Freedom House

“There is a clear change in how Xi Jinping is managing the censorship and security apparatus compared with his predecessor, and overall this has meant more restrictions, not more freedom,” according to a Freedom House report.

Biram Dah Abeid, president of anti-slavery organization Resurgence of the Abolitionist Movement in Mauritania (IRA); Brahim Bilal Ramdhane, IRA’s vice president; and Djiby Sow, president of the non-governmental organization Kawtal, have been sentenced to two years imprisonment by a Mauritanian court.

“The idea that an independent publishing house could be fined for selling books without a license that it made every attempt to obtain is purely Orwellian.”

“The failed coup of December 23 does not justify an attempt to stifle dissent and limit access to information. The government should immediately allow the Teranga radio station to resume operations.”

A Moscow court has sentenced Russian opposition leader Aleksei Navalny to a three-and-a-half year suspended sentence and his brother Oleg Navalny to a prison term of the same length in a politically-motivated case.

Criminalisation of online speech, a climate of impunity for attacks against journalists, the concentration of media ownership and the politicisation of media outlets are all current areas of concern.

“Freedom House condemns the arrest of Dr. Medani for his work protecting and promoting human rights in Sudan,” said Jenai Cox, program manager for Africa at Freedom House.

Global internet freedom declined for a fourth consecutive year, says Freedom House. New laws criminalised online dissent and legitimised overbroad surveillance and data collection, while more people were arrested for legitimate online activities than ever before.