Record number of journalists jailed in 2020

The number of journalists jailed globally hit a new high in 2020 as governments cracked down on coverage of Covid-19 or political unrest, according to the Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ)
                                      

WORLD’S WORST JAILERS
Number of journalists in prison, 2020*

50
40 
30
20
10
0
47 China
37 Turkey
27 Egypt 
24 Saudi Arabia
16 Eritrea
15 Iran
15 Vietnam 
10 Belarus
10 Russia 
8 Cameroon

19% Journalists held without charge
 
67% Detained on anti-state charges
 

There are 274 journalists in jail in 2020, with remainder held here:
Algeria (2), Azerbaijan (4), Bahrain (6), Bangladesh (6), Burundi (4), Cambodia (2), Ethiopia (7), India (4), Iraq (3), Israel and the Occupied Palestinian Territory (3), Jordan (1), Kazakhstan (1), Mali (2), Morocco (4), Myanmar (1), Nepal (1), Philippines (1), Rwanda (5), South Sudan (2), Syria (4), Tajikistan (1) and Uganda (1)


*Data as of Dec 1, 2020


Sources: Reuters, CPJ  
Picture: Jimmy Chan (Pexels) 
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