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Abdel Dayem, China, CPJ, Iran, jailed, journalists, Mohamed Abdel Dayem, Reuters, www.cpj.org
The number of journalists imprisoned around the world is at its highest level since 1996, the Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ) says in a new census.
The New York based CPJ identified 145 reporters, editors and photo-journalists held behind bars on December 1, an increase of nine over the 2009 tally, and blamed the increase on what it called China’s “brutal suppression of ethnic journalism” and Iran’s “sustained crackdown on critical voices.”
“With 34 imprisoned journalists apiece, China and Iran are responsible for nearly half of the worldwide total,” the CPJ reported. Eritrea (17), Burma (13) and Uzbekistan (6) were the other worst jailers from among the 28 nations that imprison journalists. At least 64 freelance journalists were behind bars worldwide. Continue reading