[Congressional Bills 118th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H. Res. 1192 Introduced in House (IH)]
<DOC>
118th CONGRESS
2d Session
H. RES. 1192
Recognizing widening threats to freedom of the press and free
expression around the world, reaffirming the vital role that a free and
independent press plays in countering the growing threats of
authoritarianism, misinformation, and disinformation, and reaffirming
freedom of the press as a priority of the United States Government in
promoting democracy, human rights, and good governance in commemoration
of World Press Freedom Day on May 3, 2024.
_______________________________________________________________________
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
May 2, 2024
Mr. Schiff submitted the following resolution; which was referred to
the Committee on Foreign Affairs
_______________________________________________________________________
RESOLUTION
Recognizing widening threats to freedom of the press and free
expression around the world, reaffirming the vital role that a free and
independent press plays in countering the growing threats of
authoritarianism, misinformation, and disinformation, and reaffirming
freedom of the press as a priority of the United States Government in
promoting democracy, human rights, and good governance in commemoration
of World Press Freedom Day on May 3, 2024.
Whereas the First Amendment to the Constitution and various State constitutions
protect freedom of the press in the United States;
Whereas Thomas Jefferson, who championed the necessity of a free press for a
thriving democratic society, wisely declared, ``Our liberty depends on
the freedom of the press, and that cannot be limited without being
lost'';
Whereas Article 19 of the United Nations Universal Declaration of Human Rights,
adopted in Paris on December 10, 1948, states, ``Everyone has the right
to freedom of opinion and expression; this right includes freedom to
hold opinions without interference and to seek, receive, and impart
information and ideas through any media and regardless of frontiers'';
Whereas, in 1993, the United Nations General Assembly proclaimed the third day
of May of each year to be ``World Press Freedom Day'' to--
(1) celebrate the fundamental principles of press freedom;
(2) evaluate press freedom around the world;
(3) defend the media against attacks on its independence; and
(4) pay tribute to journalists who have lost their lives while working
in their profession;
Whereas the Daniel Pearl Freedom of the Press Act of 2009 (Public Law 111-166)
expanded the examination of the freedom of the press around the world in
the annual Country Reports on Human Rights Practices published by the
Department of State;
Whereas, on December 18, 2013, and December 18, 2019, the United Nations General
Assembly adopted Resolution 68/163 and Resolution 74/157, respectively,
on the safety of journalists and the problem of impunity by
unequivocally condemning all attacks on, and violence against,
journalists and media workers, including torture, extrajudicial killing,
enforced disappearance, arbitrary detention, and intimidation and
harassment in conflict and nonconflict situations;
Whereas the United States Government has used the Global Magnitsky Human Rights
Accountability Act (subtitle F of title XII of Public Law 114-328) to
place targeted visa and economic sanctions on individuals, including for
their roles in the targeted killings of journalists;
Whereas, in an effort to counter attacks against journalists, Secretary of State
Antony J. Blinken, in February 2021, announced the Khashoggi Ban, a
policy allowing the Department of State to impose visa restrictions on
individuals who, acting on behalf of a foreign government, are believed
to have been directly engaged in serious, extraterritorial
counterdissident activities, including activities that suppress, harass,
surveil, threaten, or harm journalists, activists, or other persons
perceived to be dissidents for their work;
Whereas compiled data from Reporters Without Borders provides alarming
indications about growing divisions resulting from the spread of
disinformation with the potential to weaken democratic societies;
Whereas, according to Reporters Without Borders, a total of 521 journalists were
in prison and 84 were missing as of December 14, 2023;
Whereas, according to Reporters Without Borders, 45 journalists around the world
were killed in direct connection with their work in 2023;
Whereas Reporters Without Borders notes that punishments against women
journalists are increasing disproportionately, with the number of women
journalists in prison rising 30 percent in 2022, and with most of the
longest prison sentences handed down against journalists in 2023 coming
against women;
Whereas Freedom House's Freedom in the World 2024 report marked the 18th
consecutive year of decline in global freedom, with an estimated 38
percent of the global population living in countries deemed ``Not
Free'';
Whereas Freedom House's Freedom on the Net 2023 report marked the 13th
consecutive year of decline in global internet freedom, with people in
55 of the 70 countries covered facing legal repercussions for expressing
themselves online and people in 41 countries facing physical assaults or
death for their online commentary;
Whereas infringement on freedom of expression, including media freedom, has been
one of the key drivers of declines in global freedom over the last 50
years, including attacks and prosecutions against journalists, pressure
on media outlets, repressive regulatory and legal frameworks, internet
shutdowns, efforts to undermine strong encryption, and blocks on online
sources of information;
Whereas, over the last 18 years, the number of countries and territories
receiving a 0 out of 4 on Freedom in the World's media freedom indicator
has dramatically grown from 14 to 36;
Whereas journalists and media staff are being murdered, imprisoned, attacked,
and harassed around the world, and the Committee to Protect Journalists
(CPJ) has reported that--
(1) at least 99 journalists and media workers were killed around the
world in 2023, including 72 killed during the hostilities in Gaza starting
October 7, 2023, and in addition, at least 18 journalists have been killed
in 2024 as of March 5;
(2) the vast majority of murders of journalists occur with impunity,
with nearly 80 percent of the perpetrators of 261 murders of journalists
from September 1, 2013, to August 31, 2023, facing no punishment;
(3) 320 journalists were behind bars in 2023, with the People's
Republic of China (PRC), Burma, Belarus, Russia, Vietnam, Iran, Israel,
Eritrea, Egypt, and Turkey jailing the highest numbers of journalists
respectively; and
(4) journalists and media outlets around the world have been targeted
by government actors with sophisticated spyware products that pose a severe
risk to their privacy and security as well as that of their sources and
families;
Whereas, according to PEN America, more than 325 writers and public
intellectuals, including columnists and editorial journalists, were
imprisoned across 37 different countries during 2023;
Whereas the censorship, victimization, and killing of journalists around the
world and particularly in conflict zones has obvious and profound
implications for the ability of the public, including the United States
public, to be informed, including about conflicts with local, regional,
and global ramifications;
Whereas, since the start of Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February
2022, Reporters Without Borders has documented attacks directly
targeting journalists, including--
(1) the killing of 11 Ukrainian and accredited international
journalists and media workers by Russian Armed Forces;
(2) the torture by electric shock, beatings, and mock executions of
journalists working for the international press;
(3) the targeted kidnappings of journalists and their families in
occupied regions of Ukraine to put pressure on their reporting;
(4) the deliberate attacks targeting media facilities; and
(5) the near-universal censorship, imprisonment, or exile of Russia's
independent news media;
Whereas, in the Ukrainian territory of Crimea, 88 percent of media outlets
active before 2014 had ceased operating by 2015, and Ukrainian
journalists and bloggers have repeatedly been threatened, arbitrarily
arrested, and tortured for resisting Russian occupation, such as the
detentions and imprisonments of Vladyslav Yesypenko, Iryna Danylovych,
Amet Suleimanov, Asan Akhmetov, Marlen Asanov, Nariman Celal, Oleksiy
Bessarabov, Osman Arifmemetov, Remzi Bekirov, Ruslan Suleimanov, Rustem
Sheikhaliev, Server Mustafayev, Seyran Saliev, Timur Ibragimov, Vilen
Temeryanov, and Lutfiye Zudiyeva;
Whereas Ukrainian journalists Viktoria Roshchina, Iryna Levchenko, and Dmytro
Khilyuk remain in the custody of Russian forces after their full-scale
invasion of Ukraine in 2022;
Whereas journalists and media workers face heightened dangers in Russia, such as
harassment, repression, censorship, and imprisonment, with 30
journalists and 4 media workers imprisoned as of March 27, 2024,
according to Reporters Without Borders, including--
(1) Evan Gershkovich, a United States citizen and reporter with the
Wall Street Journal, who has been wrongfully detained on baseless espionage
charges since March 29, 2023, and faces up to 20 years in jail;
(2) Alsu Kurmasheva, a Russian-American journalist for congressionally
funded Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty, who was arrested for violating the
``Foreign Agent'' law and has since been charged for violating Article
207.3 of Russia's Criminal Code, which effectively criminalizes reporting
about Russia's war in Ukraine;
(3) Ivan Safronov, a correspondent with Russian business dailies
Kommersant and Vedomosti, who was sentenced to 22 years in jail on treason
charges in September 2022;
(4) Sergey Mikhaylov, publisher of independent newspaper Listok, who
was arrested for allegedly spreading false information about the Russian
military in April 2022;
(5) Mikhail Afanasyev, editor-in-chief of the online magazine Novy
Fokus, who was arrested and charged with allegedly spreading false
information about the Russian military in April 2022;
(6) Novaya Gazeta, a landmark independent newspaper founded in 1993,
which--
G (A) suspended operations in Russia in March 2022 after receiving
warnings from the authorities citing the country's ``Foreign Agent'' law;
and
G (B) was stripped of its print and online media licenses in
September 2022;
(7) Meduza, a leading independent bilingual news website based outside
of Russia, which--
G (A) was designated by Russian authorities in January 2023 as an
``undesirable organization'' under the 2015 Undesirable Organization Law;
and
G (B) was banned from operating in the Russian Federation;
(8) Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty, an independent nonprofit media
outlet, which was designated by Russian authorities in February 2024 as an
``undesirable organization'' under the 2015 Undesirable Organization Law;
and
(9) RusNews, an independent news website with few remaining
correspondents in Russia, whose journalists--
G (A) Maria Ponomarenko was sentenced to 6 years in prison for
allegedly spreading false information about the Russian military on
February 15, 2023, and is facing a second criminal charge for alleged
violation of prison rules;
G (B) Roman Ivanov was sentenced on March 6, 2024, to 7 years in
prison for allegedly disseminating false news on the war in Ukraine; and
G (C) Igor Kuznetsov, who has been in detention since September
2021, was given a 3-year suspended sentence on alleged extremism charges on
March 20, 2024, but remains in detention over a second court case for
allegedly inciting mass disturbances in group chats on Telegram, for which
a prosecutor in December 2023 requested a 9-year jail sentence;
Whereas Russian authorities continue harassing and prosecuting journalists in
exile, including--
(1) exiled Russian journalists Ruslan Leviev and Michael Nacke, who
were each sentenced in absentia to 11 years in prison in August 2023 for
allegedly distributing ``fake'' information about the Russian military;
(2) exiled Russian journalist Denis Kamalyagin, editor-in-chief of the
exiled Russian newspaper Pskovskaya Guberniya, who was charged in late 2023
with failing to comply with the foreign agent law and with discrediting the
Russian army; and
(3) United States-based Russian-United States journalist and writer
Masha Gessen, against whom Russia issued an arrest warrant in 2023 for
allegedly spreading ``fake'' information about the Russian army;
Whereas other Russian journalists living in exile have also been targets of
harassment, surveillance, and suspected poisoning, including--
(1) exiled Russian journalists Elena Kostyuchenko and Irina Babloyan,
who reported in August 2023 that they may have been poisoned in Germany and
Georgia, respectively;
(2) Prague-based IStories' reporters Alesya Marokhovskaya and Irina
Dolinina, who received threats and fear they have been under surveillance;
and
(3) Galina Timchenko, the Latvia-based head of Meduza, whose phone was
infected by Pegasus, a form of zero-click spyware produced by the Israeli
company NSO Group, while she was in Germany in February 2023;
Whereas, according to CPJ, the PRC had detained at least 44 journalists, as of
December 1, 2023, is the world's largest jailer of journalists according
to Reporters Without Borders, and has unleashed an onslaught of attacks
on press freedom in the PRC and Hong Kong, including through--
(1) state-sponsored censorship and disinformation campaigns limiting
access to information which runs contrary to Chinese Communist Party
propaganda narratives, and censoring politically sensitive keywords on
social media platforms;
(2) the passage and implementation of legislation which severely
curtails press freedom in Hong Kong, including the National Security Law of
June 2020 and Article 23 of the Basic Law of March 2024, both of which pose
an existential threat to the city's tradition of press freedom;
(3) harassment, intimidation, arrest, and imprisonment of journalists
in Hong Kong, including the arrest and subsequent conviction of journalist
and outspoken democracy advocate Jimmy Lai, as well as the closure of his
once widely popular Chinese-language newspaper, Apple Daily;
(4) arrests or other repressive actions against independent journalists
and others in mainland China attempting to share uncensored news or opinion
about current affairs, including Sophia Huang Xueqin, who has written about
women's rights and the protests in Hong Kong, was detained arbitrarily in
September 2021, and went on trial in September 2023 on charges of
``inciting subversion of state power'', and whose current status remains
unknown, and citizen journalist Zhang Zhan, who provided uncensored news
regarding the COVID outbreak in Wuhan and has been imprisoned since May
2020 on politically motivated charges of ``picking quarrels and provoking
trouble'';
(5) the detention of journalists critical of the Government of the PRC,
including Ruan Xiaohuan, who, after blogging about programming and
politics, was sentenced to a 7-year term of imprisonment in early 2023,
following 21 months of detention; and
(6) the continued detention of Uyghur journalists, who account for
nearly 50 percent of imprisoned journalists in the PRC, including Ilham
Tohti, founder of the news website Uighurbiz, who was detained in 2014 and
is serving a life sentence;
Whereas Belarus has witnessed sweeping attacks against the press since Alexander
Lukashenko's fraudulent election in August 2020, with journalists and
media workers harassed, assaulted, and imprisoned, with 22 journalists
imprisoned as of December 1, 2023, according to CPJ, including--
(1) Katsiaryna Andreyeva, a correspondent with Poland-based independent
broadcaster Belsat TV, who, while serving a 2-year prison term for filming
a live broadcast of the violent dispersal of a protest against Lukashenko
in November 2020, was sentenced to 8 additional years in prison on treason
charges in July 2022;
(2) Ksenia Lutskina, a former correspondent for the state broadcaster
Belteleradio, who was sentenced to 8 years in prison on charges of
conspiring to seize state power in September 2022, and is not receiving
appropriate medical care despite having a preexisting brain tumor which has
grown during her detention;
(3) Maryna Zolatava, chief editor of independent news website Tut.by,
who was sentenced to 12 years in prison on charges of incitement to hatred
and distributing materials calling for actions aimed at harming national
security in March 2023;
(4) Andrey Kuznechyk, a journalist who, while working for Radio Free
Europe/Radio Liberty, was detained in November 2021, and sentenced in June
2022 to 6 years in prison on charges of forming an extremist group;
(5) Ihar Losik, another Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty journalist who
was arrested in June 2020, and sentenced in December 2021 to 15 years in
jail on bogus charges of preparation of actions that violate public order,
who attempted suicide in March 2023, and whose wife Darya was sentenced in
January 2023 to 2 years in prison on a charge of facilitating extremist
activity;
(6) Alyaksandr Mantsevich, who was detained in March 2023, and is
serving a 4-year prison sentence after being convicted in November 2023 on
charges of discrediting Belarus;
(7) Dzianis Ivashyn, a freelance journalist who has been serving a
sentence of 13 years and 1 month since being convicted in September 2022 on
charges of treason and ``illegal collection and dissemination of
information about private life''; and
(8) Ihar Karnei, a former freelancer with Radio Free Europe/Radio
Liberty, who was sentenced on March 22, 2024, to 3 years in jail for
participating in an extremist group;
Whereas Belarus has weaponized ``extremism'' laws against independent media
outlets, with around 25 media outlets labeled as ``extremist'' groups or
organizations as of March 2024, and has jailed journalists on
allegations of creating or participating in extremist groups or
facilitating extremist activities;
Whereas Belarusian authorities continue to prosecute journalists in exile,
including exiled journalists Stsypan Putsila and Yan Rudzik, who had
covered the protests during the 2020 Presidential election and were
sentenced in absentia to 20 years and 19 years in jail, respectively, in
May 2023;
Whereas the Islamic Republic of Iran was the world's leading jailer of
journalists, including female journalists, in 2022, and whose Government
subjected them to arbitrary summonses, arrests, travel bans, torture,
inhumane treatment, and unsubstantiated and unjust sentences, and where,
according to CPJ, at least 17 journalists and media workers remained
behind bars as of December 1, 2023, including--
(1) Niloofar Hamedi, correspondent of the daily newspaper Shargh, who
was imprisoned in 2022 for trying to document the death of Mahsa Jina Amini
on charges that could result in the death penalty;
(2) Elahe Mohammadi, a journalist for the daily Ham Mihan, who was also
imprisoned in 2022 for the same action and on the same charges;
(3) Iranian journalist Navid Seyed-Mohammadi, a Kurdish reporter for
the state-run Islamic Republic Radio and Television broadcaster, who was
arrested in May 2020 and is serving a 7-year prison sentence for
``espionage for hostile states'';
(4) Kayvan Samimi, a 76-year-old veteran journalist, who was initially
imprisoned in May 2019 and is serving a 6-year prison sentence despite on
antistate charges of ``spreading propaganda against the system'' and
``colluding against national security'';
(5) sisters Hoda and Zahra Tohidi, who are freelance journalists, and
were imprisoned alongside Zahra's husband, Alireza Khoshbakht, a fellow
journalist, in 2022 for documenting the nationwide protests after the death
of Mahsa Jina Amini; and
(6) Mohammad-Bagher Moradi, an exiled freelance journalist, who was
extradited to Iran from Turkey, who was immediately imprisoned in 2022 for
his work and is serving a 5-year prison sentence;
Whereas since the Hamas-led attack on Israel on October 7, 2023, at least 95
journalists have been killed during the ongoing war in Gaza, Lebanon,
and Israel and other significant attacks on the press have been
documented, including--
(1) at least 26 journalists have been killed in direct connection to
their work, according to Reporters Without Borders;
(2) 2 Israeli journalists were killed by Hamas-led forces on October 7;
(3) Hamas is also reportedly holding 1 Israeli journalist hostage,
while 2 Palestinian journalists have reportedly gone missing in Israeli
custody; and
(4) the detention of 17 journalists as of December 1, 2023, with 14
journalists being held without charge in the West Bank under administrative
detention, according to CPJ;
Whereas the Egyptian Government's repression of the media has expanded under
President Abdel Fattah el-Sisi since 2013, including attacks on
independent media outlet Mada Masr, whom the Government has targeted
with specious charges brought against editor-in-chief Lina Attalah and
journalist Rana Mamdouh, and with at least 11 journalists imprisoned by
the Government as of December 1, 2023, according to CPJ, including--
(1) Alaa Abd El Fattah, a blogger sentenced to 5 years in prison for
``broadcasting false news'', who embarked on a hunger strike on April 2,
2022, to protest his mistreatment, which he escalated to a near-fatal
``water strike'' that prompted a forced medical intervention by prison
officials upon the start of the United Nations Framework Convention on
Climate Change's Conference of the Parties 27 (COP 27) climate summit, in
Sharm El-Sheikh, Egypt, on November 6, 2022; and
(2) Mohamed Ibrahim, a blogger also known as ``Mohamed Oxygen'', who
has spent over 4 years in pretrial detention, 2 years beyond the 2-year
legal limit for such pretrial detention;
Whereas Lokman Slim was murdered in southern Lebanon on February 4, 2021, after
warning that he had been threatened and accused of treason by supporters
of Hezbollah and, to date, no arrests or charges have been made in the
investigation into his murder;
Whereas the Office of the Director of National Intelligence concluded that the
2018 murder of Washington Post journalist and United States legal
permanent resident Jamal Khashoggi in Istanbul was approved by Saudi
Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman and impunity continues for the Saudi
officials involved in this crime;
Whereas the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia maintains a hostile environment toward
journalists through transnational repression, systematic and arbitrary
arrests, torture and inhumane or degrading treatment, lengthy pretrial
detentions, and conditional release restrictions, which inhibit
reporters and columnists from traveling or returning to their
professional work postdetention, including--
(1) Abdulrahman Farhana, a columnist detained in February 2019, charged
with membership in a terrorist organization;
(2) Zuhair Kutbi, a journalist jailed in January 2019, who reportedly
suffers from torture, malnourishment, and denial of cancer treatment in
prison; and
(3) blogger Raif Badawi, who recently completed a 10-year prison
sentence on blasphemy and apostasy charges, and who remains subjected to a
further 10-year travel ban, which prevents him from reuniting with his
family who received asylum in Canada;
Whereas, in Sudan, the United Nations Panel of Experts reported that at least
15,000 people died as a result of the Rapid Supports offensive in West
Darfur in 2023, and tens of thousands more are believed to have been
killed, and over 8,000,000 displaced, and where freedom of the press and
the safety of journalists has severely deteriorated, as evidenced by
attacks on independent media and the killings, arrests, detentions,
harassment, and beatings of journalists, including--
(1) the killing of Halima Idris Salim, a 29-year-old reporter for local
independent online news outlet Sudan Bukra, on October 10, 2023, when Rapid
Support Forces (RSF) soldiers ran her over with their car while she was
covering health conditions of a hospital's emergency wing in Omdurman;
(2) reports that the RSF has cut access to telecommunications and
internet services since early February 2024, leaving civilians in a
communications blackout and making reporting on the war nearly impossible;
and
(3) the forced closure of all print media in the country, and banning
of foreign news channels, forcing of journalists into exile;
Whereas Reporters Without Borders asserts that due to oppression by the military
junta, ``press freedom in [Burma] has been set back ten years in ten
days'' after the February 1, 2021, military coup, including through--
(1) media workers forced into hiding and confronting censorship,
harassment, internet blockages, beatings, interrogations, threats, and
torture at the hands of the military;
(2) multiple independent media outlets forced to cease operations or
close altogether or having their licenses revoked by the military; and
(3) journalists being detained at alarming rates, with 75 journalists
in prison as of April 17, 2023, including photojournalist Sai Zaw Thaike,
who was sentenced to a 20-year prison term in May 2023 while covering the
aftermath of a deadly cyclone;
Whereas in India, Government authorities have taken a series of actions limiting
the space for free and independent media, including--
(1) frequently imposing internet and communication blackouts in Indian-
administered Kashmir and the Indian State of Manipur, among certain areas;
(2) calling for the temporary blockage of journalists and media
accounts on X (formerly known as Twitter) and other online platforms; and
(3) increasing restrictions on foreign journalists, and subjecting
journalists to searches and arrests, including--
G (A) revoking the journalism permit of French reporter Vanessa
Dougnac, who, as the spouse of an Indian citizen, holds permanent residency
status, known as an Overseas Citizens of India (OCI), forcing her to leave
the country in February 2024;
G (B) the continued detention of Kashmiri journalist Aasif Sultan
since April 2018, including his rearrest for the third time by Indian
authorities in February 2024, days after his release from 5 and a half
years of preventative detention;
G (C) the arrest of Teesta Setalvad, a journalist and civil rights
activist, in June 2022 by the Anti-Terrorism Squad of the Gujarat Police,
for allegedly conspiring to implicate the Gujarat government in the 2002
Gujarat riots, and who has since faced legal harassment and arbitrary
detention over the last year for her work; and
G (D) the Indian Government's efforts to censor the BBC documentary
critical of prominent Indian political figures;
Whereas Pakistan maintains high levels of media censorship, and impunity
persists in cases of killings and physical attacks on journalists who
criticize the military and state institutions, including--
(1) the repeated arrest of journalist Imran Riaz Khan, including his
arbitrary detention in solitary confinement without due process for 142
days in 2023;
(2) the assault of Ayaz Amir, an employee of Dunya News, on July 1,
2022, days after he had made comments criticizing former Prime Minister
Imran Khan and the military; and
(3) in February 2024, the arrest of Pakistani journalist and video
blogger Asad Ali Toor on charges of orchestrating a campaign against the
state and its officials through his social media platforms;
Whereas Afghanistan, under the control of the Taliban, remains one of the most
repressive countries for journalists, who are subjected to arrest,
beatings, and arbitrary restrictions on their work, including journalist
Sultan Ali Jawadi, who was sentenced to 1 year in prison by a Taliban
court in December 2023;
Whereas violations of press freedom are persistent in South Asia and Southeast
Asia, where--
(1) in Vietnam, Pham Doan Trang, a journalist and writer, following a
year in pretrial detention, was sentenced to 9 years in prison in December
2021 for ``anti-state propaganda'' in a judicial proceeding and
imprisonment declared ``arbitrary'' by the United Nations Working Group on
Arbitrary Detention;
(2) in Bangladesh, journalists are subjected to arbitrary arrests, and
suffer killings and physical attacks with near-total impunity; and
(3) in Sri Lanka, the enactment of the recent draconian Online Safety
Act, which undermines freedom of speech, incentivizes self-censorship and
could be misused to suppress dissent;
Whereas Cuba remains a highly restricted environment for independent media,
marked by internet restrictions and constant, state-directed harassment
of journalists and news outlets, as well as the preponderance of
arbitrary arrests, threats, police summonses, and forced exile, which
remain among the repressive suite of measures applied by the Government
against activists and journalists, with victims including Lazaro Yuri
Valle Roca, a journalist who was sentenced to 5 years in prison for
``enemy propaganda and resistance'' in July 2022, evidence that the
Cuban Government continues to employ retaliatory tactics to silence and
jail journalists, or force them into exile, to maintain its oppressive
censorship regime;
Whereas assaults on press freedom in El Salvador imperil its fragile democracy,
which include verbal attacks on journalists by political leaders and the
use of state power to intimidate and pressure independent media, such
as--
(1) the spyware attacks by the Salvadoran Government against
journalists of the media outlet El Faro, who were subject to 226 illegal
wire tappings between June 2020 and November 2021, and where many of these
attacks occurred when the journalists were communicating with confidential
sources and reporting on abuses by the Salvadoran Government, and which
intensified around El Faro's publication of major stories;
(2) the ongoing criminal investigation against that same outlet, which
investigation was launched after El Faro reported damaging information
about the Salvadoran Government, and the relentless harassment by
Salvadoran law enforcement toward El Faro journalists, which led the media
outlet to relocate most of its operations to Costa Rica following
harassment by Salvadoran police;
(3) the online attacks and threats to journalists from the outlet
Revista Factum, which has been banned from press conferences at the
Presidential residence; and
(4) the adoption of a new law that imposes prison sentences ranging
from 10 to 15 years for certain reporting on criminal groups, such as
gangs;
Whereas Mexico continues to be one of the world's deadliest countries for
journalists, where 25 journalists are currently counted as missing,
according to Mexico's National Human Rights Commission, and where CPJ
has recorded 88 killings of journalists and media workers since 2012, of
which 37 were murdered in response to their reportage, and where
reporters covering stories concerning political corruption and organized
crime are frequently assaulted and murdered;
Whereas Haiti is now the second deadliest country in the Western Hemisphere for
journalists, with 7 journalist deaths since 2022 following a steady
uptick of violence in the country, including violence against the press,
as the country's security situation continues to deteriorate following
the 2021 assassination of President Jovenel Moise, with violence
claiming the lives of--
(1) Garry Tesse, a Haitian radio reporter who reported on political and
government corruption and was believed to be tortured and killed in
retaliation for his reporting; and
(2) Dumesky Kersaint, a journalist for an online news outlet who was
killed while attempting to cover another killing in his community;
Whereas, in Nicaragua, the persecution of journalists by the Ortega regime
continues unabated, including through forced closures of independent
media outlets, and journalists in the country are continually
threatened, harassed, sued, surveilled, jailed, and forced into exile,
including--
(1) Miguel Mendoza, who along with 6 other journalists and media
workers, was among the group of 222 political prisoners released by
Nicaraguan authorities in February 2023, sent to the United States, and
subsequently stripped of their Nicaraguan citizenship; and
(2) journalist Victor Ticay, who was arrested in April 2023 in
connection to his April 5, 2023, reporting about a Catholic Easter
celebration;
Whereas, in Guatemala, RSF has noted the risk of the criminalization of
journalism in Guatemala as Government officials and politicians
routinely harass and target journalists who investigate corruption,
press freedom is facing an alarming assault, and journalists are not
only being criminalized and imprisoned but are also relentlessly
targeted for their reporting, enduring online and offline harassment,
intimidation, and physical assaults, including the arrest of Jose Ruben
Zamora, a prize-winning journalist whose trial has been widely
criticized by international observers as arbitrary and politically
motivated, who was convicted of ``money laundering'' allegations in July
2022, sentenced to 6 years in prison, and remains behind bars despite
the October 13, 2023, ruling by a Guatemalan court that overturned the
conviction and ordered a retrial in Zamora's case, which continues to
face delays;
Whereas, in Peru, criminal defamation lawsuits, legislation, and restrictive
accreditation schemes for journalists that undermine freedom of
expression have been used to harass and silence investigative
journalists who write about prominent political figures, and the
unlawful state repression of protesters has also increased the risk to
journalists covering ongoing social unrest in Peru, as corroborated by
the woundings of several journalists by rubber pellets and tear gas
canisters in police and military operations throughout 2022 and 2023
that have been condemned by international organizations as violating
international standards on the use of force;
Whereas, in Ecuador, a group of presumed gang members stormed a local news
station in Guayaquil on January 9, 2024, during a live broadcast, which
evinces the country's worsening security condition amid organized crime
activity that has forced at least 5 journalists to leave Ecuador between
April and October 2023, according to CPJ;
Whereas, in Venezuela, the Maduro regime continues to target independent media
outlets, restrict the exercise of freedom of expression, and severely
limit access to accurate information, with local civil society
organization Public Space (Espacio Publico) registering 349 attacks on
journalists and media workers between January and November 2023,
including censorship, verbal attacks, and intimidation;
Whereas press freedom continues to face challenges in sub-Saharan Africa,
including in--
(1) Ethiopia, the second-worst jailer of journalists in sub-Saharan
Africa, where a crackdown on the press has included--
G (A) an entrenched pattern of arbitrarily detaining journalists;
with at least 8 journalists behind bars as of December 2023, according to
CPJ;
G (B) significant due process and fair trial concerns in the cases
of detained journalists, such as in May 2023, when online journalist Gobeze
Sisay was arrested in neighboring Djibouti and transferred to Ethiopia
under unclear circumstances;
G (C) the detention of journalists arrested under state of emergency
provisions at a military camp in eastern Ethiopia without judicial
oversight or access to family and legal counsel;
G (D) the use of internet disruptions during political tension or in
restive parts of the country, including the Oromia and Amhara regions,
making it difficult for journalists to report safely and freely;
G (E) the failure to provide a credible accounting for the 2021
killings of journalists Dawit Kebede Araya and Sisay Fida;
G (F) the consistent persecution of media trying to cover the
conflict and violence in the Oromia and Amhara regions, including the
detention of at least 6 journalists as of March 27, 2024, who were
reporting on events in Amhara; and
G (G) the forced exile and deportation of independent journalists;
(2) Nigeria, where journalists have been repeatedly detained and
charged for their work, including--
G (A) Luka Binniyat, who was arrested in November 2021, released on
bail in February 2022, and is facing 3 years in prison if convicted of
sending false information under the Cybercrimes Act;
G (B) Agba Jalingo, publisher of the CrossRiverWatch news site, who
was arrested on March 27, 2023, charged under the Cybercrimes Act for
allegedly publishing false news, and released on bail on April 3, 2023;
G (C) Haruna Mohammed Salisu, publisher of the WikkiTimes, who was
arrested while covering the February 25, 2023, Federal elections, charged
under the penal code with inciting the public to disturb the Bauchi State
Governor, and released on bail on March 1, 2023, and who faces ongoing
prosecution in that case and several others; and
G (D) Saint Mienpamo Onitsha, founder of the online broadcaster
NAIJA Live TV, who was arrested on October 10, 2023, at gunpoint at the
home of a friend, charged under the Cybercrime Act over a report about
tensions in the southern Niger Delta region, and released on bail after
nearly four months in jail;
(3) Eritrea, which is one of the world's most censored countries, and
where at least 16 journalists, including editors Dawit Isaak and Amanuel
Asrat, are detained, with most of these detentions commencing during a 2001
crackdown on the independent press, according to CPJ;
(4) Cameroon, where--
G (A) 6 journalists were imprisoned as of December 2023, according
to CPJ;
G (B) at least 2 journalists have died in government custody under
suspicious circumstances since 2010; and
G (C) journalist Martinez Zogo was abducted, tortured, and killed in
January 2023; and journalist Jean-Jacques Ola Bebe was killed in February
2023, with no police investigation into his murder;
(5) Rwanda, where the media landscape is heavily restricted by
censorship and authoritarianism, and where--
G (A) at least 4 journalists were imprisoned as of December 1, 2023,
according to CPJ, 2 of whom, YouTubers Aimbale Karasira Uzaramba and
Dieudonne Niyonsenga, have alleged torture in state custody; and
G (B) journalist John Williams Ntwali, who, after reporting on cases
of torture, disappearances, and forced government evictions, was killed in
January 2023 under suspicious circumstances, and whose death has never been
credibly investigated;
(6) Burundi, where journalist Floriane Irangabiye is serving a 10-year
prison sentence, following a January 2023 conviction in connection to her
critical commentary on governance issues in the country;
(7) Mali and Burkina Faso, where foreign journalists have been expelled
in the aftermath of coups d'etat in the respective countries, French-
language media outlets have been banned, and local journalists work under
threat of reprisal for reporting on security issues;
(8) Niger, where journalist Samira Sabou was detained for 11 days in
October 2023 and charged with cybercrime and treason in connection with her
reporting;
(9) Senegal, where journalists have been repeatedly arrested and
prosecuted for their work, attacked by security forces, and struggled amid
internet shutdowns;
(10) Togo, where journalists have faced arrests and prosecutions for
their work, as well as other forms of intimidation, including spyware
surveillance; and
(11) Zimbabwe, where journalists have been banned from covering
government meetings, and the legal framework remains harsh;
Whereas, in Hungary, the Parliament in December 2023 passed a Russian-inspired
national sovereignty law that created a ``Sovereignty Protection
Authority'', an institution with the publicly declared objectives of
targeting journalists and identifying individuals and organizations that
receive foreign funding and which the Authority suspects undermine the
country's national sovereignty, objectives that local media outlets have
warned will empower the Authority with the ability to stifle independent
journalism supported by overseas donors;
Whereas, in Serbia, journalists suffer regular online harassment, smear
campaigns, and physical attacks, and the 1999 killing of journalist
Slavko Curuvija remains unpunished after those formerly convicted for
the murder were acquitted;
Whereas, in Slovakia, more than 6 years after the brutal killing of
investigative reporter Jan Kuciak and his fiancee Martina Kusnirova, and
despite the hitmen and intermediaries receiving lengthy prison
sentences, authorities have been so far unable to convict the alleged
mastermind;
Whereas, in Greece, authorities have 2 unresolved murders of journalists, and
journalists have in recent years been targeted by surveillance, abusive
lawsuits, and have experienced physical attacks;
Whereas, in Turkey, the Erdogan government maintains one of the world's most
repressive environments for journalists and continues its ``revolving
door'' policy on detaining journalists, with at least 13 journalists
jailed in retaliation for their professional work at the time of CPJ's
most recent prison census on December 1, 2023;
Whereas Hatice Duman, the longest imprisoned journalist in Turkey, who has been
serving a life sentence on terrorism charges since April 9, 2003, told
CPJ in November 2022 that she had little hope for freedom in her
retrial, while her continuing retrial has not instigated any changes on
the part of the authorities;
Whereas, in Azerbaijan, the Government of Ilham Aliyev, who secured a fifth term
in an uncompetitive early Presidential election in February 2024,
mounted a renewed assault on independent media in recent months by
detaining 10 journalists from outlets Abzas Media, Kanal 13 and Toplum
TV: Ulvi Hasanli, Sevinj Vagifgizi, Mahammad Kekalov, Hafiz Babali,
Elnara Gasimova, Nargiz Absalamova, Aziz Orujov, Shamo Eminov, Alasgar
Mammadli, and Mushfig Jabbar, constituting a crackdown on journalists
that was in part retaliation for their reporting on official corruption;
Whereas, in Tajikistan, the Government continued its systematic repression of
the free press in 2022 and 2023 by sentencing 7 journalists to lengthy
prison terms on spurious charges in secretive, closed-door trials held
in detention centers amid allegations of torture and forced confessions,
including--
(1) Ulfatkhonim Mamadshoeva, a 67-year-old ethnic Pamiri journalist and
human rights defender, who was sentenced to 20 years in prison; and
(2) journalists Daler Imomali, Abdullo Ghurbati, Zavqibek Saidamini,
Abdusattor Pirmuhammadzoda, and Khurshed Fozilov, who were sentenced to
terms of imprisonment ranging from 7 to 10 years on spurious charges of
extremism;
Whereas, in Kyrgyzstan, since the start of 2022, the Government has taken
worrying steps to dismantle the country's previously vibrant press
environment, including by--
(1) detaining 11 current and former staff of the investigative
reporting outlet Temirov Live, who have reported on corruption allegations
among high-level government officials, since January 2024;
(2) imposing spurious charges of illegal drug manufacture on
Kyrgyzstan-born investigative journalist Bolot Temirov, founder of Temirov
Live, and deporting him to the Russian Federation in retaliation for his
reporting on corruption in the Government's procurement processes;
(3) shuttering and blocking investigative outlet Kloop, known for its
reporting on high-level government corruption;
(4) enacting the so-called ``Foreign representatives'' legislation that
will establish extensive state control over externally funded press freedom
groups and nongovernmental organizations that run prominent news sites; and
(5) raiding independent news agency 24.kg on fabricated charges;
Whereas, in Algeria, press freedom continued to deteriorate at an alarming pace
in 2023, with 3 journalists in jail as of December 2023, according to
CPJ, 2 of whom are the country's most prominent journalists, including--
(1) Mustapha Bendjama, editor-in-chief and director of local
independent news website Le Provincial, who was arrested on February 8,
2023, on foreign funding charges and is currently serving a 6-month prison
sentence for ``committing an illegal immigration crime''; and
(2) Ihsane El Kadi, editor-in-chief of local independent news website
Maghreb Emergent and Radio M, who was arrested in December 2022, and is
serving a 7-year prison sentence on charges of receiving foreign funding
for the news outlet he manages;
Whereas, in Tunisia, press freedom has gravely deteriorated following President
Kais Saied's dismissal of the prime minister on July 25, 2021, and his
concomitant suspension of Parliament, in addition to his Government's
imprisonment of journalists in 2023, according to CPJ, which evince a
national context in which the Government has broadly suppressed press
freedom in the country, including--
(1) raiding multiple local and foreign media outlets and news
organizations, and security officers, in several cases, confiscating the
organizations' broadcasting equipment and ordering their offices to close,
notably the office of Al Jazeera; and
(2) approving a new constitution that is devoid of necessary
protections for journalists to pursue their work without fear of censorship
and repression;
Whereas United States journalists have been targeted while reporting abroad,
including--
(1) Christopher Allen, who was killed while covering the conflict in
South Sudan on August 26, 2017, and for whom there has been no credible
investigation to pursue justice after nearly 7 years;
(2) Austin Tice, who was kidnapped in Syria and has been held in
captivity since August 13, 2012;
(3) Brent Renaud, who was killed by Russian forces while covering the
war in Ukraine on March 13, 2022;
(4) Evan Gershkovich, who was arrested in Russia on charges of
espionage on March 29, 2023; and
(5) Alsu Kurmasheva, who holds dual United States-Russian citizenship,
who was arrested on October 18, 2023, in Russia on charges of failure to
register as a foreign agent;
Whereas, under the auspices of the United States Agency for Global Media, the
United States Government provides financial assistance to several
editorially independent media outlets, including Voice of America, Radio
Free Europe/Radio Liberty, Radio Free Asia, the Office of Cuba
Broadcasting, and the Middle East Broadcasting Networks--
(1) which report and broadcast news, information, and analysis in
critical regions around the world;
(2) whose journalists regularly face harassment, fines, and
imprisonment for their work; and
(3) whose journalist Alsu Kurmasheva has been in Russian detention
since October 18, 2023, on antistate false news charges; and
Whereas press freedom--
(1) is a key component of democratic governance activism in civil
society, and socioeconomic development; and
(2) enhances public accountability, transparency, and participation in
civil society and democratic governance: Now, therefore, be it
Resolved, That the House of Representatives--
(1) declares that a free press--
(A) is a central component of free societies and
democratic governance;
(B) contributes to an informed civil society and
government accountability;
(C) helps to expose corruption;
(D) enhances public accountability and transparency
of governments at all levels; and
(E) disseminates information that is essential to
improving public health and safety;
(2) expresses concerns about threats to the exercise of
freedom of expression, including by the press, around the
world;
(3) recognizes and commends journalism's role in providing
trusted, accurate, and timely information and in holding
governments, leaders accountable to citizens;
(4) recognizes the indispensable role of journalists and
media outlets in informing voters and the international
community about elections in multiple countries worldwide in
2024;
(5) is dismayed that, under cover of the COVID-19 pandemic,
many governments have restricted the work of journalists
reporting on the public health crisis and on peaceful protests
on a variety of issues;
(6) pays tribute to journalists who made tremendous
sacrifices, including the loss of their lives, in the pursuit
of truth and justice;
(7) condemns all actions around the world that suppress
press freedom and endanger the safety of journalists;
(8) calls for the unconditional and immediate release of
all wrongfully detained journalists;
(9) reaffirms the centrality of press freedom to efforts of
the United States Government to support democracy, mitigate
conflict, and promote good governance domestically and around
the world; and
(10) calls upon the President and the Secretary of State--
(A) to preserve and build upon the leadership of
the United States on issues relating to press freedom,
on the basis of the protections for freedom of the
press afforded the United States people under the First
Amendment to the Constitution;
(B) to transparently investigate and bring to
justice the perpetrators of attacks against
journalists; and
(C) to promote the respect and protection of press
freedom around the world.
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