The year 2022 has emerged as one of the most violent years against journalists, with increasing numbers of deaths and arrests, according to the new annual report by Reporters sans frontières (RSF).
A total of 57 journalists were killed, 18.8% more than last year, while at least 65 are held hostage and 49 are missing globally. The war in Ukraine was one of the factors that led to an increase in deaths of journalists. Most of the killings, however, occurred in Mexico and were not linked to conflict involvement, but to journalists being targeted by organised crime.
At the end of 2022, 533 journalists were held in prisons worldwide, 13.4% more than last year and the highest number to ever be recorded. The number of women journalists in detention was also unprecedented, reaching 78, nearly 30% higher compared to 2021.
With at least 100 journalists imprisoned, China remains the biggest jailer of journalists in the world, followed by Myanmar (62), Iran (47), Vietnam (39) and Belarus (31).
“Dictatorial and authoritarian regimes are filling their prisons faster than ever by jailing journalists”, stressed Christophe Deloire, RSF’s Secretary-General.
“This new record in the number of detained journalists confirms the pressing and urgent need to resist these unscrupulous governments and to extend our active solidarity to all those who embody the ideal of journalistic freedom, independence and pluralism” he noted.
Text: Stefaniya Ibrishimova