Most of the imprisoned representatives of mass media belong to five countries - states with dictatorial or totalitarian regimes. This was reported by the organizations "Reporters Without Borders" (RSF) and "Committee to Protect Journalists" (CPJ).
According to Reporters Without Borders, there are 533 journalists behind bars worldwide, which is 13.4% more than in 2021. One of the trends of the past year, highlighted by experts, is the record number of imprisoned women journalists: there were 78 of them, a third more than the year before.
The "Committee to Protect Journalists" reports other data - about 363 imprisoned media representatives - 20% more than in 2021. Human rights activists note that this is a record figure for 30 years.
The five leading countries in terms of the number of imprisoned journalists in organizations are almost identical: most journalists are held in Iran, China, Myanmar, Turkey/Vietnam, and Belarus.
According to RSF, there are 110 journalists in prison in China, 62 in Myanmar, 47 in Iran (as of 2021, the country was not in the ranking), 39 in Vietnam, and 31 in Belarus.
CPJ gives the following figures: 62 journalists are behind bars in Iran, 43 in China, 42 in Myanmar, 40 in Turkey, and 26 in Belarus.
In addition, according to the "Committee to Protect Journalists", 21 journalists are imprisoned in Egypt and Vietnam, 19 in Russia, 16 in Eritrea, and 11 in Saudi Arabia.
