What happened next: Reeyot Alemu, Ethiopia
“Knowing there are organisations working for justice gave me a great feeling.” – Six months after her release, we caught up with Reeyot to get her thoughts on freedom and the future for journalism in Ethiopia.
“If they’re going to try to shut us down, we have to fight back”
Latvian journalists Inga Springe and Nellija Locmele are fighting hard to keep media freedom alive in their country. Despite recent successes in court, legal threats remain and MLDI’s support is vital to these media outlets.
What happened next: Abel Chapatarongo, Lesotho
“My hope is to see thepost newspaper become an important reference point for Lesotho. We want to build it into a credible newspaper that truly plays its watchdog role, exposing excesses wherever they are found”.
“I shall defend Stand Up for Zambia to my grave”
Journalist Chanda Chimba III faces criminal charges from the Zambian government – and he’s convinced that they all lead back to his critical reporting of former president Michael Sata.
Letter From Vietnamese Blogger Dieu Cay
“Only when the people can freely express their political views without fear of suppression and imprisonment, then we can truly have a democratic society in which a life of freedom and happiness for all is guaranteed.”
“It’s like tactics in a war – they want to bleed us dry”
When Latvia’s leading newspaper was sold to faceless businessmen, its journalists resigned en masse and set up the independent magazine IR. We talked to editor-in-chief Nellija Locmele about the birth of IR and the controversial legal cases we’re now helping it to win.
“When you’ve got the most powerful man in Malaysia suing you…there’s no need to guess who’s going to win.”
While most mainstream media in Malaysia is government-controlled, news website Malaysiakini remains a fiercely independent voice for the people.
Angola: Award-Winning Journalist Faces Trial Over ‘Blood Diamonds’ Investigation
MLDI supports award-winning journalist Rafael Marques who faces trial on multiple charges of criminal defamation for his reporting on corruption and torture in Angola.
“Without MLDI, I would have applied for political asylum”
In Latvia, MLDI supports investigative journalist and whistle-blower Leonids Jakobsons in a criminal trial involving a powerful politician and the right to information. The case will set a precedent. The journalist is potentially facing a sentence of three years and a penalty which would mean personal bankruptcy.
“The big guys don’t care about winning – they want to damage the lives of journalists.”
Award-winning journalist Inga Springe is the founder of Re:Baltica – The Baltic Centre for Investigative Journalism, based in Riga, Latvia. We worked with Inga when Re:Baltica was sued for defamation in 2012. Here she describes what drives her and how she hopes to bring socially-responsible journalism back to Latvia.
News website sued over prison abuse claims
A respected Russian news website dedicated to reporting human rights issues has been sued by the regional Russian Federal Penitentiary Service. With support from MLDI, lawyers with The Mass Media Defence Centre are fighting the case.
YouTube – an internet freedom case that will impact on people throughout the Islamic world
“Working with MLDI, we were always more credible, more authentic, more confident”