Bloggers' freedom under threat as much as traditional media

Bloggers and online journalists are the target of governments in repressive countries as much as their traditional media counterparts, a new report by Reporters Without Borders (RSF) has suggested.

The report by the campaign group for press freedom said the worst offenders showed 'serious, repeated violations of the free flow of online news and information'.

In this year's index of press freedoms in 169 nations, several countries fell from their previous positions in the rankings because of growing repression of the online press.

The report said that at least 64 individuals world-wide are currently imprisoned because of posts written online.

China is the leading country in this type of repression with a total of 50 cyber-dissidents in prison, according to the report.

Malaysia (124th), Thailand (135th), Vietnam (162nd) and Egypt (146th) were all cited by RSF as examples of regimes in which bloggers have been arrested or news websites were closed or made inaccessible.

"More and more governments have realised that the internet can play a key role in the fight for democracy and they are establishing new methods of censoring it," stated the RSF report.

"The governments of repressive countries are now targeting bloggers and online journalists as forcefully as journalists in the traditional media."

Eritrea came last in the index - compiled from responses given by journalists, researchers and human rights activists to questionnaires - while the top 14 countries for press freedom were all European.

The full RSF report can be read here.

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