Europe & Central Asia

The final quarter of 2024 saw an increase in the criminal prosecution of journalists at home and in absentia, more searches of journalists’ homes and offices, and broader censorship. 

In September – October of 2024 the IMI recorded 27 crimes against the media and journalists committed by Russia: murder, threats, opening fire on journalists and shelling media offices, cyber attacks, and legal pressure.

This report shows the urgent need to focus on the economic reconstruction of the sector and estimates that $96 million is needed over three years to ensure the future of independent media outlets.

Azerbaijan is carrying out a vicious attack on government critics, independent groups, and media. The crackdown has intensified just months before Azerbaijan is to host COP29, the United Nations Climate Change Conference, which opens in Baku on 11 November 2024.

The report explores in detail the 756 media freedom violations recorded by the MFRR partners in the first half of 2024. These violations affected 1,212 media-related persons or entities. 474 of these alerts were recorded in EU Member States while 282 took place in candidate countries.

“The Russian government’s dismantling of civic freedoms since its full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February 2022 is a dramatic escalation of its sustained assault on fundamental rights spanning more than a decade” – HRW

7amleh reveals how the EU legislation contains significant loopholes that could exacerbate human rights violations against Palestinians.

In the first quarter of 2024, at least 210 journalists and media workers stood trial in 123 court cases. Nineteen journalists were sentenced in 16 of the 37 cases that concluded during the reporting period, while at least 10 new cases were filed against journalists.

Politically Motivated Crackdown on Human Rights Lawyers in Belarus

A new study examines discrimination and censorship concerns within the EU, affecting both Palestinians and global advocates for Palestinian human rights.

The report raises concerns about the use of spyware, SLAPPs and journalists in exile.

The Hungarian government’s interference with media freedom and pluralism, part of its systematic attack on the rule of law, obstructs the work of independent journalists in holding the authorities to account and prevents the public from accessing information.

This report examines media capture in Greece through the four indicators of media capture: capture of private media, capture of public media, capture of the system of funding media and capture of media regulators.

Joint press freedom mission to Greece concludes with a call on the government to show political courage and take specific measures to improve the climate for independent journalism.

Survey finds that 90% of fact-checking outlets in Europe have been the target of online harassment and smear campaigns.

The European Union is facing numerous challenges as it seeks new ways to uphold its commitment to press freedom. This special report examines the EU’s response to threats such as murders of journalists, pandemic-related media controls, spyware, and the war in Ukraine.

The report reveals a continued degradation of press freedom across the continent. Throughout 2022, the Platform documented 289 alerts concerning 37 countries, with journalists being murdered, imprisoned, physically attacked, legally harassed, and subjected to smear campaigns.

140 media freedom violations were recorded in Ukraine alone, which amount to 17.2% of the total registered in all analysed countries. The war in Ukraine also accounted for nine of the 10 killings of journalists during the year.

BAJ’s review of 2022 highlights 33 journalists in prison, 17 heavy prison sentences, and nine media outlets classified as “extremist organisations”.

Widespread destruction of Ukraine’s museums, theaters and libraries, the persecution of writers and artists, and other attacks against Ukrainian heritage expose the breadth of Russia’s attempts to erase the country’s cultural identity as a tactic of war, according to this report by PEN America and PEN Ukraine.

With a focus on Bosnia and Herzegovina (BiH) and as a contribution to the Social Media 4 Peace project, implemented by the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) with partner ARTICLE 19, this report explores the local-specific contextual concerns stemming from global, non-transparent, and profit-driven content moderation processes of social media.

This report presents a summary analysis of research on current practices of content moderation in Bosnia and Herzegovina, Indonesia ‘harmful content’ such as ‘hate speech ’, and Kenya, with a specific focus on and disinformation.

Following a visit to Ukraine from 24 May to 3 June to investigate Ukrainian photojournalist Maks Levin’s death, RSF is releasing a report with information and evidence indicating that Levin and his friend and bodyguard were executed by Russian soldiers in a forest near Kyiv on 13 March, possibly after being interrogated and even tortured.

Report of the 1-15 December 2021 joint fact-finding mission. The partner organisations conclude that challenges to the independence of the media and the safety of journalists are systemic in the country. While the problems are not unique, their intensity is highly problematic and sets it apart from most other EU Member States.

Ahead of April’s general election, IPI’s new report finds that the Fidesz government has continued to systematically erode media pluralism, muzzle the independent press and manipulate the market to further entrench a pro-government narrative.

Attacked while covering demonstrations, harassed online for reporting on COVID�19 and measures to fight it, or sued by private companies trying to avoid publication of damaging information. These are just some examples of the threats received by journalists and media workers in Europe in 2021.

In this analysis, ARTICLE 19 reviews the Ministerial Order the Ministerial Order for its compliance with international freedom of expression standards. The Order was approved by the National Security Council of Spain and published on 30 October 2020 by the Minister of the Presidency.

In Hungary, Poland and Turkey, increasing control of ruling parties over state-controlled companies, advertising agencies, media regulators, competition watchdogs and even the courts, has allowed for a steady intensification and diversification of campaigns against critical press.

Throughout the reporting period of May-June 2021, the government continued its verbal commitment to reform and introduced a set of legislative changes. But in practice, thanks to repressive government policies combined with discriminatory practices of politicized public institutions and judicial violations, the situation of freedom of expression and the media deteriorated further.

The Slovenian government of Prime Minister Janez Janša is overseeing an increasingly systematic effort to undermine critical media, a coalition of press freedom organisations and journalism groups warn in this report.

In the five years since the coup attempt, dozens of writers, artists, and other creatives have been targeted, prosecuted, and jailed by Turkish authorities.

As the Expression Interrupted platform, which has been operating as part of the Platform for Independent Journalism (P24) since 2017, we present our first periodic report with the aim of sharing the results of our efforts to track violations of freedom of expression and the press in Turkey with the general public more effectively.

The conclusions outlined in this report reflect the findings of the recent joint press freedom mission to Poland carried out between November and December 2020 by the Media Freedom Rapid Response (MFRR).

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.

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.

More than 50 human rights groups have written to the UN’s Special Rapporteurs on freedom of expression, freedom of assembly and association, and human rights in Belarus over disruptions to the internet that took place during the presidential elections.

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.

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

A full two years on, there has still been no justice for the heinous assassination of Daphne Caruana Galizia, which has shed light on broader systemic failings with regard to Malta’s press freedom climate, rule of law, and democratic checks and balances.

The mission sought to gather information about challenges to freedom of expression and press freedom in Albania and bring concerns directly to Albanian government representatives.

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.

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.

In June 2018, IPI visited Poland as part of its Ontheline project, which aims to identify best newsroom practices for preventing and better responding to online harassment of journalists.

A key indicator of whether Uzbekistan’s still-authoritarian government’s reforms are genuine and will be ultimately successful is in the media sphere and the core right of free speech.

Wikipedia was permanently blocked over articles on Turkey’s involvement in the Syrian civil war

The government introduced a new online portal allowing citizens to channel public grievances and prompting greater citizen engagement

The WannaCry attack was one of the first major instances of a cyberattack affecting UK public-facing health service infrastructure

Renowned independent journalist Pavel Sheremet of the Ukrayinska Pravda website was murdered in a car bomb attack in Kyiv, likely in retaliation for his reporting

LinkedIn became the first international social media platform to be banned in Russia for failing to comply with data localization requirements

A social media user was handed down a one year suspended sentence under Kyrgyzstan’s ant-extremism laws for “liking” posts published by a controversial imam.

Renowned Kazakhstani dissidents were targeted with malware attacks likely initiated by the government

Amid growing scrutiny over surveillance software sales to government agencies and repressive regimes, Italy took some steps to limit the export of surveillance technologies to countries with poor human rights records

Iceland continued to encourage the use of ICTs for political and civic purposes.

An antiterrorism law came into effect in July 2016 that requires providers of encrypted services to allow authorities access to client data, raising privacy concerns

A new law regulating the conduct of the Federal Intelligence Service has raised concerns for attempting to legalize thus-far illegal surveillance practices that could potentially affect German citizens as well as foreign journalists

New surveillance laws introduced in 2017 have attracted criticism for allowing excessive access to user data

Concerns about the impact of disinformation and political bot operations heightened in the run-up to the 2017 French presidential election, as leaked communications related to candidate Emmanuel Macron were dumped online and amplified by automated accounts in attempts to destabilize the race right before campaigning closed

Estonia remained a staunch advocate of e-governance. Internet voting experienced minor amendments following the formation of a new government in November 2016

Azerbaijani human rights defenders were targeted in a spearphishing campaign, in attempts to install malware on their devices and track their online activity

Coordinated, possibly automated accounts spread misinformation about the April 2017 parliamentary election on Twitter, while independent media accounts were briefly suspended

Since 2012, the Russian authorities have intensified a crackdown on freedom of expression, selectively casting certain kinds of criticism of the government as threats to state security and public stability and introducing significant restrictions to online expression and invasive surveillance of online activity.

Watchdogs raised alarm about a controversial cyberbullying bill that was approved by the House of Deputies in October, noting that its broad definitions and stiff penalties could be used to curb the exercise of free speech online.

In April, journalists were finally allowed back into the Parliament chamber, having been relegated for most of the previous two years to a press room supplied with a video feed of legislative proceedings.

Parliament passed the Investigatory Powers Act, which codified existing, controversial surveillance practices that could compromise journalists’ ability to keep their sources confidential, and discourage investigative journalism.

In June [2016], an industry group reported an increase in reported threats against journalists.

A legislative initiative to amend the Intelligence and Security Act caused alarm within the journalistic community, with critics noting that the proposed expansion of the intelligence services’ ability to gather communications data could threaten the protection of journalistic sources.

A new law strengthening core aspects of media freedom was approved by the parliament in October, though a section of it that bolstered journalists’ right to protect their sources was later struck down.

The parliament tightened legal restrictions on media freedom, broadening the scope of existing criminal defamation legislation in November and amending martial law in December to expand permissible information controls.

Violence, threats, intimidation, and harassment against media professionals and organizations continued; in the most alarming case of the year, a car bomb killed prominent journalist Pavel Sheremet in July.

The government, using enhanced powers under a state of emergency, carried out a massive purge of media outlets accused of links to an attempted military coup in July.

Prime Minister Aleksandar Vučić and allied media outlets, particularly the Informer tabloid, continued a campaign to portray investigative and critical media as foreign-backed propagandists.

Throughout the year there were reports of attacks, threats, censorship, arrests, and prison sentences against both journalists and ordinary citizens who had posted or shared politically sensitive information online.

Government offices canceled subscriptions to opposition-friendly media, while state-owned companies redirected advertising money to progovernment outlets.

Hungary’s largest independent daily, Népszabadság, which has uncovered a string of scandals involving the ruling party, was unexpectedly suspended in October. Soon afterward, its parent company was sold to a firm linked to an ally of Prime Minister Viktor Orbán.

Reporters were able to cover the 2016 parliamentary elections with significantly less interference than during previous elections, which have often featured violent crackdowns by the state.

This report presents the findings of a three-month study focused on mapping, observing and analysing online harassment of journalists in Hungary. The study aimed to identify the types of harassment journalists are subject to, which journalists are typically harassed, who the harassers are, and how journalists cope with harassment.

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.

The purpose of this report is to offer an outline of the main events and trends regarding freedom of speech and, in particular, media freedom.

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.

Violence against journalists in Europe increased in the second quarter of 2016, reports submitted to Index on Censorship’s Mapping Media Freedom platform show, as a government crackdown in Turkey intensified and protests turned violent in countries from France to Finland.

“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.”

At least three prominent human rights activists were detained and in two cases physically abused for attempting to photograph or otherwise document the country’s cotton harvest, in which the state compels citizens to engage in forced labor each year.

The government ordered the temporary blocking of Facebook and other popular social-networking sites in May, apparently to suppress news about a Tajik police commander who had joined the Islamic State militant group in Syria.

In June, the government published media merger guidelines to better regulate the effects of mergers on plurality of both ownership and content; the guidelines will only apply to future deals, and will not affect existing concentration.

In August, a leaked memo revealed that a public agency had instructed public television workers to avoid showing images of women and children in their coverage of the refugee crisis.

The closure of popular political programs on Imedi TV and the public broadcaster signaled the continued involvement of political interests in editorial decisions.

The German Verlagsgruppe Passau, the last major non-Czech European media group in the country, sold its local publishing house to Penta Investments, which has media holdings in the Czech Republic and Slovakia.

Politician and media mogul Delyan Peevski continued to acquire new assets during 2015, and several outlets that were thought to serve his interests participated in smear campaigns against investigative journalists and others who criticized him or the government.

The authorities blocked the online journal KYKY.org in June, forcing it to remove articles that contradicted official narratives about World War II.

Violence against journalists was particularly egregious in June, during a series of protests over planned increases in electricity prices; police unlawfully obstructed the ability of media professionals to cover the events, used water cannons to disperse protesters and media professionals alike, and damaged cameras and other equipment.

The editor and owner of Nakanune.kz, an independent news website, was among 18 people charged with spreading false information during 2015.

In December, the House of Representatives began discussing a new bill, part of the government’s antiterrorism initiatives, that would significantly expand the surveillance capabilities and powers of security services.

Several pieces of media legislation were passed, including laws on access to information, protections for journalists who are attacked in the course of their work, and the privatization of publicly owned print media.

Authorities prosecuted a number of prominent journalists on terrorism-related charges, including the editor in chief and the Ankara bureau chief of the Cumhuriyet daily, who were arrested in connection with the paper’s coverage of alleged weapons shipments to Syria by Turkish intelligence services.

At least three internet users received significant prison sentences for posting “extremist” content related to Ukraine on social media.

Government agencies and officials made a number of pronounced efforts to obstruct journalistic access to public information.

In February 2015, opposition leader Zoran Zaev alleged that the government of Prime Minister Nikola Gruevski oversaw a massive wiretapping operation that targeted more than 100 journalists, along with thousands of other parties.

Government pushed through legislation allowing mass surveillance of personal communications with little judicial oversight, and authorities arrested 54 people for hate speech or for allegedly defending terrorism.

The government introduced a draft Investigatory Powers Bill in November. Although the measure included some provisions to protect journalistic materials from state surveillance, their adequacy remained a matter of debate at year’s end.

In February, three people linked to the far-right Swedish Resistance Movement were arrested for allegedly planning to attack journalists from the daily Expressen.

A new public safety law—labeled the “gag law” by critics—took effect in July amid continuing assertions by journalists and media watchdogs that it threatened freedom of expression and association.

In June 2015, a trial opened against four former state security officials accused of the 1999 murder of investigative journalist Slavko Ćuruvija.

The newly elected parliament passed a law on “national media” in December that shifted most authority over public media, including the hiring and firing of journalists, from the regulatory body to the Treasury Ministry. The heads of all public media immediately resigned in protest.

The Supreme Court ruled that police could not seize the unpublished recordings of a documentary filmmaker, finding that their importance to a terrorism case was insufficient to override the interest of protecting journalists’ sources.

Amid ongoing concerns about media professionalism, a working group backed by the Council of Europe and Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE) adopted a new code of ethics for journalists in November.

The independence of the public broadcaster came into question on several occasions, as the outlet aired one-sided reports on the Vecherniy Bishkek dispute and faced allegations of partisan bias in coverage of the October parliamentary elections.

In April 2015, 60 RTK editors and journalists publicly accused Mentor Shala, the broadcaster’s general director, of censorship and mismanagement. RTK’s government-appointed board reelected Shala to another three-year term in October.

In December, lawmakers adopted a reform of the public broadcaster’s governance structure that was expected to reduce the influence of parliamentary parties.

In June, legislators voted to remove blasphemy—which had been a crime punishable by a fine or up to three months in prison—from the penal code.

In June, the government reopened ERT, the state broadcaster that was controversially shut down in the name of austerity in 2013.

In December, the European Centre for Press and Media Freedom (ECPMF) reported that at least 29 journalists were physically attacked by right-wing actors in 2015, particularly while covering demonstrations.

The European Court of Human Rights (ECHR) ruled in June that the Finnish courts had violated a journalist’s rights by convicting him of defamation for criticizing the work of a fellow journalist.

Denmark confirmed that it would keep its antiblasphemy law in place, which had been a subject of ongoing debate.

Rasim Aliyev, an independent reporter and acting chair of the Institute for Reporters’ Freedom and Safety (IRFS), died in August after being severely beaten; it remained unclear at year’s end whether the assailants’ motive was connected to Aliyev’s journalistic work.

Legislators unveiled a draft freedom of information law, but media workers and watchdogs criticized several of its provisions, including a restrictive definition of “information,” vague and expansive exceptions, a lengthy response window, and the lack of an independent oversight body.

Joint research report by the Institute of Mass Information and GfK Ukraine

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.

Hackers leak confidential information revealing identities of Uznews journalists, publication closes after 10 years of reporting

Draft investigatory powers bill introduced, dubbed “snoopers’ charter” by activists

“Online journalists, activists, and bloggers in eastern Ukraine were subject to extralegal intimidation and were beaten, tortured, kidnapped”

“In the first half of 2015, 92 percent of all court orders to remove content received by Twitter worldwide originated in Turkey”

Vague amendments to criminal code could criminalize financing of NGOs and independent media outlets

Government resolution forces ISPs and MSPs to allow government real-time access to communication networks and subscribers’ data

Websites and tools that allow users to hide IP addresses banned

Online terrorism recruitment criminalized under new antiterrorism law

New per GB data transfer tax withdrawn following large protests

Whistler blower and user rights protection bills presented to Parliament

“German foreign intelligence service BND helped the U.S. National Security Agency (NSA) to spy on German and European citizens, politicians and companies”

Internet data exempt from “two-key” wiretapping protections, Ministry of Internal Affairs has direct access to telecom servers

“CyberCaliphate” hacker group brings 11 television channels offline in massive cyberattack

ECHR upholds Supreme Court ruling, content hosts legally liable for third part comments on their websites

Government restricts use of Tor and other anonymizing tools

Intimidation and self-censorship rises amid increases in arrests and detentions of online journalists

“Proposed amendments to the Law on Personal Data Protection would increase privacy protections”

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

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.

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.

Ranked 179th in annual global media freedom report

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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.

This book is an attempt to address obstacles to a democratic development of media systems in the countries of South East Europe by mapping patterns of corrupt relations and practices in media policy development, media ownership and financing, public service broadcasting, and journalism as a profession.

Ranked 6th in annual global media freedom report

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Websites featuring anti-Putin articles blocked

Police cede Independence Square to protesters after two brutal, yet failed attempts to clear downtown core

Dozens of journalists forced to resign following sympathetic reporting on Gezi protests

Media consolidation forces closure of small regional newspapers

Foreign imams required to take one-year integration course before working in the Netherlands

Ranked 103rd in annual global media freedom report

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Baltic Pride held in Vilnius despite local government’s objection

Parliament bans public display of Soviet and Nazi symbols

Ranked 134th in annual global media freedom report

“Rising nationalism continues to affect both ethnic Kyrgyz and ethnic Uzbek NGO activists”

“European Commission (EC) urged authorities to step up efforts to investigate and prosecute attacks on journalists”

Ranked 10th in annual global media freedom report

Ranked 98th in annual global media freedom report

Ban on wearing religious symbols on University campuses proposed

European Court of Human Rights rules Estonian news website Delfi SA responsible under defamation laws for anonymous comments on its stories

Constitutional Court blocks introduction of new sexual health curriculum following “PR war”

2013 saw “a major awakening for Bulgarian civil society”

LGBT citizens face harassment in media

“Most of the country’s papers in the hands of a few corporations”

“Wiretapping by state security agencies limits the right to free private discussion”

Social networks used to sidestep government censorship and mobilize protesters

“Powerful business, political, and media interests inhibit the development of independent news outlets”

Ranked 36th in annual global media freedom report

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The Turkish authorities severely restricted the right to freedom of expression of journalists and writers during and after the Gezi Park protests in 2013, English PEN and PEN International said in their joint report.

“Welcome to digital tyranny”

“World chamption of surveillance”

“Control from the top down”

“News black hole”

“Apparatus of repression”

“Arms trade fairs: Surveillance dealerships”

“Freedom of speech is respected across the country”

“Authorities continue targeting journalists, human rights activists”

“Legislators approve a royal charter allowing political interference in press regulation”

“Police, security services accused of assaulting reporters”

“Turkey continues to be the world’s leading jailer of journalists”

“Experts say new media law represents progress, but requires improvement”

“Authorities cracked down on free expression in run-up to Winter Olympics”

“Authorities unblock critical news website, but do not repeal censorship measure”

“Authorities ban outlets, websites affiliated with independent Respublika”

“Independent paper attacked twice with explosive devices”

“Hungarian lawmakers adopt the criminalization of libel”

“KGB fails to substantiate charges in teddy bear case”

“Restrictive laws target free expression online”

The Russian authorities detained at least 61 people in different cities across the country for holding unauthorized protests ahead of the opening ceremony of the Winter Olympics in Sochi on 7 February 2014.

Ban-Ki Moon spoke out against the climate of discrimination and intimidation in Russia

Over 200 international authors, including Margaret Atwood and Salman Rushdie, sign IFEX member PEN International’s letter denouncing Russia’s “chokehold” on free expression

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Hungary’s independent media today faces creeping strangulation. State capture of Hungarian media is unfolding slowly but surely, principally through the “soft censor- ship” of financial incentives and influence that affect media outlets’ editorial content and economic viability.

Decade-long efforts to promote media reforms in Serbia have foundered. This report describes the mechanisms of a growing “soft censorship” that denies Serbia’s citizens their right to a free and independent media and offers recommendations that can help dismantle these insidious practices.

“Authorities block international rights groups and media from operating”

PM threatens media for reporting on government mass surveillance

Government bans all public events to block Pride Equality March

Censorship prohibited, yet media freedom remains elusive

Anti-government protests follow violent dispersal of peaceful sit-in

Widespread crackdown on freedom of expression in lead-up to national elections

Catalonia police collecting data on women wearing full-face veil

Limits of free expression tested as football fans raise Nazi flags, shout Seig Heil

Non-dominant expressions of gender met with increasing violence

Allegations of involvement in US digital surveillance program

All telcos equiped with government mandidated surveillance equipment

Investigation begins in decades old case of three murdered journalists

Parliament unanimously adopts law banning promotion of “propaganda of nontraditional sexual relationships”

Threats and acts of intimidation by political and religious authorities impede investigative journalism

14-month ban on independent online Central Asian news agency Ferghana.ru lifted

Court deems photo contest “extremist”, KGB demands prints destroyed

Websites blocked; libel remains criminal offense

Lower house extends hate speech protections to LGBT Italians, exempts organizations from criminal liability

Authorities lay narcotics and weapons possession, hooliganism, and treason charges against critical journalists

The Women’s Resource Centre targeted on Facebook, comments threaten to “blow it up”

This report looks into the current situation of local TV stations regarding their financial status, sources of funding (including public funding), the political and economic pressures they are subject to, ownership and its political and business connections and professionalization and self-regulation levels.

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.

New investigations are needed into cases of violence against journalists and those at risk need immediate protection, according to a new ARTICLE 19 report.

In spite of the generally high quality of legislation, the reality of implementation is less impressive. Citizens may freely express their views, and collect and disseminate information, but access to free and pluralistic media and to public information held by the authorities is inadequate. Journalists’ working conditions are not secure enough to work safely and remedies for violations of journalists’ rights or attacks on journalists are ineffective.

Russia is the sixth deadliest country in the world for journalists in the last 16 years. Moreover, as impunity for attacks on journalists in Russia remains the general rule and the vast majority of cases remain unsolved, the true tally could be even higher.

The European Union should use its upcoming meeting with the Belarusian foreign minister to reinforce tough and principled human rights demands on the government, Human Rights Watch said today.

Nations in Transit 2013 is Freedom House’s comprehensive, comparative study of democratic development in 29 countries from Central Europe to Eurasia. This edition covers the period from January 1 through December 31, 2012 and measures progress according to the following indicators: electoral process, civil society, independent media, national democratic governance, local democratic governance, judicial framework and independence, and corruption.

Russian authorities are using a new law that requires some nongovernmental organizations to register as “foreign agents” to curtail a broad range of work by independent organizations.

The current document is a preliminary version of the groundbreaking review of the implementation of the Council of Europe commitments vis-à-vis fundamental freedoms in Azerbaijan. The final version of the report will be launched in October, during fourth session of the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe (PACE).

Widespread self-censorship and fear of causing offence is suppressing creativity and ideas in the United Kingdom, according to a conference report published by Index on Censorship.

Under Vladimir Putin, Russia has emerged as a laboratory for the development of methods to suppress media freedom in the post-totalitarian era.

Ranked 195th in annual global media freedom report

Ranked 31st in annual global media freedom report

Ranked 131st in annual global media freedom report

Ranked 120th in annual global media freedom report

Ranked 172nd in annual global media freedom report

Ranked 6th in annual global media freedom report

Ranked 1st in annual global media freedom report

Ranked 52nd in annual global media freedom report

Ranked 35th in annual global media freedom report

Ranked 40th in annual global media freedom report

Ranked 74th in annual global media freedom report

Ranked 13th in annual global media freedom report

Ranked 86th in annual global media freedom report

Ranked 19th in annual global media freedom report

Ranked 47th in annual global media freedom report

Ranked 1st in annual global media freedom report

Ranked 3rd in annual global media freedom report

Ranked 74th in annual global media freedom report

Ranked 13th in annual global media freedom report

Ranked 112th in annual global media freedom report

Ranked 35th in annual global media freedom report

Ranked 120th in annual global media freedom report

Ranked 6th in annual global media freedom report

Ranked 40th in annual global media freedom report

Ranked 55th in annual global media freedom report

Ranked 158th in annual global media freedom report

Ranked 96th in annual global media freedom report

Ranked 182nd in annual global media freedom report

Ranked 68th in annual global media freedom report

Ranked 13th in annual global media freedom report

Ranked 10th in annual global media freedom report

Ranked 74th in annual global media freedom report

Ranked 83rd in annual global media freedom report

Ranked 19th in annual global media freedom report

Ranked 96th in annual global media freedom report

Ranked 35th in annual global media freedom report

Ranked 3rd in annual global media freedom report

Ranked 13th in annual global media freedom report

Ranked 6th in annual global media freedom report

Ranked 27th in annual global media freedom report

Ranked 45th in annual global media freedom report

Ranked 81st in annual global media freedom report

Ranked 77th in annual global media freedom report

Ranked 96th in annual global media freedom report

Ranked 3rd in annual global media freedom report

Ranked 193rd in annual global media freedom report

Ranked 177th in annual global media freedom report

Ranked 31st in annual global media freedom report

Ranked 134th in annual global media freedom report

Ranked 9th in annual global media freedom report

Ranked 96th in annual global media freedom report

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

The report analyzes new laws in Russia, including the so-called “foreign agents” law, the treason law, and the assembly law, and documents how they have been used.

In this legal analysis, ARTICLE 19 reviews the provisions of the Draft Royal Charter on Self-Regulation of the Press, recently drafted by the three biggest political parties in the United Kingdom, and the relevant provisions of the Amendments of the Crime and Courts Bill, currently pending in parliament.

In the last year, Uzbek authorities intensified their crackdown on civil society, placing human rights activists under house arrest and incommunicado detention for peaceful civic activism, extending the prison sentences of peaceful opposition figures without due process, and deporting international journalists who attempt to visit the country.

Ranked 196th in annual global media freedom report

Ranked 176th in annual global media freedom report

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

Incidents of verbal and physical harassment of journalists were some of the human rights abuses recorded by Human Rights Watch in Bosnia in 2012.

Incidents of verbal and physical harassment of journalists were some of the human rights abuses recorded by Human Rights Watch in Croatia in 2012.

Incidents of verbal and physical harassment of journalists were some of the human rights abuses recorded by Human Rights Watch in Serbia in 2012.

Cooperation between civil society and government institutions improving

“Criticism of the ruling family is prohibited”

Government passes ban on Soviet symbols currently used by Communist party

Malta’s first Freedom of Information Act comes into effect

Broadcasting Council prohibits politicians from owning broadcast media

“A single conglomerate, Radio Télévision Luxembourg, dominates broadcast radio and television”

“The press suffers from inadequate standards for transparency of ownership”

Business and political influence on the media is increasing

“The media landscape remained bifurcated along ethnic lines in 2012”

Defamation decriminalised

Government invokes anti-extremism laws to ban unregistered opposition parties

Journalists given prison terms and hefty fines for reporting politician attended neo-Nazi event

“The media are free and independent, and internet access is unrestricted”

Northern Lights Corporation controls most private TV and radio outlets and 2 of 3 national newspapers

Hundreds of religious organisations stripped of registered status and budgetary allocations for social and charitable services under new law

Limits placed on right to association and assembly of groups representing ethnic minorities

Twitter blocks neo-Nazi group’s account in what is reportedly the company’s first action in any nation to block “country-withheld content” at a government’s request

“Legal amendments that banned offshore ownership of broadcasters and required stations to reveal their ownership structures came into effect”

Government closes French embassies as “Charlie Hebdo” publishes more Muhammad cartoons

Many newspapers are controlled by or support political parties

“Civil society is vibrant, and the government involves NGOs in the drafting of legislation”

“Civil society is vibrant”

“Muzzle law” prohibits press from identifying victims of serious crimes and publishing information obtained through police wiretaps

“Vibrant independent press frequently criticizes the authorities”

“Journalists – particularly those covering organized crime and corruption – face political pressure, intimidation, and attacks”

“University professors have been dismissed or imprisoned for expressing dissent, and some have been killed in response to their outspoken support for regime opponents”

Government faces criticism for delaying access to information requests

“Academic freedom has come under pressure since Yanukovych took power”

Filmmaker attacked following screening of documentary on her late husband’s efforts to help Bosnian Muslims during the 1990s conflict

“Turkmenistan’s main Internet service provider, run by the government, reportedly blocks undesirable websites and monitors users’ activity”

“Nearly all media organisations are owned by giant holding companies with ties to political parties, contributing to self-censorship”

Most newspapers are in the hands of a few corporations

“Academic freedom is subject to intense state ideological pressures, and institutions that use a liberal curriculum or are suspected of disloyalty face harassment and liquidation”

Authorities cut off public access to information and communication networks during and after fighting in autonomous Gorno-Badakhshan province

“Vague laws on extremism make it possible to crack down on any speech, organisation, or activity that lacks official support”

Sales of foreign media leave “a larger share of important outlets in the hands of wealthy Romanian businessmen, who typically use them to advance their political and economic interests”

“Consolidation of newspaper ownership in large media conglomerates has forced the closure of some small and local newspapers”

Sweden has “one of the most robust freedom of information statutes in the world”

“Freedoms of assembly and association are honored, and national and international NGOs, including human rights groups, operate in the country without interference”

“Journalists are threatened and assaulted with impunity”

“Controversial amendment passed in October 2012 grants local authorities increased discretion to limit demonstrations in their districts”

“The authorities use informal pressure to maintain control over broadcast outlets”

Journalists who oppose ETA’s political views have been targets of violence

“Freedoms of assembly and association are generally respected, and domestic and international human rights organisations operate freely”

Gay pride parade cancelled following threats from public and Deputy Defence Minister

“In an effort to promote political pluralism, the state subsidises many newspapers, the majority of which are privately owned and openly partisan”

“Laws that prohibit hate speech and criminalise defamation are in effect”

Amendments to press law remove requirement that media publish responses or corrections from public officials if they are criticised for their performance in office

“The news media are free and independent”

Government backtracks on plans to decriminalise defamation, saying it is not a condition for EU membership

Policy paper on digital challenges to freedom of expression in Belarus

The report points out that the blind spot of the Serbian media system are informal alliances of ruling political forces and big industrial and commercial businesses which are allowed to infiltrate the media in a non-transparent way and fulfill through them the common interests of the state and the businesses.

This submission highlights Human Rights Watch’s assessment regarding the Uzbek government’s compliance with its international obligations and the recommendations made during the Universal Periodic Review (UPR) in 2008.

Joint HRW submission on Turkmenistan with Freedom Now and the Turkmen Initiative for Human Rights.

The Institute of Mass Information has created a map highlighting press freedom violations related to the October 28 parliamentary election.

Freedom of expression and assembly so repressed protestors can only clap hands to show dissent

Eurovision 2012 was a battle ground for free expression

President “has steadily boosted his power, ruthlessly silencing the opposition press through disappearances, forcible internment in psychiatric hospitals and arbitrary imprisonment”

“State control of the country’s five TV stations, 25 newspapers and 15 magazines is absolute”

ETA continues to threaten journalists working in Basque region

“Uzbekistan is one of the region’s most Internet-repressive countries”

“For the first time, netizens have managed to breach the censorship wall of one of the world’s most closed countries”

“Revolution through social networks” has “spread like wildfire”

Journalist Eynulla Fatullayev praises international community for its sustained support leading to his release

Restrictive media law comes into force as Hungary joins European Union

“As Berlusconi is forced out, he still pushes bill banning wiretap coverage”

Parliament decriminalises libel, eliminates tools used to suppress critical journalism

Former security agent and two accomplices charged in abduction and murder of journalist Gennady Pavlyuk

As tens of thousands protest election, journalists are detained

Defamation continues to be prosecuted as a criminal offence

Government officials play down incidents of violence against journalists, claim most attacks “not work-related”

“Libel laws strongly favour the plaintiff and enable a damaging practice known as ‘libel tourism'”

Supreme Court orders closing of Tashkent office of Human Rights Watch

Europe’s most repressive regime for press

News of the World wiretapping scandal draws attention to government’s inability to protect privacy of its citizens

“Negative tendencies” towards suppression of freedom of expression follow Viktor Yanukovych’s installation as president

“The war of information 2.0 has now begun”

“2011 saw a dramatic escalation in the judicial harassment of journalists”

Authorities use the “specter of civil war and radical Islamism” to gag journalists

Tied for 58th place in annual press freedom index

Tied for 58th place in annual press freedom index

“Relations between the government and media have improved”

Ranked 53rd in annual press freedom index

Interference by security service decreases Latvia’s position on press freedom index to 50th place

“The media freedom panorama continues to be gloomy”

Tied for 47th place in annual press freedom index

Tied with Finland as the freest country in the world for press

Economic crises heightens fragility of media, while journalists covering protests work in conditions resembling “war zones”

Ranked 104th in annual press freedom index

France ranks a “disappointing” 38th place in 2011 press freedom index

The world’s freest country for media

3rd worst Baltic state for free expression

Adopting law that allows ruling party control over media, leads to 17th position decrease in annual press freedom index

“Little progress” for Spain in press freedom index

Ranked 36th in annual press freedom index

Ranked 33rd in annual press freedom index

Grotesque court rulings lead to fall to 30th place on annual press freedom index

Ranked 24th in annual press freedom index

Ranked 20th in annual press freedom index

Tied for 16th place in annual press freedom index

Tied for 16th place in annual press freedom index

Ranked 15th in annual press freedom index

Ranked 14th in annual press freedom index

Concerns about print media pluralism grow in worst nation for press freedom in European Union

Ranked 12th in annual press freedom index

Ranked 10th in annual press freedom index

Ranked 8th in annual press freedom index

Tied for 6th place in annual press freedom index

Tied for 6th place in annual press freedom index

Ranked 5th in annual press freedom index

A 23 point rise in 2011 to 77th place on annial press freedom index returns the country to its 2008 position

Ranked 3rd in annual press freedom index

No progress made in press freedom environment as online content becomes focus of government attention

Ranked 80th in annual press freedom index

Ranked 107th in annual press freedom index

Tied for 86th place in annual press freedom index

Tied for 68th place in annual press freedom index

Country loses 40 per cent of its media with the closure of Plus Produkcija

President uses media as “scapegoat for all of his country’s problems”

Social media under surveillance, netizens jailed for promoting demonstrations

Media freedom is “very fragile, with physical attacks on journalists and repressive initiatives by parliament”

Ranked 96th in annual press freedom index

“In a bid to maintain a facade of stability at all costs, the Kazakh authorities have stepped up their persecution of the few independent voices and are trying to gain control of the Internet”

Italy narrowly rejects “attempt to introduce Internet filtering without reference to the courts”

Death “announcements” of investigative journalists postered throughout country

Police officer arrested in murder of Journalist Anna Politkovskaya

Supporters of various political parties attempt to intimidate journalists with physical assaults

“The environment for freedom of expression remains restrictive”

Parliament passes legislation mandating broadcasting companies to make ownership information public

Two media workers reportedly attacked by former Imam and supporters following Islamic leader’s suspension

“Authorities continue to severely curtail the right to assemble peacefully”

“More than 50 domestic and foreign journalists were harassed or attacked in 2011”

“A lack of media pluralism remains a problem”

Uzbek Information Agency, “involved in trumping up cases against journalist”

“The country remains closed to independent scrutiny, media and religious freedoms are subject to draconian restrictions, and human rights defenders face constant threat of government reprisal”

Two journalists and an academic charged under terrorism legislation for allegedly aiding and abetting Ergenekon organisation

Dutch court rules politicians have more latitude than members of public to express inflammatory ideas

BBC journalists claim torture in pre-trial detention