Afghanistan, Vietnam, Russia named most dangerous for journalists: Report

Reporters Without Borders, cited by the Afghanistan-based Khaama Press, stated that Afghanistan, Vietnam, and Russia are the three countries where journalists face the most risk.

According to the report released on Sunday, there has been a great deal of oppression of the media in Afghanistan throughout the Taliban’s control. According to the report, journalists have been detained by the Taliban on suspicion of spying.

Reporters Without Border stated in their report that in 2023, there were at least 21 instances of arrests of journalists in Afghanistan. At least three journalists are still detained in “Taliban prison,” according to the report.

In 2023, 779 journalists have been imprisoned for a minimum of brief periods of time. Of these, 547 journalists are still incarcerated in different countries throughout the world, according to a research by Khaama Press.

According to a Khaama Press report, the Afghanistan Journalists Centre reported in its annual report on the state of journalism in the nation that it has documented 168 instances of infringement of journalists’ rights.

It went on to say that among the cases filed at this centre are those involving journalist deaths, injuries, threats, and arrests in Afghanistan. In addition, at least eight requests for prohibitions on media activity have been made in 2023.

According to the Afghanistan Journalists Centre, there were 61 documented instances of arrests of journalists in 2023, 78 occurrences of threats against journalists, one death, and 19 injuries among journalists, as reported by Khaama Press.

According to the Afghanistan Journalists Centre, “there is no change in terms of quality and structure, but there is a significant decrease in recorded cases of violation of the rights of journalists and the media in 2023 compared to the 260 events recorded in 2022,” TOLO News reported.

This is happening at the same time as journalists and media professionals are pleading with the Taliban to act decisively to address the ongoing problems that media people encounter in the Taliban-controlled nation.

Because of the Taliban’s severe controls, covering security-related events like explosions and suicide strikes has become incredibly laborious for journalists and media outlets in Afghanistan.

The Taliban pledged that the media would be allowed to function freely and independently throughout Afghanistan after taking control of the nation. A month later, new regulations were put in place, though, which closely monitor and control media outlets and journalists. After the first several weeks of Taliban control, the brief freedom of the media had vanished.

(With agency inputs)