JX Fund – European Fund for Journalism in Exile

Defying cancer and constant threats, North Korean defector Kim Seongmin broadcasts uncensored news into North Korea, challenging Pyongyang’s grip on information. Through Free North Korea Radio, he inspires hope among those isolated by censorship—even as Kim Jong-un tightens his authoritarian rule.

After 813 days in solitary confinement, Guatemalan journalist Jose Ruben Zamora returns home, committed to exposing corruption despite heavy repression. In this interview, Zamora discusses the ongoing threats to press freedom under Guatemala’s authoritarian regime and his determination to continue the fight.

Veteran Chinese journalist Dai Qing, 83, now lives in exile in Chiang Mai, Thailand, where she is working on her forthcoming book „Notes on History“. A prominent critic of the Three Gorges Dam project and a supporter of the 1989 Tiananmen Square protests, Dai now enjoys a quiet life among a community of exiled Chinese intellectuals, reflecting on her past activism while staying informed about China’s current political climate.

Ahmet Dönmez, a Turkish journalist living in exile in Sweden, said in an interview with the Journalisten news website that he left the country for the United States some two years after surviving a brutal attack in Stockholm. Dönmez had narrowly escaped death after being severely beaten in a suburb of Stockholm in March 2022.

Netra News, an independent news outlet in exile, is known for its rare feat in investigative reportage exposing corruption in the Bangladesh government and abuse of security agencies. Outlook spoke to its founder Tasneem Khalil on running an online news platform from Sweden, tracking political instability and protests in Bangladesh.

On the only radio station in the remote Ecuadorian town of Baeza, morning show host Juan Carlos Tito updates listeners on the weather, recent power outages, and repairs to a bridge spanning a nearby river. For the last 24 years, Tito, 53, has been the trusted voice of Radio Selva, broadcasting important community news to this town of 2,000 in the Andean highlands. But now, Tito’s voice is beamed into Baeza from abroad.

In recent years, Germany has become a place of refuge for hundreds of journalists who have had to flee their home countries. Many now continue to work from here and try to improve conditions in their countries of origin. Can they succeed?

Following last year’s joint investigation into the use of NSO Group’s Pegasus spyware against Galina Timchenko, co-founder, CEO, and publisher of Meduza, Access Now, the Citizen Lab at the Munk School of Global Affairs & Public Policy at the University of Toronto (“the Citizen Lab”), and independent digital security expert Nikolai Kvantiliani have uncovered how at least seven more Russian, Belarusian, Latvian, and Israeli journalists and activists have been targeted with NSO Group’s Pegasus spyware within the EU.

At least seven journalists and activists who have been vocal critics of the Kremlin and its allies have been targeted inside the EU by a state using Pegasus, the hacking spyware made by Israel’s NSO Group, according to a new report by security researchers.

She has been actively developing grassroots journalism in a region where ethnic minorities have struggled to have their stories heard in the face of the dominant community’s influence. Now in exile, Nan Paw Gays commitment to advancing the voices of the ethnic minorities in Myanmar continues. In an interview with WAN-IFRA she shares thoughts and experiences of her journey in exile.

Ahead of World Press Freedom Day on Friday 3 May, the BBC is announcing for the first time that over 300 World Service journalists – around 15% – are working in exile. Recent crackdowns on press freedom in Russia, Afghanistan and Ethiopia have pushed more BBC teams to relocate for their own safety, many leaving family and friends behind.

Held under house arrest in China before fleeing to Europe, the  journalist Su Yutong is still targeted for her coverage of human rights and politics. From smear campaigns and people sharing her address on an underground sex website, to false bomb threats made in her name, the harassment has left a deep mark.

In 2020, Nicaragua contended not just with the COVID-19 pandemic, but also intensified repression from the administration of Daniel Ortega in response to a 2018 social uprising against corruption and human rights abuses. Against this backdrop, a team of four journalists with a hunger for in-depth journalism took steps to hold power to account and tell stories in innovative ways.

Pouria Zeraati, journalist and reporter for Iran International, was stabbed outside his London home. A Guardian report says that the attack was believed to be another example of Iran hiring proxies to assault its critics in the west.

Sweden-based, Bangladesh-focused investigative newsroom Netra News launched with a bang in December 2019. In this interview Netra News‘ founder Tasneem Khalil opens up about his work as an exiled editor.

Two prominent Chinese bloggers in exile said police were investigating their millions of followers on international social media platforms, in an escalation of Beijing’s attempts to clamp down on critical speech even outside of the country’s borders.

From spying through diplomatic missions and pro-government diaspora organizations to denial of consular services and outright intimidation and illegal renditions, the Turkish government has been using a wide range of tactics against its critics overseas.

Cuba, Syria, Ethiopia, Myanmar, and Hong Kong: In this roundtable, five journalists share insights on navigating exile conditions and reporting on countries they can no longer witness.