The One Free Press Coalition Publishes Its November 2021 "10 Most Urgent" List.

NEW YORK November 1, 2021 Investigative journalistRoohollah Zam,who was executed by Iranian authorities in December 2020 after facing anti-state charges for his coverage of 2017 protests, tops the November rankingof the One Free Press Coalitions 10 Most Urgent list of press freedom cases. The 10 Most Urgent list, issued today by a united group of pre-eminent editors and publishers, spotlights journalists whose press freedoms are being suppressed or whose cases are seeking justice.

To coincide with The UN-recognizedInternational Day to End Impunityon November 2nd, this months list highlights cases of journalist murders around the world where the victims perpetrators have not been held to account. According to the Committee to Protect Journalists2021 Global Impunity Index, there hasbeen impunity in 81% of journalist murders during the last ten years.Ending impunity for crimes against journalists is one of the most pressing issues to guarantee freedom of expression and access to information for all citizens.

Published this morning atwww.onefreepresscoalition.comand by all Coalition members, the 33rd10 Most Urgent list includes the following journalists, ranked in order of urgency:

1.Roohollah Zam(Iran)

Iranian authorities executed journalist Zam by hanging in December of 2020 after sentencing him to death on anti-state charges for his coverage of 2017 protests. Intelligence agents of the Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps (IRGC) lured Zam out of exile to Iraq, where he was abducted in 2019 and taken to Iran.

2.Tara Singh Hayer(Canada)

Hayer, publisher ofIndo-Canadian Times, Canadas largest and oldest Punjabi weekly, was shot dead in his home garage in Vancouver in 1998. Ten years prior, he had been partially paralyzed and confined to a wheelchair after an assassination attempt. In the months prior, Hayer let the police know he had received multiple threats.

3.Valrio Luiz de Oliveira(Brazil)

The sports journalist and commentator at Radio Jornal was killed in July 2012 after being shot four times by an unidentified gunman on a motorcycle. The trials for the suspected perpetrators have been repeatedly delayed and were suspended in 2020, with no future court dates set.

4.Regina Martnez Prez(Mexico)

Martnez, a veteran reporter at national magazineProceso,known for her in-depth reporting on drug cartels and the links between organized crime and government officials, was killed in 2012 after covering several high-profile arrests. A2021 report from A Safer World For The Truthfound strong indications for obstruction of justice by local authorities in her case.

5.Nikolai Andrushchenko(Russia)

Veteran journalist Andrushchenko died in 2017 related to injuries sustained in a beating from unknown assailants, and there has been little progress in the investigation. He was known for his criticism of President Vladimir Putin and his investigative reports alleging corruption and human rights abuses. He had suffered similar attacks in the past.

6.Sardasht Osman(Iraq)

Osman, a contributor to multiple independent news sites, was found shot to death in 2010. Prior to his murder, he had received threatening phone calls telling him to stop writing about the Kurdistan Regional Government. Authorities claim he was killed by a member of extremist group Ansar al-Islam; however, CPJ and other press groups have said the report lacked credibility.

7.Ahmed Hussein-Suale Divela(Ghana)

Divela, a member of the investigative journalism outlet Tiger Eye Private Investigations who reported on issues such as sports, corruption and human rights, was shot by two unidentified men on a motorcycle in 2019. Divela told CPJ in 2018 that people had attempted to attack him and that he feared for his life after a politician made comments about him on TV.

8.Sisay Fida(Ethiopia)

Sisay, a coordinator and reporter with the Oromia Broadcasting Network, was walking home from a wedding when he was shot and killed in May this year. There has been little progress in his case, and colleagues believe he was murdered in retaliation for his reporting.

9.Gauri Lankesh(India)

Unidentified assailants shot and killed Lankesh outside her home in Bangalore in 2017, as she returned from work. Lankesh published and editedGauri Lankesh Patrike, a Kannada-language weekly tabloid known for its criticism of right-wing extremism and the establishment. While arrests have been made of those suspected to have ties to her killing, impunity remains.

10.Sagal Salad Osman(Somalia)

A university student and producer of a childrens program on state-run Radio Mogadishu, Osman was killed in 2016. She was leaving campus when three gunmen shot her in the head. Somalia ranks worst among countries for impunity in cases of journalist murders.

The One Free Press Coalition is comprised of 32 prominent international members including:AgenciaEfe; Al Jazeera Media Network,AmricaEconoma; The Associated Press; Bloomberg News; The Boston Globe; Corriere Della Sera; De Standaard; Deutsche Welle; Estado; EURACTIV; The Financial Times; Forbes; Fortune; HuffPost; India Today; Insider Inc.; Le Temps; Middle East Broadcasting Networks; Office of Cuba Broadcasting; Quartz; Radio Free Asia; Radio Free Europe and Radio Liberty; Republik; Reuters; The Straits Times; Sddeutsche Zeitung; TIME; TV Azteca; Voice of America; The Washington Post;andYahoo News.

One Free Press Coalition partners with the Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ) and the International Womens Media Foundation (IWMF) to identify the most-urgent cases for the list, which is updated and published on the first business day of every month.

The mission of the Coalition is to use the collective voices of its members which reach more than 1 billion people worldwide to stand up for journalists under attack for pursuing the truth. News organizations throughout the world can join the Coalition by emailinginfo@onefreepresscoalition.com.

Members of the public are also encouraged to join the conversation using the hashtag #OneFreePress and following developments on Twitter @OneFreePress.

One Free Press Coalition

The One Free Press Coalition every month spotlights the 10 Most Urgent journalists whose press freedoms are under threat worldwide. The Coalition uses the collective voices of participating news organizations to spotlight brave journalists whose voices are being silenced or have been silenced by standing up for journalists under attack for pursing the truth. To see the 10 Most Urgent list every month and to view a complete list of participating news organizations and supporting partners, please visitonefreepresscoalition.comor @OneFreePress on Twitter.

Contacts:

One Free Press Coalition PR:pr@onefreepresscoalition.com

Committee to Protect Journalists: Bebe Santa-Wood,press@cpj.com

Link:

Investigative Journalist Roohollah Zam Tops November Ranking Of The One Free Press Coalitions 10 Most Urgent Press Freedom Cases - Forbes