 RFE/RL Watchdog 9/20/2010 4:53:04 PM A blog of human rights, media freedom, and democracy developments from RFE/RL's broadcast region. For more, please visit and bookmark Watchdog . |
 Russian Provincial Governor Sues Journalist For Libel The governor of the Altai Republic in western Siberia has filed a libel lawsuit against a local journalist. More  Hope For Jailed Iranian Baha'is After Sentences 'Reduced' A Baha'i International Community representative says she hopes seven jailed Iranian Baha'i leaders will now get a proper appeal hearing after their sentences were reportedly halved. More  Tajik Officials 'Targeting Islamic Dress' A branch of the opposition Islamic Renaissance Party (IRP) in the southern Tajik city of Kulob has complained that authorities are pressuring women who wear the hijab, the Islamic head scarf. More  Iran Activist Allowed Jail Visit Hunger-striking Iranian political activist Arjang Davudi has been allowed to see his wife for the first time since his prison protest started two months ago. More  VOA Freelancer Denies Uzbek Charges Abdumalik Boboev, a freelancer for VOA's Uzbek Service, is charged with slander, distributing materials that pose a threat to public order, and illegally crossing Uzbekistan's state border. More  Russian NGOs Get Document Demand Some 20 Russian human rights organizations and nongovernmental organizations have been ordered to submit various financial and internal documents to Moscow's Prosecutor-General's Office. More  Rights Groups Decry Kyrgyz Sentence International human rights groups have condemned a court in Kyrgyzstan's sentencing of an ethnic Uzbek human rights activist to life in prison. More  Press Award Dedicated To Jailed Iranians Prominent Iranian journalist and dissident Akbar Ganji has dedicated a press freedom award to journalists and bloggers imprisoned in Iran. More  Religious Scholar In Iran Detained After Prosecutor Visit Noted Iranian religious scholar Ahmad Ghabel has been detained after appearing at the Revolutionary Prosecutor's Office in Mashad. More  Afghan's Female Candidates Urge Kabul To Ensure Fair Elections Women running for seats in the Afghan parliament have called on the government to prevent electoral fraud and corruption less than one week before nationwide elections. More  Belarusian Activist Fined For Distributing Independent Newspapers A Belarusian activist in the central city of Salihorsk has been fined around $400 by a court for distributing independent newspapers. More  Iran Reformists Criticize Guards Chief Iran's largest reform party has written an open letter to Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) Commander Mohammad Ali Jafari accusing him of responsibility "for the oppression and catastrophes" following the disputed 2009 presidential election. More Misri Khan, president of the journalists association in Hangu district of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Province, was shot dead early today as he was entering the press club. His family suspects the attack was related to Khan's reporting. More  EU Deputies Press For Action On Beslan Mothers Three members of the European Parliament (MEPs) who visited families of the victims of the 2004 Beslan school massacre at the beginning of September say they will press EU authorities to demand from Russia greater openness on the issue. More  Court Hears Kadyrov's Slander Case Against Rights Activist A Moscow court has begun hearing the defamation case against human rights activist Oleg Orlov. More  Prosecutors: Byabenin Could Have Been Killed Belarusian Deputy Prosecutor-General Andrei Shved says the Prosecutor-General's Office is checking several theories related to the death of journalist Aleh Byabenin, including suicide and murder. More  Raid On Wife Of Jailed Moldova Journalist The wife of a Moldovan journalist jailed on charges of espionage in the breakaway region of Transdniester says their apartment was raided by security officers. More  Exiled Ally Talks About Jailed Iranian Activist's Torture Allegations A fellow activist talks about jailed rights activist Abdollah Momeni and his reform-minded group following the publication by the International Campaign for Human Rights in Iran of a letter, addressed to Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei, in which Momeni describes being tortured, forced to make false confessions, and subjected to a "show trial." More  Russia Cop Charged In Protest Case A policeman who was captured on video beating a protester during a demonstration in St. Petersburg last month has been formally charged with two crimes. More  Iran Ayatollah Grants Women More Rights An Iranian grand ayatollah has ruled that it is not always necessary for a young woman to get a father or grandfather's permission to be married. More  Media Watchdogs Condemn Killing Of Iraqi TV Journalists Reporters Without Borders and the Committee to Protect Journalists have condemned the killings of two broadcast journalists in Iraq this week and urged Iraqi authorities to do more to protect media workers. More  Baha’is In Iran Await Justice For Demolished Homes, Graves Ferdosieh Nikoumanesh remembers a time when she and her family could live in peace as practicing Baha’is in the Iranian city of Ivel, where more than 50 Baha’i homes were demolished in June. More |
