Coinciding with World Press Freedom Day (May 3rd), global media outlets unite as One Free Press Coalition to publish this annual “10 Most Urgent” list, bringing attention to fellow journalists who are being imprisoned for seeking to tell the truth. These ten cases illuminate governments’ efforts at criminalizing journalism, silencing the media, and withholding information from the public.The list is compiled in collaboration with the Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ), International Women’s Media Foundation (IWMF) and Reporters Without Borders (RSF). According to CPJ data, 361 journalists were behind bars worldwide at the end of 2024 (up from 320 in 2023).In August 2024, the One Free Press Coalition celebrated the release of two American journalists—Evan Gershkovich and Alsu Kurmasheva—from Russian detention after their cases topped the May 2024 list of “10 Most Urgent” press freedom cases.Given the increasing number of journalists detained for simply doing their jobs and seeking to tell the truth, and given the successful 2024 campaign to free Gershkovich and Kurmasheva, the One Free Press Coalition crucially and emphatically unites our collective voices in support of the following individuals and their urgent cases of press persecution.10 Most Urgent, May 2024Jimmy Lai Lai Family1. Jimmy Lai (Hong Kong)Since December 2020, Jimmy Lai Chee-ying has been jailed in solitary confinement in a Hong Kong maximum-security prison. The 77-year-old media entrepreneur and British citizen founded the newspaper Apple Daily which has since been shuttered in China’s crackdown on pro-democracy advocacy and journalism. Lai’s son Sebastien told CPJ in late 2024, “For his dedication to freedom, they have taken his away

Warming relations between China and many Latin American countries, especially Brazil, are changing. More fundamental geoeconomic calculations about Latin America.AFP via Getty Images. China is on the move in Latin America, and America is taking notice. China and oil-rich Ecuador recently signed a 20-year oil production contract, giving China’s state-owned Sinopec access to the Sacha oil field. The deal would have enabled Ecuador to access the funds and technology necessary to enhance the efficiency of its oil production process while drawing it closer to Beijing’s orbit. The deal set off alarm bells in Washington, fresh off a victory lap after coercing Panama into abandoning China’s Belt and Road Initiative, that Beijing’s influence in Latin America isn’t receding

"The Peruvian Congress is following the footsteps of autocratic regimes that demonize and punish human rights groups and journalists that receive foreign funding," said Juanita Goebertus, Americas director at Human Rights Watch.