# Search: insult and defamation laws

The number of entries reflects the depth of this record, not the severity of a country's conduct.

Filters: country, continent, tactic, stage, from, to, level, actor, leader, outlet, outcome, source_kind, has_case, plus q, sort (date, date_asc, country, tactic, relevance), per_page (up to 100), page and view (table or cards), as query parameters.

10 incidents match this view.

| Date | Incident | Country | Tactic | Head of government | Outcome |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| February 10, 2026 | [India: one-year prison sentence for the journalist Ravi Nair in a criminal defamation case, February 2026](https://thewaronnews.com/incidents/2026-india-journalist-sentenced-adani-defamation) | [India](https://thewaronnews.com/countries/in) ([RSF 2026 rank: 157th of 180](https://rsf.org/en/index)) | [Insult and defamation laws](https://thewaronnews.com/tactics/insult_and_defamation_laws) | [Narendra Modi](https://thewaronnews.com/leaders/narendra-modi) | Unknown (February 10, 2026) |
| January 16, 2025 | [Tunisia's cybercrime decree pushes jailed-journalist count to highest since 1992](https://thewaronnews.com/incidents/2025-tunisia-record-journalists-jailed-decree-54) | [Tunisia](https://thewaronnews.com/countries/tn) ([RSF 2026 rank: 137th of 180](https://rsf.org/en/index)) | [Insult and defamation laws](https://thewaronnews.com/tactics/insult_and_defamation_laws) | [Kais Saied](https://thewaronnews.com/leaders/kais-saied) | Sustained |
| August 29, 2024 | [Hong Kong court convicts Stand News editors of sedition](https://thewaronnews.com/incidents/2024-hong-kong-stand-news-editors-convicted-sedition) | [Hong Kong](https://thewaronnews.com/countries/hk) ([RSF 2026 rank: 140th of 180](https://rsf.org/en/index)) | [Insult and defamation laws](https://thewaronnews.com/tactics/insult_and_defamation_laws) | [John Lee](https://thewaronnews.com/leaders/john-lee) | Upheld by a court (September 26, 2024) |
| November 1, 2023 | [Turkish authorities detain three journalists under 'disinformation' law](https://thewaronnews.com/incidents/2023-turkiye-detains-journalists-disinformation-law) | [Türkiye](https://thewaronnews.com/countries/tr) ([RSF 2026 rank: 163rd of 180](https://rsf.org/en/index)) | [Insult and defamation laws](https://thewaronnews.com/tactics/insult_and_defamation_laws) | [Recep Tayyip Erdoğan](https://thewaronnews.com/leaders/recep-tayyip-erdogan) | Ongoing |
| July 14, 2023 | [Zimbabwe's Patriotic Act criminalizes journalists' contact with foreign governments](https://thewaronnews.com/incidents/2023-zimbabwe-patriotic-act-criminalizes-foreign-contact) | [Zimbabwe](https://thewaronnews.com/countries/zw) ([RSF 2026 rank: 124th of 180](https://rsf.org/en/index)) | [Secrets and espionage laws](https://thewaronnews.com/tactics/secrets_and_espionage_laws) | [Emmerson Mnangagwa](https://thewaronnews.com/leaders/emmerson-mnangagwa) | Sustained (July 14, 2023) |
| March 4, 2022 | [Russia criminalizes 'fake' reporting on the military, up to 15 years in prison](https://thewaronnews.com/incidents/2022-russia-criminalizes-fake-war-reports) | [Russia](https://thewaronnews.com/countries/ru) ([RSF 2026 rank: 172nd of 180](https://rsf.org/en/index)) | [Insult and defamation laws](https://thewaronnews.com/tactics/insult_and_defamation_laws) | [Vladimir Putin](https://thewaronnews.com/leaders/vladimir-putin) | Sustained |
| March 30, 2020 | [Hungary criminalizes false coronavirus information and grants Orban decree powers](https://thewaronnews.com/incidents/2020-hungary-coronavirus-fake-news-law) | [Hungary](https://thewaronnews.com/countries/hu) ([RSF 2026 rank: 74th of 180](https://rsf.org/en/index)) | [Insult and defamation laws](https://thewaronnews.com/tactics/insult_and_defamation_laws) | [Viktor Orban](https://thewaronnews.com/leaders/viktor-orban) | Unknown |
| June 25, 2013 | [Ecuador's Organic Communication Law creates a regulator that issues hundreds of sanctions against journalists and outlets](https://thewaronnews.com/incidents/2013-ecuador-communications-law-supercom) | [Ecuador](https://thewaronnews.com/countries/ec) ([RSF 2026 rank: 125th of 180](https://rsf.org/en/index)) | [Funding and ownership pressure](https://thewaronnews.com/tactics/funding_and_ownership_pressure) | [Rafael Correa](https://thewaronnews.com/leaders/rafael-correa) | Reversed (February 20, 2019) |
| October 20, 1998 | [Serbia's Public Information Act lets courts fine independent newspapers into financial danger](https://thewaronnews.com/incidents/1998-serbia-public-information-act-fines) | [Serbia](https://thewaronnews.com/countries/rs) ([RSF 2026 rank: 104th of 180](https://rsf.org/en/index)) | [Insult and defamation laws](https://thewaronnews.com/tactics/insult_and_defamation_laws) | [Slobodan Milosevic](https://thewaronnews.com/leaders/slobodan-milosevic) | Reversed (January 1, 2001) |
| April 1938 | [Franco's Spain requires state permission to be a journalist under a wartime Press Law](https://thewaronnews.com/incidents/1938-spain-franco-press-law) | [Spain](https://thewaronnews.com/countries/es) ([RSF 2026 rank: 29th of 180](https://rsf.org/en/index)) | [Credential control](https://thewaronnews.com/tactics/credential_control) | [Francisco Franco](https://thewaronnews.com/leaders/francisco-franco) | Reversed (April 1, 1977) |

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