Faced with the multiplication of cases in Iran and China, the number of journalists jailed for exercising their profession in the world has once again reached a record, show reports from two organizations that monitor the matter published this Wednesday (14).
A survey by the Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ) reveals that, as of the last day of the month, 363 press professionals were in jail — an increase of 20% compared to the previous year. A report by Reporters Without Borders (RSF) points to the number of 533.
The difference lies in the methodologies, but the two organizations agree in stating that the increase is directly related to the erosion of democratic regimes and in calling attention to nations in the Middle East and Asia as sensitive points.
Iran, the scene of a social upheaval after the death of the young Kurd Mahsa Amini three months ago, is highlighted in the surveys. The scenario for freedom of the press was already precarious in the nation, dominated by a theocracy, but the situation deteriorated amid the repression of acts.
CPJ estimates that 62 journalists are being held in the country, the most since monitoring began three decades ago. Most would be women —22 of the 49 arrested since the beginning of the acts—, and the committee draws attention to the detention of Kurdish professionals —at least nine.
RSF, on the other hand, claims that there are 47 media professionals detained in the country, which has the ultraconservative president Ebrahim Raisi at the head of the regime and Ayatollah Ali Khamenei as its supreme leader.
China’s communist regime was once again highlighted in the reports. CPJ estimates that 43 journalists are imprisoned in the Asian nation and highlights the incarceration of Uighur professionals, persecuted not only for their profession but also because they belong to the Muslim ethnic minority that predominates in Xinjiang province.
RSF ranks China as the leader in the incarceration of media professionals, with 110 as of the beginning of this month. The two organizations claim that the number of detainees in the country has not increased this year, but emphasize caution in the justification: “This is less a sign of improvement and more a demonstration of oppression, surveillance and prior censorship ever greater”, says the RSF.
The situation is, in parts, similar to what happens in Latin America, one of the most violent regions for journalists in the world. Although nearly half of the media workers killed in the last year are in the Americas—38 according to CPJ and 57 according to RSF—this part of the world sees lower incarceration figures.
“There has been an increase in the criminalization of journalism in the region, often with laws that restrict the activity”, he tells the Sheet CPJ Latin America and Caribbean Coordinator Natalie Southwick. With the intense judicial harassment, many journalists would be subject to self-censorship or even self-exile, which would cause the number of prisoners to recede.
According to RSF, for example, Mexico is the worst country for journalists in this regard, with 11 deaths, followed by Ukraine (8) and Haiti (6). Brazil is remembered in the material with the death of British journalist Dom Phillips, in the Amazon, in June. In CPJ data, the order would be: Ukraine (12), Haiti (5), and Philippines and Mexico (3 each).
The different forms of persecution of journalists around the world reflect local political systems, but also regional histories, points out Artur Romeu, director of RSF in Latin America. “Autocracies in which cases of incarceration are concentrated usually have institutionalized state censorship, with retrograde legislative frameworks that inhibit freedom of expression.”
In the case of the Brazilian neighborhood, structural violence stands out. “Professionals who exercise the function of social control of power, such as journalists, find themselves subject to facing this type of retaliation, which is also driven by governments that feed a scenario of permanent hostility against journalists, with public speeches oriented towards criticism of the press paper.”
The difference in the numbers of organizations is related to the criteria adopted to account for incarceration.
CPJ counts only journalists in government custody and does not include those who have disappeared or are held captive by non-state actors. RSF, in turn, includes unofficial figures, such as journalists kidnapped by security forces and whose data was verified with relatives or professional media.
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