http://www.rferl.org/archive/Watchdog/latest/646/646.html "Watchdog" is a blog with a singular mission -- to monitor the latest developments concerning human rights, civil society, and press freedom. http://www.rferl.org/img/rssLogo_RFERL.gif http://www.rferl.org/archive/Watchdog/latest/646/646.html en-US Copyright 2010 - RFE/RL, Inc. 60 Fri, 24 May 2013 16:44:47 +0000 Pangea CMS – RFE/RL Berik Zhaghyparov pleaded not guilty, saying he was at the protest in Astana as an independent journalist to cover the event. http://www.rferl.org/content/kazakhstan-journalist-sentenced-protest/24995812.html http://www.rferl.org/content/kazakhstan-journalist-sentenced-protest/24995812.html Fri, 24 May 2013 07:30:14 +0000 Watchdog Ukrainian Prime Minister Mykola Azarov has rescinded his decision to bar 10 journalists from covering cabinet meetings. http://www.rferl.org/content/ukraine-journalists-protest/24994764.html http://www.rferl.org/content/ukraine-journalists-protest/24994764.html Thu, 23 May 2013 08:41:45 +0000 Ukraine A man suspected in the beating of two journalists in Kyiv on May 18 has been released on bail. http://www.rferl.org/content/ukraine-prime-minister-azarov-bars-journalists/24993955.html http://www.rferl.org/content/ukraine-prime-minister-azarov-bars-journalists/24993955.html Wed, 22 May 2013 13:18:17 +0000 Ukraine A Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty (RFE/RL) correspondent based in Turkmenistan has been freed after being detained by police earlier this month. http://www.rferl.org/content/rferl-turkmen-correspondent/24993898.html http://www.rferl.org/content/rferl-turkmen-correspondent/24993898.html Wed, 22 May 2013 12:41:24 +0000 Turkmenistan RFE/RL's Turkmen Service A Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty (RFE/RL) correspondent, who was detained in Kazakhstan's capital, Astana, while covering a protest, has been released after spending several hours in custody. http://www.rferl.org/content/kazakhstan-rferl-correspondent-detained/24993590.html http://www.rferl.org/content/kazakhstan-rferl-correspondent-detained/24993590.html Wed, 22 May 2013 09:04:41 +0000 Kazakhstan RFE/RL's Kazakh Service A leading press freedom organization in Afghanistan has demanded an investigation into the killing of a journalist who was found dead after being missing for weeks. http://www.rferl.org/content/afghanistan-journalist-murder-probe/24992970.html http://www.rferl.org/content/afghanistan-journalist-murder-probe/24992970.html Tue, 21 May 2013 15:08:02 +0000 Afghanistan RFE/RL's Radio Free Afghanistan Human Rights Watch says the number of Afghan women and girls jailed for "moral crimes" has risen by 50 percent in the past 18 months. http://www.rferl.org/content/afghanistan-moral-crimes-women-girls/24992922.html http://www.rferl.org/content/afghanistan-moral-crimes-women-girls/24992922.html Tue, 21 May 2013 14:32:24 +0000 Afghanistan A man suspected of beating two journalists in Kyiv on May 18 has been arrested. http://www.rferl.org/content/ukraine-attack-journalists-suspect-arrested/24992580.html http://www.rferl.org/content/ukraine-attack-journalists-suspect-arrested/24992580.html Tue, 21 May 2013 10:30:18 +0000 Ukraine RFE/RL's Ukrainian Service Four men have been arrested in Georgia in connection with the violence last week that disrupted a planned gay-rights demonstration in Tbilisi. http://www.rferl.org/content/georgia-men-arrested-antigay-violence/24992466.html http://www.rferl.org/content/georgia-men-arrested-antigay-violence/24992466.html Tue, 21 May 2013 09:01:06 +0000 Georgia Jailed Pussy Riot member Maria Alyokhina has had one of two prison reprimands dismissed. http://www.rferl.org/content/pussy-riot-appeal-reprimand-alyokhina/24991191.html http://www.rferl.org/content/pussy-riot-appeal-reprimand-alyokhina/24991191.html Mon, 20 May 2013 08:00:42 +0000 Russia RFE/RL's Russian Service Azerbaijani scholar Khalida Khalid and her driver have been released following weeks in Iranian custody after their detention at the home of an ethnic Azeri activist. http://www.rferl.org/content/iran-azerbaijan-halid-detention-release/24991169.html http://www.rferl.org/content/iran-azerbaijan-halid-detention-release/24991169.html Mon, 20 May 2013 07:33:45 +0000 Iran RFE/RL's Azerbaijani Service A European Union delegation has raised with Turkmen officials the case of a detained RFE/RL correspondent. http://www.rferl.org/content/turkmenistan-rferl-correspondent/24989415.html http://www.rferl.org/content/turkmenistan-rferl-correspondent/24989415.html Fri, 17 May 2013 15:22:13 +0000 Turkmenistan A court in Baku has charged a young Facebook activist with hooliganism over a controversial "Harlem Shake" video. http://www.rferl.org/content/azerbaijan-activist-harlem-shake/24989279.html http://www.rferl.org/content/azerbaijan-activist-harlem-shake/24989279.html Fri, 17 May 2013 13:46:08 +0000 Azerbaijan RFE/RL's Azerbaijani Service Azerbaijan's parliament has legalized tighter Internet controls in a move the country's opposition groups fear could be used to curb online dissent. http://www.rferl.org/content/azerbaijan-slander-law-passed/24986131.html http://www.rferl.org/content/azerbaijan-slander-law-passed/24986131.html Tue, 14 May 2013 16:57:51 +0000 Azerbaijan Kazakhstan's Bureau for Human Rights has criticized authorities for placing a journalist in a psychiatric clinic. http://www.rferl.org/content/kazakhstan-rights-group-journalist-psychiatric-clinic/24986089.html http://www.rferl.org/content/kazakhstan-rights-group-journalist-psychiatric-clinic/24986089.html Tue, 14 May 2013 16:11:07 +0000 Kazakhstan RFE/RL's Kazakh Service In Azerbaijan, there's been an outcry after photos of detained youth activists cleaning toilets were posted on the Internet. The activists and their supporters have called the photos a “provocation” and an act aimed at discrediting them. http://www.rferl.org/content/azerbaijan-activists-toilets/24985873.html http://www.rferl.org/content/azerbaijan-activists-toilets/24985873.html Tue, 14 May 2013 13:49:32 +0000 Watchdog http://www.rferl.org/content/azerbaijan-activists-toilets/24985873.html#relatedInfoContainer Lukpan Akhmedyarov, a reporter for the "Uralskaya nedelya" weekly, was left in serious condition when he was stabbed and shot with an air pistol in April 2012. http://www.rferl.org/content/kazakhstan-trial-attack-journalist/24985588.html http://www.rferl.org/content/kazakhstan-trial-attack-journalist/24985588.html Tue, 14 May 2013 10:11:48 +0000 Kazakhstan RFE/RL's Kazakh Service In a statement on May 13, the Office of the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights quoted human rights expert El Hadji Malick Sow as saying the Baha'i leaders are imprisoned "solely for managing the religious and administrative affairs of their community." http://www.rferl.org/content/iran-bahai-rights-un/24985020.html http://www.rferl.org/content/iran-bahai-rights-un/24985020.html Mon, 13 May 2013 18:51:37 +0000 Iran RFE/RL The human rights groups Amnesty International and Reporters Without Borders (RSF) have released statements warning that detained RFE/RL Turkmen correspondent Rovshan Yazmuhamedov is at risk of torture. http://www.rferl.org/content/turkmenistan-rferl-reporter-detained/24982709.html http://www.rferl.org/content/turkmenistan-rferl-reporter-detained/24982709.html Fri, 10 May 2013 18:37:37 +0000 Turkmenistan RFE/RL An RFE/RL correspondent has been detained in Azerbaijan while reporting on a land dispute protest by villagers in the Imisli district near the border with Iran. http://www.rferl.org/content/azerbaijan-rferl-reporter-arrested/24982332.html http://www.rferl.org/content/azerbaijan-rferl-reporter-arrested/24982332.html Fri, 10 May 2013 12:30:36 +0000 Azerbaijan RFE/RL's Azerbaijani Service An RFE/RL correspondent based in Turkmenistan's northeastern city of Turkmenabat has been detained by local police. http://www.rferl.org/content/turkmenistan-rferl-correspondent-detained/24981293.html http://www.rferl.org/content/turkmenistan-rferl-correspondent-detained/24981293.html Thu, 09 May 2013 12:07:46 +0000 Turkmenistan RFE/RL's Turkmen Service An opposition activist in Belarus has been detained by police just days after finishing a 12-day jail term. http://www.rferl.org/content/belarus-activist-detained-again/24981048.html http://www.rferl.org/content/belarus-activist-detained-again/24981048.html Thu, 09 May 2013 08:59:12 +0000 Belarus RFE/RL's Belarus Service The Council of Europe -- a continental body that promotes the rule of law and democracy -- has expressed its concerns over recent amendments to Moldova's major laws. http://www.rferl.org/content/moldova-amendments-council-of-europe-/24978274.html http://www.rferl.org/content/moldova-amendments-council-of-europe-/24978274.html Mon, 06 May 2013 14:03:14 +0000 Moldova RFE/RL While Freedom House classifies 13 of RFE/RL's broadcast countries as "not free," and Reporters Without Borders (RSF) puts three of RFE/RL’s broadcast countries squarely in the worst category, RFE/RL journalists are still on the ground, determined to report the news. http://www.rferl.org/content/press-freedom-/24975932.html http://www.rferl.org/content/press-freedom-/24975932.html Fri, 03 May 2013 13:26:04 +0000 Watchdog http://www.rferl.org/content/press-freedom-/24975932.html#relatedInfoContainer EU Commissioner for Enlargement and Neighborhood Policy Stefan Fuele says Azerbaijan must continue to meet its commitments on advancing democracy and human rights. http://www.rferl.org/content/azerbaijan-eu-fuele-visit/24975933.html http://www.rferl.org/content/azerbaijan-eu-fuele-visit/24975933.html Fri, 03 May 2013 13:11:40 +0000 Azerbaijan RFE/RL's Azerbaijani Service May 3 was proclaimed World Press Freedom Day by the United Nations General Assembly in 1993. http://www.rferl.org/content/world-press-freedom-day/24975281.html http://www.rferl.org/content/world-press-freedom-day/24975281.html Fri, 03 May 2013 01:12:36 +0000 News RFE/RL The Azerbaijani presidential administration's Ali Hasanov had a saucy sound bite ready as World Press Freedom Day rolled around. If by "no media outlet" Hasanov meant "virtually no media outlet still standing," he might have a point. http://www.rferl.org/content/azerbaijan-press-freedom/24975109.html http://www.rferl.org/content/azerbaijan-press-freedom/24975109.html Thu, 02 May 2013 15:52:09 +0000 Watchdog http://www.rferl.org/content/azerbaijan-press-freedom/24975109.html#relatedInfoContainer The media freedom representative of the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE) has criticized Azerbaijan for not living up to its commitments to decriminalize defamation. http://www.rferl.org/content/osce-azerbaijan-defamation/24974994.html http://www.rferl.org/content/osce-azerbaijan-defamation/24974994.html Thu, 02 May 2013 14:29:09 +0000 Azerbaijan RFE/RL Media freedom throughout the world declined last year to its lowest point in almost a decade, according to a new report from Freedom House, a U.S.-based democracy-monitoring organization. http://www.rferl.org/content/freedom-house-media-freedom-low-point/24974229.html http://www.rferl.org/content/freedom-house-media-freedom-low-point/24974229.html Wed, 01 May 2013 18:16:04 +0000 News RFE/RL A U.S. government advisory body says that Iran, Iraq, Pakistan, Uzbekistan, Tajikistan, and Turkmenistan are among the world's worst violators of religious freedom. http://www.rferl.org/content/religious-freedom-us-iran-iraq-pakistan-uzbekistan-tajikistan-turkmenistan/24973030.html http://www.rferl.org/content/religious-freedom-us-iran-iraq-pakistan-uzbekistan-tajikistan-turkmenistan/24973030.html Tue, 30 Apr 2013 14:48:23 +0000 News Richard Solash The leader of the organization Civil Society, Mohiniso Horisova, told RFE/RL that she plans to appeal the court's decision to close her NGO. http://www.rferl.org/content/tajikistan-ngo-human-rights/24972595.html http://www.rferl.org/content/tajikistan-ngo-human-rights/24972595.html Tue, 30 Apr 2013 09:58:50 +0000 Tajikistan RFE/RL's Tajik Service A court in Minsk has sentenced two independent Belarusian journalists to three days in jail. http://www.rferl.org/content/belarus-chornobyl-journalists-sentenced/24972591.html http://www.rferl.org/content/belarus-chornobyl-journalists-sentenced/24972591.html Tue, 30 Apr 2013 09:52:59 +0000 Belarus RFE/RL's Belarus Service The European Court of Human Rights has ruled that the detention of former Ukrainian Prime Minister Yulia Tymoshenko before and during her trial on abuse-of-office charges was arbitrary and a violation of her rights. http://www.rferl.org/content/tymoshenko-strasbourg-rights/24972538.html http://www.rferl.org/content/tymoshenko-strasbourg-rights/24972538.html Tue, 30 Apr 2013 09:19:47 +0000 Ukraine RFE/RL Preliminary hearings have taken place against four men in the western Kazakh city of Oral who are charged with attacking a prominent journalist. http://www.rferl.org/content/trial-date-set-trial-akhmedyrov/24971911.html http://www.rferl.org/content/trial-date-set-trial-akhmedyrov/24971911.html Mon, 29 Apr 2013 14:51:01 +0000 Kazakhstan RFE/RL's Kazakh Service Prominent Russian gay rights activist Aleksei Kiselyov has reportedly been granted political asylum in Spain. http://www.rferl.org/content/russia-gay-rights-asylum-spain/24969164.html http://www.rferl.org/content/russia-gay-rights-asylum-spain/24969164.html Fri, 26 Apr 2013 08:44:14 +0000 Russia A court in the Russian region of Mordovia is hearing a request for parole from Nadezhda Tolokonnikova, one of two members of the feminist performance-art group Pussy Riot. http://www.rferl.org/content/russia-pussy-riot-parole/24969090.html http://www.rferl.org/content/russia-pussy-riot-parole/24969090.html Fri, 26 Apr 2013 07:29:40 +0000 Russia Well-known Iranian human rights activist Kouhyar Goudarzi recently fled Iran. He tells RFE/RL about the pressures that contributed to his decision to finally leave his homeland. http://www.rferl.org/content/iran-activist-goudarzi-flees/24968084.html http://www.rferl.org/content/iran-activist-goudarzi-flees/24968084.html Thu, 25 Apr 2013 09:07:37 +0000 Persian Letters http://www.rferl.org/content/iran-activist-goudarzi-flees/24968084.html#relatedInfoContainer