Stripped Naked, Beaten and Threatened with Death
Man's arms, legs and fingers were broken, and his internal organs damaged, in five-hour long assault.
Georgia Set to Ban Commercial Surrogacy
A draft law will strictly regulate the sector, prohibiting foreign couples from accessing services.
The International Centre for Prosecution for the Crime of Aggression Against Ukraine
Prosecutors from different countries will be able to exchange evidence and agree joint strategy.
Tuesday, 8 August ‘23
This week’s overview of key events and links to essential reading.
Protests Over Russian Cruise Ship Embody Georgia’s Tensions with Moscow
Many Georgians oppose welcoming visitors from Russia until it ends supporting breakaway territories and its assault on Ukraine.
Water Conflicts Loom in Central Asia
An ambitious infrastructure project in Afghanistan risks exacerbating scarcities in Uzbekistan and Turkmenistan.
Tuesday, 1 August ‘23
This week’s overview of key events and links to essential reading.
Ukraine: Family Escaped Threats From “Intoxicated” Soldiers
Victim told Russian troops would arrange a "safari with her children in the garden" if she did not submit to sexual violence.
Sanctions on Russia and Reparations for Ukraine
An effective compensation scheme could serve as a key justice mechanism and prevent further violations of the world order.
Rwandan TV Launches First Independently Produced News Show
Rise and Shine Rwanda breakfast show developed by Rwandan creative incubation project, supported by IWPR and aired on Rwandan national TV.
IWPR Radio Debate Addresses Sexual Violence in Nairobi Slum
Show highlights failings in the justice process and provides vital information on reporting crime.
Nigerian, Sierra Leonean Journalists Learn Investigative Skills
Participants encouraged to write in-depth pieces for their own media outlets.
Hands-On Training for Aspiring Libyan Journalists
Libya needs people to go into journalism, UK ambassador says at launch of IWPR-backed media training facility.
Cuban Journalism Showcased in New Book
Insights into daily lives of people living in an isolated society, from reporters who live there.
Uganda: New Trainees for Facing Justice Radio
Reporters will be mentored as they work on programmes for an audience of four million.
IWPR Trains Over 70 Tunisian Journalists
Participants build networks and develop skills in reporting, blogging and production.
Giving Arab Spring Activism an International Profile
IWPR project communicates the diverse range of opposition opinion and analysis to a global audience.
IWPR Women’s Prize for Journalism
IWPR’s inaugural award for outstanding journalism recognises the work of our network of women reporters worldwide. Working in often challenging environments, these journalists face additional threats such as harassment, gender-based violence and systemic misogyny.
"What was significant for all three of us [judges] was how the stories stayed with us - not just for the amazing yet harrowing insights into these women’s lives but the courage it took for them to keep going, to experience the harshness in which they lived and to tell the world about it through their stories."
World Press Freedom Day 2024
On World Press Freedom Day we focus on local journalists facing myriad challenges in the tireless pursuit of truth and their enduring efforts to bring meaningful change.
Highlights from IWPR’s Consortium to Support Independent Journalism in Latin America (CAPIR).
An investigation by ContraCorriente, one of the investigative units IWPR supports in Honduras, revealed abuses including robbery, torture and kidnappings allegedly inflicted on citizens by police officers. The investigation also addressed how the state of emergency, in place since 2022, has allowed these abuses to occur with impunity. The authorities deny responsibility, claiming that organised criminal groups are using replica uniforms to pose as police officers.
A transnational publication by the investigative units of Plaza Pública and Criterio media revealed the huge extent of Asian cigarette smuggling in northern Central America. In addition to the health problems and millions of dollars lost to tax evasion, this also finances organised crime trafficking of drugs, weapons and humans. The investigation highlighted the failure of institutional efforts to stop this problem, aggravated by the complicity of officials who help falsify documents.
A story by the IWPR beneficiaries Guardiana and La Nube media outlets revealed the unauthorised sale of "medical preparations" to treat mental illnesses such as depression in a market in Cochabamba, one of Bolivia's largest cities. The story showed how products were marketed without information about their ingredients, including unlicensed natural remedies from Peru and Brazil. In response, the Cochabamba department of health announced it would increase the number of police operatives in the market where these products are sold.
Highlights from IWPR’s Central Asia network of analysis and investigations.
The construction of the Qosh Tepa canal in Afghanistan is causing water shortages in southern Uzbekistan, while in Kyrgyzstan the government is considering the construction of a nuclear power plant. In Kazakstan, conservation activists are working to save the Central Asian tortoise from extinction.
Elsewhere, CABAR delves into the efforts by Central Asian authorities to detect, reduce and prevent statelessness across the region.
Ukraine Justice Report
Countering Disinformation in Moldova
Ukraine War Diary by Anthony Borden
Democratic accountability comes from journalists investigating their own societies – IWPR provides a much needed platform and support for those reporting from some of the most dangerous and difficult places in the world.
Disinformation is a major global threat , especially in conflict and post-conflict areas. IWPR performs a vital mission, building up local voices as a bulwark against this challenge.
IWPR fills a critical gap by helping local journalists to focus on human rights and justice issues. In the process, it contributes to democratic transitions, and demonstrates that the best war reporting is not about military conflict, but human consequences.