{ "title": "Incidents in Asia, national level", "canonical_url": "https://thewaronnews.com/incidents?continent=asia&level=national&page=2", "filters": { "continent": "asia", "level": "national", "page": "2" }, "sort": "date", "count": 60, "page": 2, "pages": 2, "per_page": 50, "counts_caveat": "The number of entries reflects the depth of this record, not the severity of a country's conduct.", "facets": { "country": [ { "value": "AZ", "label": "Azerbaijan", "rsf": null }, { "value": "BD", "label": "Bangladesh", "rsf": { "index": "RSF World Press Freedom Index", "year": 2026, "rank": 152, "of": 180, "label": "RSF 2026 rank: 152nd of 180", "source_url": "https://rsf.org/en/index" } }, { "value": "KH", "label": "Cambodia", "rsf": { "index": "RSF World Press Freedom Index", "year": 2026, "rank": 151, "of": 180, "label": "RSF 2026 rank: 151st of 180", "source_url": "https://rsf.org/en/index" } }, { "value": "CN", "label": "China", "rsf": { "index": "RSF World Press Freedom Index", "year": 2026, "rank": 178, "of": 180, "label": "RSF 2026 rank: 178th of 180", "source_url": "https://rsf.org/en/index" } }, { "value": "GE", "label": "Georgia", "rsf": { "index": "RSF World Press Freedom Index", "year": 2026, "rank": 135, "of": 180, "label": "RSF 2026 rank: 135th of 180", "source_url": "https://rsf.org/en/index" } }, { "value": "HK", "label": "Hong Kong", "rsf": { "index": "RSF World Press Freedom Index", "year": 2026, "rank": 140, "of": 180, "label": "RSF 2026 rank: 140th of 180", "source_url": "https://rsf.org/en/index" } }, { "value": "IN", "label": "India", "rsf": { "index": "RSF World Press Freedom Index", "year": 2026, "rank": 157, "of": 180, "label": "RSF 2026 rank: 157th of 180", "source_url": "https://rsf.org/en/index" } }, { "value": "ID", "label": "Indonesia", "rsf": null }, { "value": "IR", "label": "Iran", "rsf": { "index": "RSF World Press Freedom Index", "year": 2026, "rank": 177, "of": 180, "label": "RSF 2026 rank: 177th of 180", "source_url": "https://rsf.org/en/index" } }, { "value": "IL", "label": "Israel", "rsf": { "index": "RSF World Press Freedom Index", "year": 2026, "rank": 116, "of": 180, "label": "RSF 2026 rank: 116th of 180", "source_url": "https://rsf.org/en/index" } }, { "value": "JP", "label": "Japan", "rsf": null }, { "value": "KZ", "label": "Kazakhstan", "rsf": null }, { "value": "MY", "label": "Malaysia", "rsf": { "index": "RSF World Press Freedom Index", "year": 2026, "rank": 95, "of": 180, "label": "RSF 2026 rank: 95th of 180", "source_url": "https://rsf.org/en/index" } }, { "value": "MM", "label": "Myanmar", "rsf": { "index": "RSF World Press Freedom Index", "year": 2026, "rank": 166, "of": 180, "label": "RSF 2026 rank: 166th of 180", "source_url": "https://rsf.org/en/index" } }, { "value": "KP", "label": "North Korea", "rsf": null }, { "value": "PK", "label": "Pakistan", "rsf": { "index": "RSF World Press Freedom Index", "year": 2026, "rank": 153, "of": 180, "label": "RSF 2026 rank: 153rd of 180", "source_url": "https://rsf.org/en/index" } }, { "value": "PH", "label": "Philippines", "rsf": { "index": "RSF World Press Freedom Index", "year": 2026, "rank": 114, "of": 180, "label": "RSF 2026 rank: 114th of 180", "source_url": "https://rsf.org/en/index" } }, { "value": "SA", "label": "Saudi Arabia", "rsf": { "index": "RSF World Press Freedom Index", "year": 2026, "rank": 176, "of": 180, "label": "RSF 2026 rank: 176th of 180", "source_url": "https://rsf.org/en/index" } }, { "value": "KR", "label": "South Korea", "rsf": { "index": "RSF World Press Freedom Index", "year": 2026, "rank": 47, "of": 180, "label": "RSF 2026 rank: 47th of 180", "source_url": "https://rsf.org/en/index" } }, { "value": "TH", "label": "Thailand", "rsf": null }, { "value": "TR", "label": "Türkiye", "rsf": { "index": "RSF World Press Freedom Index", "year": 2026, "rank": 163, "of": 180, "label": "RSF 2026 rank: 163rd of 180", "source_url": "https://rsf.org/en/index" } }, { "value": "VN", "label": "Viet Nam", "rsf": null } ], "continent": [ { "value": "asia", "label": "Asia" } ], "tactic": [ { "value": "detention_and_violence", "label": "Detention and violence", "count": 14 }, { "value": "outlet_licensing", "label": "Licensing and closure of outlets", "count": 11 }, { "value": "prior_restraint", "label": "Prior restraint", "count": 9 }, { "value": "expulsion_and_visa_denial", "label": "Expulsion and visa denial", "count": 7 }, { "value": "insult_and_defamation_laws", "label": "Insult and defamation laws", "count": 6 }, { "value": "secrets_and_espionage_laws", "label": "Secrets and espionage laws", "count": 6 }, { "value": "shutdowns_and_blocking", "label": "Shutdowns and blocking", "count": 6 }, { "value": "funding_and_ownership_pressure", "label": "Funding and ownership pressure", "count": 5 }, { "value": "lawsuits_against_press", "label": "Lawsuits against the press", "count": 4 }, { "value": "access_ban", "label": "Access bans", "count": 4 }, { "value": "surveillance_and_subpoenas", "label": "Surveillance and subpoenas", "count": 4 }, { "value": "disinformation_labeling", "label": "Official labels", "count": 4 }, { "value": "credential_control", "label": "Credential control", "count": 4 } ], "stage": [ { "value": "restrict", "label": "Restrict", "count": 1 }, { "value": "pressure", "label": "Pressure", "count": 9 }, { "value": "punish", "label": "Punish", "count": 20 }, { "value": "silence", "label": "Silence", "count": 21 }, { "value": "eliminate", "label": "Eliminate", "count": 9 } ], "level": [ { "value": "national", "label": "National", "count": 60 } ], "outcome": [ { "value": "sustained", "label": "Sustained", "count": 23 }, { "value": "ongoing", "label": "Ongoing", "count": 14 }, { "value": "unknown", "label": "Unknown", "count": 10 }, { "value": "reversed", "label": "Reversed", "count": 10 }, { "value": "upheld", "label": "Upheld by a court", "count": 3 } ], "leader": [ { "value": "andries-de-graeff", "label": "Andries Cornelis Dirk de Graeff" }, { "value": "aung-san-suu-kyi", "label": "Aung San Suu Kyi" }, { "value": "benjamin-netanyahu", "label": "Benjamin Netanyahu" }, { "value": "carrie-lam", "label": "Carrie Lam" }, { "value": "chun-doo-hwan", "label": "Chun Doo-hwan" }, { "value": "david-ben-gurion", "label": "David Ben-Gurion" }, { "value": "ebrahim-raisi", "label": "Ebrahim Raisi" }, { "value": "ferdinand-marcos", "label": "Ferdinand Marcos" }, { "value": "fumimaro-konoe", "label": "Fumimaro Konoe" }, { "value": "hassan-rouhani", "label": "Hassan Rouhani" }, { "value": "hun-sen", "label": "Hun Sen" }, { "value": "ilham-aliyev", "label": "Ilham Aliyev" }, { "value": "indira-gandhi", "label": "Indira Gandhi" }, { "value": "irakli-kobakhidze", "label": "Irakli Kobakhidze" }, { "value": "john-lee", "label": "John Lee" }, { "value": "kassym-jomart-tokayev", "label": "Kassym-Jomart Tokayev" }, { "value": "kim-jong-il", "label": "Kim Jong Il" }, { "value": "li-peng", "label": "Li Peng" }, { "value": "mahathir-mohamad", "label": "Mahathir Mohamad" }, { "value": "mahmoud-ahmadinejad", "label": "Mahmoud Ahmadinejad" }, { "value": "mehmed-v", "label": "Mehmed V" }, { "value": "min-aung-hlaing", "label": "Min Aung Hlaing" }, { "value": "muhammad-yunus", "label": "Muhammad Yunus" }, { "value": "narendra-modi", "label": "Narendra Modi" }, { "value": "nguyen-tan-dung", "label": "Nguyen Tan Dung" }, { "value": "nguyen-xuan-phuc", "label": "Nguyen Xuan Phuc" }, { "value": "recep-tayyip-erdogan", "label": "Recep Tayyip Erdoğan" }, { "value": "rodrigo-duterte", "label": "Rodrigo Duterte" }, { "value": "king-salman", "label": "Salman bin Abdulaziz Al Saud" }, { "value": "saw-maung", "label": "Saw Maung" }, { "value": "shehbaz-sharif", "label": "Shehbaz Sharif" }, { "value": "william-howard-taft", "label": "William Howard Taft" }, { "value": "xi-jinping", "label": "Xi Jinping" }, { "value": "yingluck-shinawatra", "label": "Yingluck Shinawatra" } ], "era": [ { "value": "2020s", "label": "2020s", "count": 29 }, { "value": "2010s", "label": "2010s", "count": 17 }, { "value": "1980s", "label": "1980s", "count": 4 }, { "value": "2000s", "label": "2000s", "count": 2 }, { "value": "1970s", "label": "1970s", "count": 2 }, { "value": "1990s", "label": "1990s", "count": 1 }, { "value": "1940s", "label": "1940s", "count": 1 }, { "value": "1930s", "label": "1930s", "count": 1 }, { "value": "1920s", "label": "1920s", "count": 1 }, { "value": "1910s", "label": "1910s", "count": 1 }, { "value": "1900s", "label": "1900s", "count": 1 } ], "year": [ { "value": "1901", "label": "1901", "count": 1 }, { "value": "1913", "label": "1913", "count": 1 }, { "value": "1926", "label": "1926", "count": 1 }, { "value": "1937", "label": "1937", "count": 1 }, { "value": "1948", "label": "1948", "count": 1 }, { "value": "1972", "label": "1972", "count": 1 }, { "value": "1975", "label": "1975", "count": 1 }, { "value": "1980", "label": "1980", "count": 1 }, { "value": "1987", "label": "1987", "count": 1 }, { "value": "1988", "label": "1988", "count": 1 }, { "value": "1989", "label": "1989", "count": 1 }, { "value": "1998", "label": "1998", "count": 1 }, { "value": "2009", "label": "2009", "count": 2 }, { "value": "2010", "label": "2010", "count": 1 }, { "value": "2013", "label": "2013", "count": 2 }, { "value": "2015", "label": "2015", "count": 1 }, { "value": "2016", "label": "2016", "count": 2 }, { "value": "2017", "label": "2017", "count": 1 }, { "value": "2018", "label": "2018", "count": 5 }, { "value": "2019", "label": "2019", "count": 5 }, { "value": "2020", "label": "2020", "count": 5 }, { "value": "2021", "label": "2021", "count": 5 }, { "value": "2022", "label": "2022", "count": 2 }, { "value": "2023", "label": "2023", "count": 5 }, { "value": "2024", "label": "2024", "count": 6 }, { "value": "2025", "label": "2025", "count": 3 }, { "value": "2026", "label": "2026", "count": 3 } ], "has_case": [ { "value": "0", "label": "without a court case", "count": 60 } ] }, "results": [ { "slug": "1988-burma-slorc-press-scrutiny", "title": "Burma's new military government tightens pre-publication press controls after seizing power", "occurred_on": "1988-09-18", "occurred_on_precision": "day", "country": "MM", "country_name": "Myanmar", "continent": "asia", "jurisdiction": "MM", "level": "national", "tactic_primary": "prior_restraint", "tactics": [ "detention_and_violence", "prior_restraint" ], "leader_slug": "saw-maung", "leader_name": "Saw Maung", "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.", "outcome": "ongoing", "outcome_on": "1989-01-01", "outcome_note": "The Press Scrutiny Board's pre-publication press controls remained fully in force at the end of 1989 and continued operating for decades afterward.", "stage": "silence", "ladder_note": null, "rsf": { "index": "RSF World Press Freedom Index", "year": 2026, "rank": 166, "of": 180, "label": "RSF 2026 rank: 166th of 180", "source_url": "https://rsf.org/en/index" }, "era": "1980s", "granularity": "anchor", "status": "historical", "case_count": 0, "summary": "After crushing the 1988 pro-democracy uprising, Burma's new military government, the State Law and Order Restoration Council, tightened an existing pre-publication press controls board and raised penalties for unauthorized publishing to seven years in prison, while denying any press controls existed.", "url": "https://thewaronnews.com/incidents/1988-burma-slorc-press-scrutiny" }, { "slug": "1987-malaysia-printing-act-bars-court-review", "title": "Malaysia: Printing Presses and Publications Act amended to bar court review of publishing permits, 1987", "occurred_on": "1987-01-01", "occurred_on_precision": "year", "country": "MY", "country_name": "Malaysia", "continent": "asia", "jurisdiction": "MY", "level": "national", "tactic_primary": "outlet_licensing", "tactics": [ "outlet_licensing" ], "leader_slug": "mahathir-mohamad", "leader_name": "Mahathir Mohamad", "issue_of_the_day": "The press-law amendment followed Mahathir's use of the Internal Security Act against political opponents and activists in October 1987, at a time when Malaysia's courts had begun reviewing legal challenges to his own conduct in office.", "outcome": "sustained", "outcome_on": null, "outcome_note": "The 1987 amendments to the Printing Presses and Publications Act remained in force, according to the United States State Department's account of Malaysia's press law.", "stage": "silence", "ladder_note": null, "rsf": { "index": "RSF World Press Freedom Index", "year": 2026, "rank": 95, "of": 180, "label": "RSF 2026 rank: 95th of 180", "source_url": "https://rsf.org/en/index" }, "era": "1980s", "granularity": "anchor", "status": "historical", "case_count": 0, "summary": "Malaysia's government amended the Printing Presses and Publications Act in 1987 to expand its power to ban or restrict publications and to bar any court challenge to the suspension or revocation of a publishing permit. The change came the same year Prime Minister Mahathir Mohamad's government arrested 106 opposition politicians and activists in an operation known by the codename Lalang.", "url": "https://thewaronnews.com/incidents/1987-malaysia-printing-act-bars-court-review" }, { "slug": "1980-south-korea-chun-doo-hwan-press-purge", "title": "South Korea's martial-law government purges journalists who resisted press controls", "occurred_on": "1980-07-31", "occurred_on_precision": "day", "country": "KR", "country_name": "South Korea", "continent": "asia", "jurisdiction": "KR", "level": "national", "tactic_primary": "outlet_licensing", "tactics": [ "detention_and_violence", "outlet_licensing" ], "leader_slug": "chun-doo-hwan", "leader_name": "Chun Doo-hwan", "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 controls during that period.", "outcome": "reversed", "outcome_on": "1987-06-01", "outcome_note": "South Korea's June 1987 democracy movement led to direct presidential elections and an easing of press controls; a 1986 leak of secret press guidelines had already embarrassed the government.", "stage": "silence", "ladder_note": null, "rsf": { "index": "RSF World Press Freedom Index", "year": 2026, "rank": 47, "of": 180, "label": "RSF 2026 rank: 47th of 180", "source_url": "https://rsf.org/en/index" }, "era": "1980s", "granularity": "anchor", "status": "historical", "case_count": 0, "summary": "Under General Chun Doo-hwan's martial-law government, South Korean authorities ordered newsrooms in 1980 to purge journalists who had resisted press controls or joined a May sit-in strike for press freedom, and closed 172 periodicals, dismissing roughly 2,000 journalists in total.", "url": "https://thewaronnews.com/incidents/1980-south-korea-chun-doo-hwan-press-purge" }, { "slug": "1975-india-emergency-press-censorship", "title": "India imposes pre-press controls on every newspaper during the 1975 Emergency", "occurred_on": "1975-06-26", "occurred_on_precision": "day", "country": "IN", "country_name": "India", "continent": "asia", "jurisdiction": "IN", "level": "national", "tactic_primary": "prior_restraint", "tactics": [ "outlet_licensing", "prior_restraint" ], "leader_slug": "indira-gandhi", "leader_name": "Indira Gandhi", "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 controls the next day.", "outcome": "reversed", "outcome_on": "1977-03-21", "outcome_note": "Gandhi ended the Emergency and lifted press controls on March 21, 1977, shortly before her party lost the general election that followed.", "stage": "silence", "ladder_note": null, "rsf": { "index": "RSF World Press Freedom Index", "year": 2026, "rank": 157, "of": 180, "label": "RSF 2026 rank: 157th of 180", "source_url": "https://rsf.org/en/index" }, "era": "1970s", "granularity": "anchor", "status": "historical", "case_count": 0, "summary": "Prime Minister Indira Gandhi declared a state of emergency on June 25, 1975, and the next day her government imposed pre-press controls on every Indian newspaper, requiring official clearance before publication and later forcibly merging the country's news agencies into one.", "url": "https://thewaronnews.com/incidents/1975-india-emergency-press-censorship" }, { "slug": "1972-philippines-marcos-martial-law-media-closures", "title": "Philippines President Marcos closes every major news outlet under martial law", "occurred_on": "1972-09-21", "occurred_on_precision": "day", "country": "PH", "country_name": "Philippines", "continent": "asia", "jurisdiction": "PH", "level": "national", "tactic_primary": "shutdowns_and_blocking", "tactics": [ "detention_and_violence", "prior_restraint", "shutdowns_and_blocking" ], "leader_slug": "ferdinand-marcos", "leader_name": "Ferdinand Marcos", "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.", "outcome": "reversed", "outcome_on": "1986-02-25", "outcome_note": "Marcos was removed from power in the People Power Revolution of February 22-25, 1986, ending martial-law controls on the Philippine press.", "stage": "silence", "ladder_note": null, "rsf": { "index": "RSF World Press Freedom Index", "year": 2026, "rank": 114, "of": 180, "label": "RSF 2026 rank: 114th of 180", "source_url": "https://rsf.org/en/index" }, "era": "1970s", "granularity": "anchor", "status": "historical", "case_count": 0, "summary": "President Ferdinand Marcos declared martial law on September 21, 1972, and the next day ordered the military to take over nearly every newspaper, radio and television station in the Philippines, jailing prominent publishers and editors and requiring government clearance for whatever remained.", "url": "https://thewaronnews.com/incidents/1972-philippines-marcos-martial-law-media-closures" }, { "slug": "1948-israel-military-censorship-established", "title": "Israel retains a British-era law giving the military the power to review and restrict the press", "occurred_on": "1948-01-01", "occurred_on_precision": "year", "country": "IL", "country_name": "Israel", "continent": "asia", "jurisdiction": "IL", "level": "national", "tactic_primary": "prior_restraint", "tactics": [ "prior_restraint" ], "leader_slug": "david-ben-gurion", "leader_name": "David Ben-Gurion", "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.", "outcome": "ongoing", "outcome_on": "1989-01-01", "outcome_note": "The military press-review system built on the 1948 Press Ordinance and the 1953 Editors' Committee remained in force through the 1980s and beyond.", "stage": "silence", "ladder_note": null, "rsf": { "index": "RSF World Press Freedom Index", "year": 2026, "rank": 116, "of": 180, "label": "RSF 2026 rank: 116th of 180", "source_url": "https://rsf.org/en/index" }, "era": "1940s", "granularity": "anchor", "status": "historical", "case_count": 0, "summary": "When Israel declared independence in 1948 under Prime Minister David Ben-Gurion, it retained a British Mandate-era Press Ordinance giving the military the power to review and restrict publications on security grounds, later formalized through an Editors' Committee that let most Israeli newspapers self-restrict security matters.", "url": "https://thewaronnews.com/incidents/1948-israel-military-censorship-established" }, { "slug": "1937-japan-newspaper-law-war-censorship", "title": "Japan: government requires clearance to publish war news under the Newspaper Law, 1937", "occurred_on": "1937-07-01", "occurred_on_precision": "month", "country": "JP", "country_name": "Japan", "continent": "asia", "jurisdiction": "JP", "level": "national", "tactic_primary": "prior_restraint", "tactics": [ "prior_restraint" ], "leader_slug": "fumimaro-konoe", "leader_name": "Fumimaro Konoe", "issue_of_the_day": "Japan's full scale war with China, which began with the Marco Polo Bridge Incident on July 7, 1937, produced the war coverage that the government sought to control.", "outcome": "sustained", "outcome_on": null, "outcome_note": "By the government's own assessment, most newspapers were already shaping their coverage to what officials wanted before formal rejection was needed.", "stage": "silence", "ladder_note": null, "rsf": null, "era": "1930s", "granularity": "anchor", "status": "historical", "case_count": 0, "summary": "After Japan's war with China escalated into full scale conflict in July 1937, the government invoked Article 27 of the Newspaper Law to require government clearance before publishing war related news, while a Home Ministry directive to local officials banned the printing of what it called \"fallacies\" that could \"confuse the hearts of people and induce social unrest.\" By August 1937 the Army Ministry found that about eighty percent of submitted articles were approved, a result that reflected editors submitting only material they expected would pass.", "url": "https://thewaronnews.com/incidents/1937-japan-newspaper-law-war-censorship" }, { "slug": "1926-dutch-east-indies-mawa-article-153bis", "title": "Dutch East Indies: Colonial authorities end publication of the communist newspaper Mawa under Penal Code Article 153 bis, 1926", "occurred_on": "1926-01-01", "occurred_on_precision": "year", "country": "ID", "country_name": "Indonesia", "continent": "asia", "jurisdiction": "ID", "level": "national", "tactic_primary": "outlet_licensing", "tactics": [ "outlet_licensing", "secrets_and_espionage_laws" ], "leader_slug": "andries-de-graeff", "leader_name": "Andries Cornelis Dirk de Graeff", "issue_of_the_day": "Communist organizing was spreading among Indonesian workers' movements in the mid-1920s, and in November 1926 members of the Communist Party of the Indies rose up in Batavia and the Banten region, an uprising that colonial authorities put down.", "outcome": "sustained", "outcome_on": "1926-01-01", "outcome_note": "Mawa did not resume publishing, and the colonial government's restrictions on communist-linked newspapers continued after the 1926 uprising.", "stage": "silence", "ladder_note": null, "rsf": null, "era": "1920s", "granularity": "anchor", "status": "historical", "case_count": 0, "summary": "In 1926, colonial authorities in the Dutch East Indies ended publication of Mawa, a newspaper linked to the Communist Association of the Indies in Soerakarta, through repeated use of Article 153 bis of the colonial Penal Code, which criminalized advocating the overthrow of the government. The action came in the same year that a new Governor-General took office and colonial authorities put down a communist uprising in Batavia and the Banten region.", "url": "https://thewaronnews.com/incidents/1926-dutch-east-indies-mawa-article-153bis" }, { "slug": "1913-ottoman-empire-press-law-bars-officials-from-editing-newspapers", "title": "Ottoman Empire bars lawmakers and officials from editing newspapers and jails a leading editor", "occurred_on": "1913-03-09", "occurred_on_precision": "day", "country": "TR", "country_name": "Türkiye", "continent": "asia", "jurisdiction": "TR", "level": "national", "tactic_primary": "outlet_licensing", "tactics": [ "detention_and_violence", "outlet_licensing" ], "leader_slug": "mehmed-v", "leader_name": "Mehmed V", "issue_of_the_day": "The Committee of Union and Progress had just retaken control of the Ottoman government in a coup in January 1913, after a period in which opposition newspapers had used loopholes in the 1909 press law to keep publishing despite suspension orders.", "outcome": "sustained", "outcome_on": "1913-03-09", "outcome_note": "The March 1913 amendment and its retroactive ban on lawmakers and officials editing newspapers remained the law under the Committee of Union and Progress government.", "stage": "silence", "ladder_note": null, "rsf": { "index": "RSF World Press Freedom Index", "year": 2026, "rank": 163, "of": 180, "label": "RSF 2026 rank: 163rd of 180", "source_url": "https://rsf.org/en/index" }, "era": "1910s", "granularity": "anchor", "status": "historical", "case_count": 0, "summary": "In March 1913 the Ottoman government amended its 1909 press law, barring members of parliament and state officials from serving as newspaper editors and applying the ban retroactively to every periodical already in print. The revision followed the martial court prosecution of Tanin editor Huseyin Cahid, who was jailed for continuing to publish after a protest suspension in 1912.", "url": "https://thewaronnews.com/incidents/1913-ottoman-empire-press-law-bars-officials-from-editing-newspapers" }, { "slug": "1901-philippines-us-colonial-libel-act-el-renacimiento", "title": "Philippines: United States colonial government's libel law is used to close the newspaper El Renacimiento", "occurred_on": "1901-01-01", "occurred_on_precision": "year", "country": "PH", "country_name": "Philippines", "continent": "asia", "jurisdiction": "PH", "level": "national", "tactic_primary": "insult_and_defamation_laws", "tactics": [ "insult_and_defamation_laws", "lawsuits_against_press" ], "leader_slug": "william-howard-taft", "leader_name": "William Howard Taft", "issue_of_the_day": "El Renacimiento was a newspaper that supported Philippine independence during United States colonial rule, and its 1908 editorial criticizing unnamed colonial officials as birds of prey drew a libel suit from Secretary of the Interior Dean C. Worcester.", "outcome": "upheld", "outcome_on": "1914-01-01", "outcome_note": "Kalaw and Ocampo's convictions were affirmed on appeal, and Governor-General Francis Burton Harrison pardoned Ocampo in 1914, after the fine had already forced the paper to close.", "stage": "punish", "ladder_note": null, "rsf": { "index": "RSF World Press Freedom Index", "year": 2026, "rank": 114, "of": 180, "label": "RSF 2026 rank: 114th of 180", "source_url": "https://rsf.org/en/index" }, "era": "1900s", "granularity": "anchor", "status": "historical", "case_count": 0, "summary": "The United States colonial government in the Philippines enacted a criminal libel law in 1901 that Governor-General William Howard Taft defended by saying Filipinos were unused to the freedom of the press. The law was used in 1908 to convict the editors and publisher of the pro-independence newspaper El Renacimiento over an editorial criticizing colonial officials, and the resulting fine forced the paper to close.", "url": "https://thewaronnews.com/incidents/1901-philippines-us-colonial-libel-act-el-renacimiento" } ], "downloads": { "csv": "https://thewaronnews.com/incidents?continent=asia&level=national&page=2&format=csv", "json": "https://thewaronnews.com/incidents.json?continent=asia&level=national&page=2", "md": "https://thewaronnews.com/incidents.md?continent=asia&level=national&page=2" }, "license": { "name": "CC BY 4.0", "url": "https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/" } }