The Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ) has released its 2024 annual report, identifying the countries with the highest number of journalists imprisoned in the previous year. According to the report, China (50 journalists), Israel (43), and Myanmar (35) topped the list. Globally, a total of 361 journalists were imprisoned in 2023 — the second-highest figure since records began in 1992, surpassed only by 2022’s total of 370.
The report also highlights Tajikistan’s worsening environment for press freedom, with specific mention of the country’s persecution of journalists, including cases linked to ethnic discrimination.
The CPJ report notes that two of the eight imprisoned journalists in Tajikistan belong to the Pamiri ethnic minority, a group historically subjected to systemic discrimination. These journalists hail from the Gorno-Badakhshan Autonomous Oblast (GBAO), a region that has experienced significant unrest in recent years.
Among them is Ulfatkhonim Mamadshoeva, a prominent journalist who is currently serving a 20-year prison sentence. Authorities accused Mamadshoeva and her former husband, General Kholbash Kholbashov of the GKNB Border Troops, of orchestrating mass riots in GBAO in May 2022. These protests, which were met with a violent government crackdown, resulted in numerous deaths. Before her arrest, Mamadshoeva publicly denied any involvement in illegal activities.
The CPJ’s findings reflect the broader challenges faced by journalists in Tajikistan, where independent reporting is increasingly equated with criminal activity.
The CPJ report underscores the global misuse of vague anti-state laws to silence independent media. More than 60% of journalists imprisoned worldwide were charged under broadly defined laws, often targeting dissenting voices under accusations of terrorism, extremism, or other anti-state activities. Tajikistan is listed alongside countries like Russia, Belarus, Myanmar, and Turkey as frequent users of such repressive measures.
“A significant proportion of these cases involve terrorism or ‘extremism’ charges, which are often very vaguely worded,” the report states, noting that such laws give governments broad discretion to suppress media freedoms.
In Tajikistan, the eight journalists are currently serving prison sentences ranging from seven to 20 years. These long sentences illustrate the risks faced by media workers in a country where freedom of the press continues to erode.
The CPJ report highlights a troubling global trend, with over 100 new journalists imprisoned in the past year. While the focus of the report is on numerical leaders like China, Israel, and Myanmar, countries like Tajikistan, where media suppression is equally severe but less publicized, remain of grave concern.
