Compare: who did what, when in Asia

Each row is a tactic and each column a country. A cell lists the dated incidents in which that country's government used that tactic, with the head of government at the time and the outcome. Every incident links to its sources.

26 incidents, 12 tactics, 15 countries.

Tactics by country
Tactic	Bangladesh	Cambodia	China	Georgia	Hong Kong	India	Iran	Israel	Malaysia	Myanmar	Pakistan	Philippines	Saudi Arabia	South Korea	Türkiye
Access bans			June 14, 1989 China expels foreign journalists and restricts coverage of the Tiananmen Square protests. Li Peng. Sustained. Issue of the day: Student-led pro-democracy protests had occupied Tiananmen Square for weeks before the government declared martial law and then used the military to clear the square in early June 1989, and moved to control international coverage of the events that followed.					January 7, 2026 Israel: ban on independent entry of foreign journalists into the Gaza Strip, 2023 to 2026. Sustained. Issue of the day: The war in Gaza, which began in October 2023.
Credential control			March 17, 2020 China expels American journalists from three major U.S. newspapers. Xi Jinping. Sustained. Issue of the day: The expulsions followed a rapid exchange of measures: a Wall Street Journal opinion piece China objected to, the U.S. capping Chinese state-media staff, and China's decision to expel American reporters from three outlets in response, all unfolding as the coronavirus pandemic was spreading globally.
Licensing and closure of outlets		September 4, 2017 Cambodia's government forces the closure of The Cambodia Daily with a disputed multimillion-dollar tax bill. Hun Sen. Sustained. Issue of the day: Preparations for Cambodia's 2018 general election and a wider government campaign against independent media and civil-society groups seen as sympathetic to the opposition.			December 15, 2025 China (Hong Kong): conviction and 20-year sentence of the media owner Jimmy Lai under the National Security Law, 2025 to 2026. John Lee. Sustained	June 26, 1975 India imposes pre-press controls on every newspaper during the 1975 Emergency. Indira Gandhi. Reversed. Issue of the day: A court had found Prime Minister Gandhi guilty of election malpractice shortly before the Emergency began, and her government cited threats to internal stability in declaring the state of emergency and imposing press press controls the next day.				March 8, 2021 Myanmar junta revokes five outlets' licenses and raids newsrooms after coup. Min Aung Hlaing. Sustained. Issue of the day: The outlets had been covering nationwide protests against the military's February 1, 2021 seizure of power from Myanmar's elected government, coverage the junta sought to stop by removing the outlets' legal authorization to operate.	January 29, 2025 Pakistan amends cybercrime law to create new agency policing 'fake' online content. Shehbaz Sharif. Sustained. Issue of the day: The government said the amendment was needed to curb online disinformation, but journalists said the new offense's vague wording, covering content merely believed likely to cause "fear, panic, disorder or unrest," gave authorities broad discretion over ordinary reporting.			July 31, 1980 South Korea's martial-law government purges journalists who resisted press controls. Chun Doo-hwan. Reversed. Issue of the day: Chun Doo-hwan's military government had just suppressed a pro-democracy uprising centered in the city of Kwangju in May 1980, and used the purge to remove journalists it associated with resistance to press press controls during that period.	July 27, 2016 Turkey closes more than 100 media outlets by decree after a failed coup attempt. Recep Tayyip Erdoğan. Sustained. Issue of the day: The failed July 15, 2016 coup attempt against President Erdogan's government and the mass arrests and dismissals that followed against alleged participants and sympathizers.
Prior restraint						June 26, 1975 India imposes pre-press controls on every newspaper during the 1975 Emergency. Indira Gandhi. Reversed. Issue of the day: A court had found Prime Minister Gandhi guilty of election malpractice shortly before the Emergency began, and her government cited threats to internal stability in declaring the state of emergency and imposing press press controls the next day. February 14, 2023 Indian tax authorities search BBC offices weeks after Modi documentary ban. Narendra Modi. Unknown. Issue of the day: The searches followed the government's ban, weeks earlier, of the BBC documentary 'India: The Modi Question,' which examined Modi's record as Gujarat's chief minister during 2002 riots that killed mostly Muslims. March 2024 Bombay High Court strikes down India's government 'fact check unit' rule. Narendra Modi. Reversed. Issue of the day: The government said the Fact Check Unit was needed to combat misinformation about its own policies and announcements online, at a time when it separately faced criticism over content restrictions ahead of India's 2024 general election.		1948 Israel retains a British-era law giving the military the power to review and restrict the press. David Ben-Gurion. Ongoing. Issue of the day: Israel's 1948 declaration of independence and the war that followed created an immediate perceived security need, which the retained British-era Press Ordinance and later Editors' Committee arrangement were meant to address by keeping military information out of print.		September 18, 1988 Burma's new military government tightens pre-publication press controls after seizing power. Saw Maung. Ongoing. Issue of the day: SLORC had just taken power after crushing the August 1988 pro-democracy uprising, sometimes called 8888 for its start date, and used the Press Scrutiny Board to prevent coverage sympathetic to the uprising or critical of military rule.		September 21, 1972 Philippines President Marcos closes every major news outlet under martial law. Ferdinand Marcos. Reversed. Issue of the day: Marcos had declared martial law citing threats from Communist insurgency and civil unrest, and moved immediately to eliminate independent media coverage that might question the declaration or his expanding powers.
Secrets and espionage laws					December 15, 2025 China (Hong Kong): conviction and 20-year sentence of the media owner Jimmy Lai under the National Security Law, 2025 to 2026. John Lee. Sustained					September 3, 2018 Myanmar sentences two Reuters journalists to seven years under the Official Secrets Act for reporting on a massacre. Aung San Suu Kyi. Reversed. Issue of the day: The Reuters investigation into the killing of ten Rohingya Muslim men and boys by Myanmar soldiers and local residents in Inn Din village, Rakhine State, in September 2017.
Insult and defamation laws					August 29, 2024 Hong Kong court convicts Stand News editors of sedition. John Lee. Upheld by a court. Issue of the day: The prosecution centered on opinion pieces and interviews Stand News had published examining Hong Kong's 2019 protests and the 2020 National Security Law, coverage prosecutors said smeared the security law and law enforcement.	February 10, 2026 India: one-year prison sentence for the journalist Ravi Nair in a criminal defamation case, February 2026. Narendra Modi. Unknown									November 1, 2023 Turkish authorities detain three journalists under 'disinformation' law. Recep Tayyip Erdoğan. Ongoing. Issue of the day: Sardan had written about an alleged Turkish intelligence report on judicial corruption, which the government's Center for Combating Disinformation denied existed; Halk TV's Dincer Gokce had reported on people released from prison who were later linked to further crimes.
Surveillance and subpoenas	February 3, 2025 Journalists beaten in Bangladesh in separate incidents as interim government drafts new cyber laws. Muhammad Yunus. Ongoing. Issue of the day: The incidents occurred six months into the interim government that took power after Sheikh Hasina's government fell in August 2024, a period in which press-freedom groups said journalists faced both continued street violence and new draft cyber-security legislation.					February 14, 2023 Indian tax authorities search BBC offices weeks after Modi documentary ban. Narendra Modi. Unknown. Issue of the day: The searches followed the government's ban, weeks earlier, of the BBC documentary 'India: The Modi Question,' which examined Modi's record as Gujarat's chief minister during 2002 riots that killed mostly Muslims.			September 20, 1998 Malaysia pressures domestic media and monitors foreign correspondents after arresting former deputy premier Anwar Ibrahim. Mahathir Mohamad. Unknown. Issue of the day: The September 1998 dismissal, arrest and prosecution of former deputy prime minister Anwar Ibrahim on corruption and sodomy charges.
Funding and ownership pressure		September 4, 2017 Cambodia's government forces the closure of The Cambodia Daily with a disputed multimillion-dollar tax bill. Hun Sen. Sustained. Issue of the day: Preparations for Cambodia's 2018 general election and a wider government campaign against independent media and civil-society groups seen as sympathetic to the opposition.		May 28, 2024 Georgia enacts 'foreign influence' law requiring media to register as foreign-backed. Irakli Kobakhidze. Sustained. Issue of the day: The governing Georgian Dream party framed the law as protecting Georgian sovereignty against foreign-funded groups it accused of trying to organize unrest, at a time when the party also faced growing opposition ahead of Georgia's 2024 parliamentary election.					September 20, 1998 Malaysia pressures domestic media and monitors foreign correspondents after arresting former deputy premier Anwar Ibrahim. Mahathir Mohamad. Unknown. Issue of the day: The September 1998 dismissal, arrest and prosecution of former deputy prime minister Anwar Ibrahim on corruption and sodomy charges.
Expulsion and visa denial			June 14, 1989 China expels foreign journalists and restricts coverage of the Tiananmen Square protests. Li Peng. Sustained. Issue of the day: Student-led pro-democracy protests had occupied Tiananmen Square for weeks before the government declared martial law and then used the military to clear the square in early June 1989, and moved to control international coverage of the events that followed. March 17, 2020 China expels American journalists from three major U.S. newspapers. Xi Jinping. Sustained. Issue of the day: The expulsions followed a rapid exchange of measures: a Wall Street Journal opinion piece China objected to, the U.S. capping Chinese state-media staff, and China's decision to expel American reporters from three outlets in response, all unfolding as the coronavirus pandemic was spreading globally.				June 21, 2009 Iran expels a BBC correspondent and restricts foreign journalists after a disputed 2009 election. Mahmoud Ahmadinejad. Unknown. Issue of the day: Iran's disputed June 12, 2009 presidential election and the mass protests that followed allegations the vote was rigged for incumbent Mahmoud Ahmadinejad.	January 7, 2026 Israel: ban on independent entry of foreign journalists into the Gaza Strip, 2023 to 2026. Sustained. Issue of the day: The war in Gaza, which began in October 2023.							March 19, 2025 Türkiye: detention, injury and deportation of journalists covering protests, March 2025. Recep Tayyip Erdoğan. Unknown. Issue of the day: The detention of the mayor of Istanbul, Ekrem İmamoğlu, on March 19, 2025, and the protests that followed.
Shutdowns and blocking						August 5, 2019 India imposes a communications blackout in Jammu and Kashmir after revoking the region's special status. Narendra Modi. Ongoing. Issue of the day: The Indian government's August 2019 revocation of Article 370, which had granted Jammu and Kashmir a degree of constitutional autonomy since 1949.	June 21, 2009 Iran expels a BBC correspondent and restricts foreign journalists after a disputed 2009 election. Mahmoud Ahmadinejad. Unknown. Issue of the day: Iran's disputed June 12, 2009 presidential election and the mass protests that followed allegations the vote was rigged for incumbent Mahmoud Ahmadinejad.					September 21, 1972 Philippines President Marcos closes every major news outlet under martial law. Ferdinand Marcos. Reversed. Issue of the day: Marcos had declared martial law citing threats from Communist insurgency and civil unrest, and moved immediately to eliminate independent media coverage that might question the declaration or his expanding powers.
Detention and violence	February 3, 2025 Journalists beaten in Bangladesh in separate incidents as interim government drafts new cyber laws. Muhammad Yunus. Ongoing. Issue of the day: The incidents occurred six months into the interim government that took power after Sheikh Hasina's government fell in August 2024, a period in which press-freedom groups said journalists faced both continued street violence and new draft cyber-security legislation.				December 15, 2025 China (Hong Kong): conviction and 20-year sentence of the media owner Jimmy Lai under the National Security Law, 2025 to 2026. John Lee. Sustained	February 10, 2026 India: one-year prison sentence for the journalist Ravi Nair in a criminal defamation case, February 2026. Narendra Modi. Unknown				September 18, 1988 Burma's new military government tightens pre-publication press controls after seizing power. Saw Maung. Ongoing. Issue of the day: SLORC had just taken power after crushing the August 1988 pro-democracy uprising, sometimes called 8888 for its start date, and used the Press Scrutiny Board to prevent coverage sympathetic to the uprising or critical of military rule. September 3, 2018 Myanmar sentences two Reuters journalists to seven years under the Official Secrets Act for reporting on a massacre. Aung San Suu Kyi. Reversed. Issue of the day: The Reuters investigation into the killing of ten Rohingya Muslim men and boys by Myanmar soldiers and local residents in Inn Din village, Rakhine State, in September 2017. March 8, 2021 Myanmar junta revokes five outlets' licenses and raids newsrooms after coup. Min Aung Hlaing. Sustained. Issue of the day: The outlets had been covering nationwide protests against the military's February 1, 2021 seizure of power from Myanmar's elected government, coverage the junta sought to stop by removing the outlets' legal authorization to operate.		September 21, 1972 Philippines President Marcos closes every major news outlet under martial law. Ferdinand Marcos. Reversed. Issue of the day: Marcos had declared martial law citing threats from Communist insurgency and civil unrest, and moved immediately to eliminate independent media coverage that might question the declaration or his expanding powers.	October 2, 2018 Saudi Arabia's government kills journalist Jamal Khashoggi inside its Istanbul consulate. Salman bin Abdulaziz Al Saud. Unknown. Issue of the day: Jamal Khashoggi's Washington Post columns criticizing Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman's consolidation of power and human-rights record.	July 31, 1980 South Korea's martial-law government purges journalists who resisted press controls. Chun Doo-hwan. Reversed. Issue of the day: Chun Doo-hwan's military government had just suppressed a pro-democracy uprising centered in the city of Kwangju in May 1980, and used the purge to remove journalists it associated with resistance to press press controls during that period.	November 1, 2023 Turkish authorities detain three journalists under 'disinformation' law. Recep Tayyip Erdoğan. Ongoing. Issue of the day: Sardan had written about an alleged Turkish intelligence report on judicial corruption, which the government's Center for Combating Disinformation denied existed; Halk TV's Dincer Gokce had reported on people released from prison who were later linked to further crimes. March 19, 2025 Türkiye: detention, injury and deportation of journalists covering protests, March 2025. Recep Tayyip Erdoğan. Unknown. Issue of the day: The detention of the mayor of Istanbul, Ekrem İmamoğlu, on March 19, 2025, and the protests that followed.
Official labels				May 28, 2024 Georgia enacts 'foreign influence' law requiring media to register as foreign-backed. Irakli Kobakhidze. Sustained. Issue of the day: The governing Georgian Dream party framed the law as protecting Georgian sovereignty against foreign-funded groups it accused of trying to organize unrest, at a time when the party also faced growing opposition ahead of Georgia's 2024 parliamentary election.		March 2024 Bombay High Court strikes down India's government 'fact check unit' rule. Narendra Modi. Reversed. Issue of the day: The government said the Fact Check Unit was needed to combat misinformation about its own policies and announcements online, at a time when it separately faced criticism over content restrictions ahead of India's 2024 general election.					January 29, 2025 Pakistan amends cybercrime law to create new agency policing 'fake' online content. Shehbaz Sharif. Sustained. Issue of the day: The government said the amendment was needed to curb online disinformation, but journalists said the new offense's vague wording, covering content merely believed likely to cause "fear, panic, disorder or unrest," gave authorities broad discretion over ordinary reporting.

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