14 Years After The Disappearance Of Journalist Prageeth Ekneligoda, His Family Continue The Fight For Answers
On 24 January 2010, just two days before a crucial presidential election in Sri Lanka, journalist Prageeth Ekneligoda disappeared. Since then, his wife, Sandya Ekneligoda, has tirelessly fought for a thorough investigation and for those responsible to be brought to justice. Yet, to date, no effective investigation has been carried out and no perpetrators have […]
Landmark Ruling in Uruguay: Court Dismisses $450k SLAPP Suit Against La Diaria
Leer en español By Edison Lanza and Matías Jackson A recent first instance ruling by a Civil Court in Montevideo (Uruguay) dismissed a damages lawsuit with characteristics of a Strategic Lawsuit Against Public Participation (SLAPP) filed against the print and digital media outlet La Diaria. After a civil process that took two years, the landmark […]
Una sentencia ofrece argumentos para desestimar acciones SLAPP en Uruguay
Read in English Por Edison Lanza y Matías Jackson Una reciente sentencia de primera instancia dictada por un Juzgado Letrado en lo Civil de Montevideo (Uruguay) desestimó una demanda de daños y perjuicios con características de un litigio estratégico contra la participación pública (SLAPP por su sigla en inglés) interpuesta contra el medio escrito y […]
Media Defence intervenes at ECtHR on question of when entry ban brings journalist within banning state’s jurisdiction
Media Defence has intervened at the ECtHR on a question of when an entry ban brings a journalist within banning state’s jurisdiction. The case involves a Russian national residing in Finland following a granting of refugee status in 2012. The Latvian government imposed an entry ban on the applicant in 2022 on grounds of national […]
Azerbaijan held liable for blocking Radio Free Europe’s websites by ECtHR
The case relates to the blocking of RFE’s websites in 2017, and was one of four separate cases involving website blocking that were considered by the European Court of Human Rights (‘ECtHR’). The websites were blocked with immediate effect, pending an application for a court order by the relevant government agency. According to the government, […]
Media Defence Files Intervention at European Court to Protect Anonymity Online
Media Defence has filed a third-party intervention before the European Court of Human Rights in the case of Koumiotis v Greece to protect anonymity online. The case concerns criminal proceedings against the applicant, the owner and manager of an online blog. The applicant, following a series of posts criticising a businessman, was convicted of slanderous defamation. The […]
Landmark Ruling: Kenya’s High Court Declares Colonial-era Subversion Laws Unconstitutional
Media Defence welcomes the verdict of the High Court in Nakuru, striking down sections of the Kenyan Penal Code which criminalise subversion, citing them as relics of colonial oppression that curtail freedom of expression. Justice Samwel Mohochi, delivering the judgment, asserted that these provisions were overly broad and vague, stifling dissent rather than serving any […]
UN Rapporteurs Call for Protection of Brazilian Journalist Schirlei Alves
UN Rapporteurs Call for Protection of Brazilian Journalist Schirlei Alves Amid Defamation Charges Stemming from Rape Trial Coverage A letter dispatched by UN rapporteurs to the Brazilian Government calls for protective measures for women journalists covering cases of sexual crimes. The letter also denounces the conviction of Brazilian investigative journalist and women’s rights defender, Schirlei […]
Media Defence et l’Impact Lab pour l’Etat de droit de Stanford Law School saisissent la Cour de justice de la CEDEAO contre les coupures d’internet ordonnées par l’Etat sénégalais
Le recours au nom d’AfricTivistes et de deux journalistes sénégalais vise à obtenir des mesures provisoires pour empêcher de nouvelles coupures d’Internet READ IN ENGLISH Dakar, le 13 février 2024 – Media Defence et le Rule of Law Impact Lab de la Stanford Law School ont déposé un recours devant la Cour de justice […]
Media Defence and SLS’s Rule of Law Impact Lab File Case Before ECOWAS Court Challenging Senegal Internet Shutdowns
Filing on behalf of AfricTivistes and Two Senegalese Journalists Seeks Interim Measures to Prevent Internet Shutdowns. READ IN FRENCH Dakar, February 13, 2024 – Media Defence and the Rule of Law Impact Lab at Stanford Law School have filed a lawsuit before the Community Court of Justice of the Economic Community of West […]
Claudia Julieta Duque: Ex agente del DAS condenado por torturas a periodista colombiana
Durante años, la periodista Claudia Julieta Duque fue sometida a una prolongada campaña de tortura psicológica a manos de la extinta policía secreta colombiana, el Departamento Administrativo de Seguridad (DAS). Desde 2001, Duque se enfrentó a una persecución implacable, desde el secuestro hasta la incesante invasión de su intimidad, pasando por la vigilancia ilegal de […]
Claudia Duque: Former DAS agent convicted for torture of Colombian journalist
For over two decades journalist Claudia Duque was subjected to a prolonged campaign of psychological torture at the hands of the now-defunct Colombian secret police, the Department of Security (DAS). Since 2001, Duque faced relentless persecution — from kidnapping to the ceaseless invasion of her privacy, encompassing illegal surveillance of phone calls, emails, and bank […]