The War On News

A record of government actions against journalism and fact-based reporting, 1900 to today

Search: secrets and espionage laws, stage: eliminate

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

All filters: country, dates, head of government, sort
CountryChina, RSF 2026 rank: 178th of 180Hong Kong, RSF 2026 rank: 140th of 180Iran, RSF 2026 rank: 177th of 180Myanmar, RSF 2026 rank: 166th of 180Nigeria, RSF 2026 rank: 112th of 180North KoreaRussia, RSF 2026 rank: 172nd of 180Viet Nam
ContinentAfricaAsiaEurope
TacticSecrets and espionage laws 8Detention and violence 3Licensing and closure of outlets 1
StageEliminate 8
OutcomeOngoing 3Reversed 3Sustained 2
LevelNational 7State or province 1
Head of governmentAung San Suu KyiEbrahim RaisiJohn LeeKim Jong IlNguyen Xuan PhucSani AbachaVladimir PutinXi Jinping

8 incidents match this view.

TableCardsCSVJSONMarkdown
DateIncidentCountryTacticHead of governmentOutcome
15 December 2025China (Hong Kong): conviction and 20-year sentence of the media owner Jimmy Lai under the National Security Law, 2025 to 2026Hong Kong (RSF 2026 rank: 140th of 180)Detention and violenceJohn LeeSustained (8 February 2026)
November 2024China: editor Dong Yuyu is sentenced to seven years for espionage over meals with a diplomatChina (RSF 2026 rank: 178th of 180)Secrets and espionage lawsXi JinpingOngoing (1 November 2024)
17 January 2024Iran: journalists Niloofar Hamedi and Elahe Mohammadi are sentenced to 13 and 12 yearsIran (RSF 2026 rank: 177th of 180)Secrets and espionage lawsEbrahim RaisiOngoing (17 January 2024)
5 September 2022Russia: journalist Ivan Safronov is sentenced to 22 years for treasonRussia (RSF 2026 rank: 172nd of 180)Secrets and espionage lawsVladimir PutinOngoing (5 September 2022)
14 December 2021Vietnam: journalist Pham Doan Trang is sentenced to nine years for anti-state "propaganda"Viet Nam (RSF rank: not recorded)Secrets and espionage lawsNguyen Xuan PhucSustained (14 December 2021)
3 September 2018Myanmar sentences two Reuters journalists to seven years under the Official Secrets Act for reporting on a massacreMyanmar (RSF 2026 rank: 166th of 180)Secrets and espionage lawsAung San Suu KyiReversed (7 May 2019)
8 June 2009North Korea: American journalists Laura Ling and Euna Lee are sentenced to hard laborNorth Korea (RSF rank: not recorded)Secrets and espionage lawsKim Jong IlReversed (4 August 2009)
July 1995Nigeria's military government convicts journalists by special tribunal over coup-plot reportingNigeria (RSF 2026 rank: 112th of 180)Detention and violenceSani AbachaReversed (15 June 1998)
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