Cambodia

This legal analysis examines the compliance of the 2014 News Media Law of Myanmar with international standards on freedom of expression and media freedom.

CCHR has released a Briefing Note on freedom of information and legislative transparency in Cambodia, where laws are almost always drafted in secrecy, without the inclusion of relevant stakeholders.

The year under review has been the darkest for press freedom for several decades, with the media coming under relentless assault from several directions. There have been attacks on journalists, sackings and personnel changes affecting critical personalities and the withdrawal of advertising, which places pressure on the editorial integrity of publications.

International human rights law provides a clear and universal framework for the promotion and protection of the right to privacy, including in the context of domestic and extraterritorial surveillance, the interception of digital communications and the collection of personal data. Practices in many States have, however, revealed a lack of adequate national legislation and/or enforcement, weak procedural safeguards, and ineffective oversight, all of which have contributed to a lack of accountability for arbitrary or unlawful interference in the right to privacy.

Persistent failures of the Bahraini justice system since the BICI report

Which companies stand with their users, embracing transparency around government data requests? Which companies have resisted improper government demands by fighting for user privacy in the courts and on Capitol Hill? In short, which companies have your back?

There has been some improvement in the state of press freedom, reports Freedom Forum. At the same, the State’s strict vigilance of new media is disappointing

The report is the first created by the South Asia Media Solidarity Network (SAMSN) looking specifically at the experience of women journalists in the South Asia sub-region

By their very nature, libraries are poised to become forces for social change and using this exhibit as an example, libraries themselves can show the life of their communities by putting their responses on display to support their involvement in social movements, engage others, and document for the future

Privacy International’s report identifies recent accomplishments from around the world, and highlights significant challenges ahead for this right

This Briefing Note addresses the increasing practice of forcing human rights defenders, protesters and everyday citizens to sign written statements agreeing to not partake in future demonstrations or illegal activities, as a condition of their release or to avoid charges

IFJ’s report documents the continued deterioration of press freedoms in Mainland China, as well as Hong Kong and Macau. It takes its title in direct response to Chinese authorities adopting more repressive measures in 2013 reminiscent of the Mao era four decades ago, including direct censorship, Internet surveillance, abuse of legal process, harassment and intimidation, and televised confessions of journalists and bloggers without trial.

An update on the Ampatuan Massacre trial by CMFR Executive Director Melinda Quintos de Jesus

The Balkan Media Barometer is an analytical exercise to measure the media situation in a given country which at the same time serves as a practical lobbying tool for media reform. The BMB consists of a set of 45 indicators derived from European standards referenced in European Union and Council of Europe documents.

A new bill provides for the immediate blocking of websites with content regarded by the prosecutor’s office as extremist. Inciting hatred or terrorist acts are already grounds for blocking. Now, urging people to participate in unauthorized protests would also be viewed as “extremist.”

Charges against dozens of protesters in connection with the protest on the eve of President Vladimir Putin’s 2012 inauguration are “inappropriate” and “disproportionate,” according to a panel of independent experts. Twenty seven people are facing “mass rioting” charges in connection with the protest on May 6, 2012.

This publication provides an overview of the main international standards relevant to the protection of the right to freedom of expression in relation to Information Communication Technologies. It identifies international and regional standards for the protection of key areas of concern, including content regulation, the rights of citizen journalists and bloggers, and access to information

This publication is a component of the National Endowment for Democracy, (NED) funded project that has unearthed a dismal level of denial to disclose information in Ministries, Departments and Agencies of Government in Liberia.

This joint submission by ARTICLE 19, IPA, SEAPA, PEN International and others focuses on Cambodia’s compliance with its international human rights obligations in respect to freedom of expression

ARTICLE 19, Access, English PEN and PEN International welcome the opportunity to contribute to the second cycle of the UPR process of Viet Nam.

The media landscape in Burma is more open than ever, as President Thein Sein releases imprisoned journalists and abolishes the former censorship regime. But many threats and obstacles to truly unfettered reporting remain, including restrictive laws held over from the previous military regime. The wider government’s commitment to a more open reporting environment is in doubt.

ARTICLE 19 calls on the State Duma of the Russian Federation to reject the concept of defamation of religions proposed in the Draft Law.

Check out this interactive timeline to learn about the case of Enoh Meyomesse, a Cameroonian poet, writer, and politician and Honorary Member of PEN American Center.

In 2012, journalists and rights organisations worldwide called on the Turkish government to release journalists and abolish the Anti-Terror Law.

Mission to UAE investigates crackdown on free expression in which 64 activists have been detained