CPJ International Press Freedom Awards

[1] Established in 1991, the awards are administered by the Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ), an independent, non-governmental organization based in New York City.

[2] In addition to recognizing individuals, the organization seeks to focus local and international media coverage on countries where violations of press freedom are particularly serious.

[1][3] In 1998, the ceremony was briefly disrupted by protesters who unfurled a banner calling for the release of former Black Panther Mumia Abu-Jamal from Pennsylvania's death row.

[5] Sri Lankan reporter J. S. Tissainayagam was also awarded in 2009 while imprisoned, but was released in time to attend the 2010 ceremony, quipping in his acceptance speech: "Ladies and gentlemen, my apologies for being late.

[20] Eritrean journalist Fesshaye Yohannes (2002) died while still imprisoned; owing to conflicting reports and the secrecy of his confinement, the cause and year of his death remain unclear.

A woman with black hair, Tatyana Mitkova, sitting at a table
1991 recipient Tatyana Mitkova
A man with glasses and a graying beard, Veran Matić, sitting at a table
1993 recipient Veran Matić
An older man, Goenawan Mohamad, smoking
1998 recipient Goenawan Mohamad
A man with a full beard, Dmitry Muratov, speaking at a podium
2007 recipient Dmitry Muratov
A man in a suit and sunglasses, Andrew Mwenda, smiling
2008 recipient Andrew Mwenda
A man wearing a suit with short black and white hair, Mansoor Al-Jamri, reading a paper
2011 recipient Mansoor Al-Jamri
Alam in 2017
2020 recipient Shahidul Alam
A woman with glasses, Beatrice Mtetwa, sitting in a chair
2005 recipient Beatrice Mtetwa