International Press Institute (IPI)

A BBC Tamil journalist was questioned by the anti-terror police in relation to a telephone conversation he had with two Tamil prisoners in Colombo, Sri Lanka.

On 4 September 2013, an NGO-director and former government employee cursed at a photographer and reporter and subsequently confiscated their equipment.

The Veracruz Supreme Court’s decision to free Jorge Antonio Hernández, previously imprisoned for the murder of journalist Regina Martínez, was courageous and important. Courageous, given the state government’s authoritarian tendencies; important, because it gives officials a chance to find out who really killed Regina Martínez and why.

Ibrahim Boubacar Keita, a Sorbonne-educated former foreign minister, is due to take office on 4 September 2013. He has pledged to restore democracy and stability in a country riven by divisions between the country’s north and south.

The Ministry of Transport and Communication has presented two draft laws that would provide a new legal framework for media regulation in Macedonia; there are concerns that these laws could be used to silence critical reports in the media.

Several foreign media organisations reported that journalists have been detained by the police without cause, harassed by protesters and had equipment seized or destroyed.

The International Press Institute urges Nigeria’s government to support the development of a voluntary media self-regulatory system, rather than a statutory press council.

Over the last month, at least five reporters in Ukraine have been attacked in apparent connection to their work, while scores of activists have been detained.