Many journalists fearing imprisonment also fled Eritrea and Ethiopia—Africa’s top jailersof journalists in 2012. Of the 30 journalists who CPJ assisted in exile from Eritrea since 2008, most spent time in the country’s infamous prisons before escaping the country. One print reporter, who asked not to be identified for his safety, fled Eritrea for Sudan in August 2008 after nearly six years in a government detention center. He was arrested in 2002 and was never officially charged with a crime, though he said he was repeatedly interrogated, forced into labor, and tortured with restraints and suspension of his body for extended periods of time. Prior to his arrest, he had worked in the official media, and had also been a contributor to one of a handful of independent newspapers in the country. Eritrean authorities shut down all independent media outlets in a widespreadgovernment crackdown on dissent beginning in September 2001. Many journalists have languished in prison since, without charge or trial.
Journalists in the East Africa nations of Somalia, Eritrea, Ethiopia, and Rwanda fled in high numbers over the past 12 months, as they have in prior years. Since May 31, 2012, CPJ supported 18 exiles from East Africa, making the East Africa region responsible for the highest number of exiled journalists for the sixth consecutive year—as long as CPJ has been collecting this data. The majority have relocated to the capitals of Kenya and Uganda, where they live under very difficult conditions.
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