Press Freedom Status For Women Journalists: January 2022

Throughout the month of January 2022, the Coalition For Women In Journalism documented 26 cases of violations against women journalists. These included detentions, legal harassment and physical assaults in the field, among other attacks on press freedom and women journalists reporting from different parts of the world.

One woman journalist was murdered

• Mexico: Journalist Lourdes Maldonado López was shot by unidentified assailants while she was in her car on January 23. She is the third journalist to have been murdered in the country this year. Learn more.

  Two women journalists were arrested

• Myanmar: Myanmar junta authorities arrested Dawei Watch reporter, Ma Moe Myint, and her colleagues from their respective homes late on the night of January 18, she was released a week later on January 25. Follow the case. 

• Turkey: Journalist Sedef Kabaş was taken into custody at midnight over a charge of "insulting the President". An investigation was launched against the journalist for her criticism of President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan in a TV program she appeared in. Read the details.

One woman journalist was detained

• Kazakhstan: Authorities have shut down several news platforms and detained journalists in order to curb the ongoing protests in the country. Aizhan Auelbekova was among those detained. Further details available here.

One woman journalist was attacked on the field

• France: Two video journalists, including a woman working for the Agence France-Presse (AFP) were attacked during an anti-vaccination protest in Paris on January 15. Find out more.

12 women journalists are currently facing criminal lawsuits

• Greece: Former investigative journalist and television host, Ioanna Papadakou, appeared before the Greek Supreme Court on January 25, in connection with her coverage of a major corruption scandal. Continue reading for details.

• Turkey: The fourth hearing of the case against journalists Şehriban Abi, Nazan Sala, and Zeynep Durgut was held in Van on January 6. The court acquitted all journalists other than Nazan Sala who potentially faces a 15-month prison term. Read the full story.

• Turkey: The seventh hearing of the “membership in a terrorist organization” case against Sadiye Eser was adjourned with court deciding yet again to wait for an absent witness’ statement. Click here for more details.

• Turkey: The fifth hearing of the case against journalist Rojda Oğuz was held in Van. The court adjourned the case once again to give additional time for defendants to prepare their statements. Read the complete report here.

• Turkey: The 16th hearing of journalist Meşale Tolu’s trial was held in Istanbul. The court acquitted Meşale from all charges after the prosecution requested it. All the details are available here.

• Turkey: The hearing of the fabricated terror-related case against former Taraf executive Yasemin Çongar and other journalists of the shuttered newspaper was adjourned for the 38th time. Click here for the full story.

• Turkey: In the seventh hearing of the terror-related case against Hatice Şahin, the court decided to continue the travel restrictions imposed on the journalist in 2018 and adjourned the hearing till April 18, 2022. Read more.

• Turkey: In the second hearing of the case against journalist Derya Okatan the prosecutor requested Derya to be sentenced to more than eight years in prison on "propaganda" charges. Read further details.

• Turkey: The sixth hearing of the case against Buse Söğütlü was held on January 27, with lawyers anticipating the verdict to be announced. However, the presiding judge was replaced and the hearing was adjourned till February 3, with no progress made. Read our full report.

• Turkey: The fourth hearing of the case against Reyhan Çapan was held in İstanbul. There was no progress in the case and the court adjourned the hearing to March 24. Click here for our coverage.

Three women journalists are facing civil lawsuits

• Turkey: The 12th hearing of the case against journalists Eylem Sonbahar and Sema Karakurt, on charges of “obstructing public duty” and “insulting” public officials at anti-G20 protests in 2015, was held in Antalya. Read the full story.

• United Kingdom: The judge reserved the judgment on the defamation case against award-winning journalist Carole Cadawalladr as her five-day trial concluded on January 21. Carole awaits the court’s decision on the lawsuit filed against her by multimillionaire Arron Banks. Further details available here. 

Three women journalists confronted an organized troll campaign

• Canada: Journalists Mercedes Stephenson and Rachel Gilmore faced a concentrated organized online harassment through their social media as well as email accounts after a provocative tweet by right wing politician Maxime Bernier. The detailed report is available here.

• India: Senior journalist Rana Ayyub received rape and death threats, after she was targeted with a misinformation campaign for expressing solidarity with Yemen and criticizing Saudi policies. Click here for further details.

One woman journalist filed a complaint of sexual harassment with the police

• India: The Wire journalist Ismat Ara, filed a complaint with the Cyber Cell of the Delhi Police behind those running the social media application “Bulli Bai”, a platform where Hindu men “bid” on Muslim women as a means to sexually harass them. Read the detailed coverage.

One woman journalist faced online harassment and abuse

• India: Journalist Meena Kotwal received violent, casteist and sexist threats after one of her tweets. The reaction came from right-wing Hindu groups who contend that Meena was insulting towards their religion. Find the full story here.

One woman journalist had her equipment damaged on the field

• France: Photographer Estelle Ruiz was attacked by protesters during an anti-vax demonstration in Nantes where protestors put Estelle on the ground and damaged her equipment. We covered the incident here.