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Russian Newspaper Murders
Interactive Map: Free Press Under Threat
Italy
As a wealthy, industrialized country within the European Union, Italy is unique in the degree of criticism it receives from media watchdogs. Advocacy organizations note that Italy generally observes freedom of the press, but have recently given warnings regarding key trends and events.
The most-publicized of these is the close relationship in Italy between political power and commercial and state media. In Italy, the country's richest man, the controller of 90 percent of all broadcast television, and the head of government are all one and the same: Silvio Berlusconi. Berlusconi's critics warn that his political power is limiting press freedom, and that his media power is distorting the political process. Berlusconi recently resolved a key national controversy over media consolidation in his favor, by his own decree as prime minister -- at the expense of media diversity and competition. Critics also argue that Berlusconi has exercised political power, in turn, to influence media, both by "softening" the reporting of Berlusconi's more inflammatory statements and by forcing the removal of some media executives from key positions.
Another topic that has raised concern among journalists was the treatment of press by police throughout the protests surrounding the July 2001 Group of Eight (G-8) summit in Genoa. Charges leveled against the police included beatings, a raid on an independent media center, and attempts by police to infiltrate protest groups by disguising themselves as journalists.
Another less well-known, yet all-too-real, threat to press freedom in Italy is violence perpetrated against journalists researching local politics and corruption. This has been a problem particularly in the southern islands, where journalists in both Sicily and Sardinia have been attacked or shot at because of their work.
N. Korea
Control of media and information in North Korea goes well beyond what might be called "censorship" in most any other country. The authoritarian regime of Kim Jong Il manages and constrains virtually every facet of news creation, distribution, and access -- including the very ideas and opinions of both media makers and consumers.
North Korea consistently ranks last among the world's nations in international ratings of press freedom. Newsgathering and dissemination are dominated by the Korean Central News Agency (KCNA) and other outlets for state propaganda which ceaselessly praise the regime, denounce its opponents, and generally ignore domestic famines and other internal crises. For the most part, journalists simply do not pass its borders. When foreign journalists are allowed in -- or, more rarely, when North Korean journalists travel out -- it is only to visit approved locations while under careful supervision of government chaperones. Aside from the few officials charged with monitoring the external world, those seeking foreign media in any form risk imprisonment and forced labor.
Advances in technology have not, thus far, led to change. All televisions and radios must be registered and customized to prevent reception of any non-governmental broadcast signals. Technologies like satellite television and the Internet -- somewhat successful in evading censorship in other repressive states -- have been thwarted here by a combination of government controls, limited phone networks, and antiquated technology. One of the more consistent sources of news about life inside the country are defectors who risk jail, or worse, by crossing the border into China.
Perhaps the most effective element of all, the North Korean government is known to control its people's experiences and perceptions, while cultivating faith in and devotion to the nation's Great Leader. These attitudes appear to prevail among the nation's journalists, as well: In August, 2003, North Korean journalists visited the World University Games in Daegu, South Korea, an event promoting reconciliation between the two countries. They showed their devotion to their head of state by scolding and attacking South Korean protesters carrying placards criticizing Kim Jong Il.
Philippines
The Philippines has a vibrant and outspoken press, and constitutional guarantees of its freedom. Yet, in recent years, the country has proven to be one of the most dangerous places in the world to practice journalism: Seven killings last year made this country second only to Iraq in number of journalist deaths. The targets are generally provincial journalists working in radio or at local newspapers who are outspoken critics of local politicians and corruption. Many of the killings have taken place on the island of Mindanao, where Islamic rebels have long fought the control of the national government. Thus far, not one of the killings has led to a conviction.
The murder of Edgar Damalerio in Pagadian City, about 500 miles south of the Philippine capital, Manila, in May 2002, is typical in many ways. Damalerio was an award-winning, outspoken voice against local police corruption, working in radio, television, and print news. He was shot by a gunman on a motorcycle in broad daylight across the street from the local police station. Witnesses say they got a clear view of the perpetrator who is a known criminal as well as a local police officer. Yet, despite national and international calls for justice and the willingness of witnesses to come forward, the case remains unsolved.
In areas far from the national capital, the justice system breaks down in the face of a system of secret alliances, warlord politics, and corruption. In the years since the end of the Marcos dictatorship and restoration of democratic governance in 1986, the Philippines has seen more than 40 murders like Damalerio's, each of which is still in prosecutorial limbo. Though central government officials, press advocacy organizations, and friends and family of slain journalists call for change, the killers remain free. All too often the surviving family members live in fear of more revenge killings, or must move to other areas. Perhaps President Arroyo's offer in late 2003 of monetary rewards will lead to the capture of some of these killers. But there is often little that can be done in the face of close-knit criminal and political networks that hold sway in provincial areas.
Iraq
Since the U.S.-led invasion in spring 2003, the most dangerous place in the world for journalists has been Iraq. Initially, the victims were primarily foreign correspondents, mostly from the U.S. and Western Europe, caught in the crossfire of the earliest phase of the war. Throughout 2004, however, an independent Iraqi media has become active, particularly in war-torn cities, such as Fallujah and Najaf, that are too dangerous for most foreign journalists.
The risks to journalists in Iraq are many, including U.S. and Iraqi gunfire; land mines, and suicide bombings; banditry and beatings by mobs. And dangers come from all sides. Journalists have complained of harassment, detention, and abuse by U.S. forces. Several have been abducted, and later released, by armed Iraqis. Public crowds in tense and volatile situations can turn on media workers in an instant.
In 2004, Iraqi insurgents have increasingly targeted journalists and their families, threatening, physically intimidating, and sometimes killing journalists, especially those perceived as working with U.S.-funded media outlets. Still, some journalists fear the U.S. forces most, particularly the guards and mobile military units that are quick to react, and possibly overreact, to any perceived threat. Hostility has grown recently between Iraqi and Arab journalists and U.S. forces and political leaders. Journalists accuse the U.S. military of violence and mistreatment, such as the detention and alleged torture of an al-Jazeera reporter. The U.S. military leadership counters with the claim that the responses of Arab journalists, including the tone and content of reporting, are evidence of Arab media collaboration with insurgents.
Meanwhile, as press advocacy organizations push for investigations of attacks on the press, the number of journalists and media workers killed in Iraq rises toward 40, with no sign of abating with the transition from U.S. to Iraqi governance.
Cuba
Press limitations in Cuba under President Fidel Alejandro Castro Ruz are the most severe in the Western Hemisphere and among the strictest in the world. The Castro regime has long maintained close control of all information, including Cuba's official daily newspaper, electronic and foreign media, and even the sale of personal computers. All media are dependent upon the government for both the right to operate and for funding. The expression of views contrary to the state, the revolution and its leaders, is illegal, and critics are routinely denounced as "counterrevolutionary" agents of the United States. Independent journalists and dissidents who tell their stories of local corruption and police harassment -- most often by faxing them to colleagues abroad -- face systematic repression, ranging from intimidation to exile, beatings, and imprisonment.
In recent years, an independent press began to emerge, numbering perhaps 100 working journalists. Hopes of increasing media freedom were raised further when, in 2002, former U.S. President Jimmy Carter delivered a speech -- entirely uncensored -- on Cuban television. However, in 2003, at precisely the time of the U.S.-led war in Iraq, the Castro regime launched a severe crackdown, trying and imprisoning nearly 30 journalists for decades-long terms. Those in prison have described conditions of humiliation and psychological torture including solitary confinement, inadequate medical attention, and putrid food. Remaining independent journalists, working outside of Cuban prisons, live under conditions of harassment, police intimidation, and warnings from state officials.
Zimbabwe
Zimbabwe, once a nation with substantial press freedom, has become one of the world's most repressive under the leadership of President Robert Mugabe. The government focuses much of its effort toward controlling information about domestic political unrest and the country's economic problems, particularly its inadequate food supply.
The regime has enacted restrictive laws regarding public security, criminal defamation, protection of privacy and the like that are broadly interpreted to limit speech and to bring lawsuits against members of the press. "Inaccurate" information has been criminalized, and, since September 11, 2001, press crackdowns have been increasingly justified in terms of the fight against terrorism. All of the broadcast media are state-controlled, and journalists are required to register with a government commission. Alongside these measures, the press is subject to intimidation, financial pressure, arrest, and torture by police, and vigilante attacks by supporters of the ruling party.
Though the Mugabe regime has maintained these practices for years, recently the level of repression has increased dramatically. The country's only independent newspaper, the DAILY NEWS, which had been subject to repeated bombing attacks in the past, was finally forced to close in 2003 by the government. In addition, foreign journalists who speak critically of the regime are denied state accreditation. In 2003, the Zimbabwean government deported the only foreign correspondent working within the country's borders.
These measures appear to have the continued endorsement of the government: In February of 2004, the Zimbabwean Supreme Court upheld legislation requiring the licensing of media by a government commission and maintaining the government's right to impose fines and imprisonment on those who practice journalism without government approval.
Turkmenistan
Turkmenistan's constitution includes protections of free expression and access to information. In practice, however, the authoritarian regime ruled by His Excellency Saparmurat Niyazov, President-for-life and self-appointed "Turkmenbashi," or "father of all Turkmen," shows no such commitment. In fact, the totalitarian apparatus that dominates Turkmenistan is one of the world's most thorough, maintaining strict control of media in all its forms.
The current regime in Turkmenistan bears many of the hallmarks of other totalitarian communist states. A domestic mass media isolates the country's populace from outside information while stoking the cult of personality surrounding the country's leader. The president personally appoints all editors of print and broadcast media and requires that all content be approved by his office. In addition, the regime has limited the spread of media-related technology, banning cable television and satellite dishes, while making Internet access prohibitively expensive and subject to state control.
The system permits virtually no dissent, and independent journalists are frequently beaten and harassed. However, some alternative broadcasts do breach the media barrier: The U.S. government-funded Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty (RFE/RL) and the Russian Mayak radio station provide alternative sources of news. In response to the threat posed by media outside of state control, Turkmenistan's National Security Service has over the past two years arrested and threatened at least three RFE/RL free-lance journalists, pressuring them to sever ties to the U.S.-funded broadcaster. International condemnation, including protests by global press freedom groups, has thus far been helpful in freeing these journalists, however they still face charges of slander and instigating domestic hatred and strife.
Bangladesh
In recent years, Bangladesh has repeatedly been named the most corrupt country in the world -- a condition with dramatic consequences for practicing journalists. Reporting on crime and corruption -- much of which is linked to political parties -- often brings threats, brutal physical attacks, and even murder. Journalist killings in Bangladesh have averaged about one per year for roughly the last decade, but instances of intimidation and physical violence are much more frequent, occurring almost daily in recent years.
In response to general lawlessness, the national government has initiated paramilitary crackdowns, particularly in rural areas outside the capital of Dhaka. Journalists have reported human rights abuses by government task forces, which has led to yet more harassment and violence against journalists -- this time at the hands of the government enforcers. To counter these accusations, task force members may falsely charge the abused journalists themselves with extortion and other crimes. Meanwhile, most attacks on journalists go unpunished, and efforts to bring justice can become bewilderingly complex. One investigation into the murder of a reporter led to 17 arrests, five of whom were journalists. In another case, a former member of Parliament and his aides were charged for the attempted murder of an internationally renowned journalist. However, the case has become bogged down in the courts, and the accused has fled the country only to continue to threaten his victim and other journalists from afar.
Corruption extends to television and radio, as well. State-run media dominates both broadcast media, and self-censorship is common. Recent efforts to create private competitors appear to have been thwarted, at least for a time, by entrenched political interests influencing the courts and licensing procedures.
While foreign media do operate in Bangladesh, their penetration and freedom are limited. Foreign media coverage of Bangladesh itself, especially warnings of a potential al Qaeda presence, has raised sensitivity to and suspicion of media investigations. Cases in which foreign journalists are deported, and Bangladeshis working alongside are charged with "anti-state activities," have been reported by press freedom organizations.
China
In recent years, trends toward press freedom in China -- such as the growth of an increasingly independent commercial media, the spread of the Internet, and policies promoting reform in the national media landscape -- have continually bumped against the repressive tendencies of the one-party state and the silencing forces of corruption.
In 2003, the government initiated widespread reforms leading to greater commercialization of the media and closure of many government-supported media outlets. Yet, media blackouts of politically-sensitive issues, imprisonment of journalists, and closure of prominent publications serve as evidence that President Hu Jintao's regime is likely to maintain much of the government's long-standing control of the nation's press. In 2003, a media blackout of the politically-sensitive SARS epidemic may have added to the death toll of nearly 800. Other instances of censorship include the arrest and deportation of journalists covering the plight of North Korean refugees and suppression of reporting on the prevalence and spread of AIDS in China. Despite relative lenience last year, early 2004 saw a wave of arrests of newspaper editors. With dozens of journalists behind bars, China has long held the title of the world's leading jailor of journalists.
Alongside state censorship, corruption has helped to ensure that press freedom remains elusive. Although Chinese customers demand more independent and investigative news, both private citizens and government officials implicated in investigative reporting intimidate and sometimes murder journalists. In 2003, journalism came after mining and police work as the third most dangerous career in China, and prosecutions of the attackers is quite rare.
Still, those promoting press freedom push on. Despite constraints on Internet essayists and service providers, Web reporting has spurred coverage in the mainstream press of neglected issues like corruption and industrial accidents. And though its media may get limited exposure in the mainland, Hong Kong has long remained an open environment for media and free speech generally, with more aggressive reporting of issues, and public political protests of speech-stifling legislation.
Eritrea
In Eritrea, the constitution's nominal provisions for press freedom have been made subject to official interpretation according to the "objective reality of Eritrea." Even under "normal" conditions, Eritrea's president, Isaias Afewerki, and his ruling party maintain strict control of state media. However, since September 2001, the government's interpretation of its national security needs has resulted in a general crackdown on all independent media and political dissent. This included a ban on private ownership of all broadcast media and newspapers, as well as widespread arrests of leading journalists.
As an active member in the U.S.-backed coalition in Iraq, the Eritrean government justifies its treatment of journalists as part of the larger fight against "terrorists" who spread disinformation and endanger the unity of the nation. Africa's foremost jailer of journalists, the Afewerki government has held between a dozen and twenty journalists incommunicado under accusations of espionage and other crimes against the state, while making no effort to formally charge or try them. Since the crackdown, several local journalists have fled abroad, and most foreign correspondents have left. Meanwhile, Afewerki dismisses foreign critics as enemies of Eritrea.
Haiti
Haiti's climate of widespread poverty and political instability pervades the practice of journalism, as well. Amidst prevailing illiteracy, print media has limited impact, making hundreds of small radio stations the country's primary independent media. Journalists can be critical of the government, but true investigative reporting is rare, and self-censorship is common, due to both the financial and security concerns of journalists. Radio stations may censor content to avoid loss of limited advertising funds, and many journalists are susceptible to bribery. Moreover, while laws in Haiti exist to protect free speech, practicing journalists experience a far different reality. They are frequently harassed or attacked by pro-government supporters, militia, or criminals. The government rarely enforces laws protecting the press, nor responds effectively when violence is reported, and murders of prominent journalists in 2000 and 2001 have yet to be prosecuted. These factors contribute to an atmosphere of lawlessness that drives many in the media from the country or into hiding.
The conditions for working journalists have declined even further in recent years, as antigovernment protests, the murder of a prominent gang leader in late 2003, and, soon after, the ouster of President Jean-Bertrand Aristide in early 2004, have all led to political and gang violence. Press advocacy groups have noted a range of harassment and violence against both Haitian and foreign journalists, including death threats, arson, and attacks with stones, machetes, and gunfire targeting journalists in Cap Haitien, Port-au-Prince, and other cities experiencing unrest.
The West Bank and Gaza
Particularly since the outbreak of the second Intifada ("Uprising" or "Shaking Off"), in late 2000, the West Bank and Gaza have been a dangerous and unpredictable place for journalists. Restrictions on movement and speech, harassment from hostile populations, and targeted, even lethal violence confront media workers from all sides.
Israeli authorities are criticized by press freedom advocates for a variety of reasons. Israeli Defense Forces (IDF) restrict the movement of journalists, and have barred them from areas where they are engaged in active combat. They have also destroyed broadcast media operated by the Palestinian authority and arrested Palestinian journalists on charges of terrorism. Israeli authorities may also refuse to renew journalist credentials, particularly for Palestinians that Israel considers to be security risks. Most important, however, are the shootings of journalists who are either caught in the crossfire of conflict zones, or, critics say, hit by indiscriminate or even intentional gunfire or artillery from IDF soldiers. Three such deaths occurred last year, many more have been wounded, and Israeli soldiers are rarely punished for these casualties.
For their part, the Palestinians have also imposed limits on and shown aggression toward journalists. Official Palestinian broadcast media are government-run propaganda outlets, and Palestinian militias and armed groups have raided and ransacked news offices. Armed Palestinians have threatened and assaulted journalists who report critically of the Palestinian Authority and its officials, and have warned Israeli journalists to stay out of Palestinian areas. The Palestinian Authority has also passed laws criminalizing the publication of "secret information" or other material considered harmful to the national unity. And, finally, there are the threats to media from Palestinian and Israeli populations themselves. Both Jewish settlers and militant Palestinians have assaulted journalists and confiscated photographic film, footage, and other materials, particularly when journalists are perceived as likely to portray them in unsympathetic ways. Western news organizations, many of which rely on Palestinian journalists, have denounced these and other actions on both sides.
Russia
Russia is yet another country where a free press is upheld in the language of the constitution, but the reality is one of state control of expression, concentration of media in the hands of the very few and very rich, and violence against journalists who report on crime and corruption.
Vladimir Putin's tenure has been marked by firm and incremental moves by the state against press freedom and independence. In some cases, the Putin government's strategies are relatively direct, such as strict controls on reporting in Chechnya. Other approaches -- such as the targeting of journalists with politically-motivated libel suits, or hostile takeovers of key media outlets by businessmen with close ties to Putin himself -- are more subtle, yet consistent and effective strategies for ensuring that the state influence permeates the media at all levels.
The strategy has resulted in the takeover of a prominent and outspoken, independent, national television station and the consolidation of newspaper and magazine ownership under a handful of powerful oligarchs. While an independent press does exist in Russia, the overall effect has been to stifle criticism of Putin and his regime on key issues like government corruption and abuses in Chechnya. Media support for the Putin government was particularly evident in the parliamentary elections in spring of 2004, during which Russian press groups complained of state-dominated television's promotion of the pro-Kremlin parties.
The right to free expression is more flagrantly violated at the local level, where journalists who report on corrupt politicians and organized crime are routinely harassed, attacked, and sometimes murdered, with generally only a perfunctory and thoroughly flawed prosecution to follow. A noteworthy case is the murder of the editor-in-chief of an independent newspaper in Togliatti, an industrial city in the Volga River region, in October of 2003. It was the second murder of the editor of the very same publication in less than two years. The following investigation has been denounced as a sham.
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