Unic Press UK: The Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ) has named five persons –Shahidul Alam (Bangladeshi national), Mohammad Mosaed (Iran), Dapo Olorunyomi (Nigeria), Svetlana Prokopyeva (Russia) and Amal Clooney – to be honored on 19 November 2020 as the 2020 International Press Freedom Award Winners.
The Gwen Ifill Press Freedom Award (Originally the Burton Benjamin Memorial Award) goes to Amal Clooney. All the five winners will be honored during the CPJ’s 30th annual International Press Freedom Awards ceremony.
In a statement the CPJ said:
“Renowned Bangladeshi photojournalist Shahidul Alam was detained by police in August 2018, just hours after he was interviewed on Al-Jazeera and posted a video on Facebook about student protests in the country. In November 2018, he was freed on bail after 102 days in detention.
Mosaed is a freelance journalist who has investigated corruption and labor issues for several reformist media. In 2019, he was arrested after he posted to Twitter during an internet shutdown. He was released, but detained again after criticizing the government’s unprepared response to COVID-19. His Twitter account was then suspended.
Olorunyomi is the co-founder, CEO, and publisher of the Nigerian newspaper Premium Times. Both have been subjected to official harassment over the years. Olorunyomi has dedicated his life to holding the powerful to account and is a fierce advocate for press freedom.
Prokopyeva is a regional correspondent for the U.S. Congress-funded broadcaster Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty in Russia, known as Radio Svoboda. In July, she was convicted on terrorism charges in relation to a radio show in which she discussed a suicide bombing.
Amal Clooney specializes in public international law, international criminal law, and human rights. A strong advocate for press freedom, she has served as international counsel for several journalists under threat. She is currently representing Maria Ressa, CPJ’s 2018 Gwen Ifill award winner, who has been convicted of cyber libel, a criminal offense, in the Philippines.”
