JOURNALISTS IMPRISONMENT REACHES 15-YEAR HIGH

The number of journalists imprisoned worldwide has reached a 15-year high in 2011, driven by repressive states seeking to choke the flow of information.

The Committee to Protect Journalists has noted this in its new report, citing 179 as the numbers of media practitioners imprisoned.

CPJ has identified 179 writers, editors, and photojournalists behind bars as at 1^st December, indicative of an increase of 34 from last year’s figures.

Nearly half of those held were online journalists, while about 45 percent of the imprisoned were freelancers.

Iran tops the list for the second consecutive year with 42 journalists in prison, followed by Eritrea with 28, China with 27, 12 in Burma and Vietnam with 9.
And CPJ Executive Director, Joel Simon has observed that independent journalists, who often lack the institutional support necessary to resist legal pressures or defend themselves in court, are bearing the brunt of this unprecedented rise in the incarceration of journalists.

In Africa, Eritrea tops the list with 28 journalists imprisoned with not a single one ever publicly charged with a crime.

The CPJ has since demanded for the release of all he incarcerated journalists.

Meanwhile, the Media Institute of Southern Africa in Zambia has demanded for an immediate stop to the harassment of journalists.

MISA Zambia Chairperson, Daniel Sikazwe has further challenged government to come to the aid of journalists.