International media platforms have praised the Freedom of Expression report compiled jointly by three Commonwealth organisations – the Journalists Association, the Human Rights Initiative and the Lawyers Association.
See full details here: Research Report Says Punitive Laws Impede Free Speech https://www.commonwealthjournalists.org/7976-2/ The report details how laws in many of the 56 Commonwealth member countries severely impede press freedom and unduly restrict the right to freedom of expression. The three Commonwealth organisations, whose networks span across the globe, call on all member states, in accordance with the mandate provided by Heads of Government at the 2024 CHOGM, to urgently repeal laws that criminalise legitimate public speech. They also call for decisive action to protect media workers and others who perform a public watchdog role from violence and intimidation.
This is how some media outlets from across the Commonwealth reacted to the report:
ASIA
Deccan Herald, India: “213 journalists killed in Commonwealth countries between 2006 and 2023; India accounts for 56 of them. Study warns that Indian authorities continue to rely on sedition and defamation laws to target critics, despite moves to repeal or reform some of these provisions.
“India accounts for 56 of the 213 killings, the second-highest number recorded among the Commonwealth countries. Pakistan ranks first in the number of journalists killed in the given period. As many as 87 journalists were killed in Pakistan. Bangladesh (20), Nigeria (13) and Sri Lanka (9) also feature in the list…
‘Two-and-a-half billion people, almost a third of the world’s population, live in countries that were formerly colonised, mainly by the British Empire … But the remnants of colonial law and oppressive legal cultures remain, and many of them penalise journalists,’ human rights lawyer Karuna Nundy, quoted in the report, warns. ’The Commonwealth cannot, like erstwhile colonial powers, stand silent and allow the persecution of journalists while democracy withers,’ says Karuna.” https://www.deccanherald.com/world/213-journalists-killed-in-commonwealth-countries-between-2006-and-2023-india-accounts-for-56-of-them-report-3724429
The Wire, India: “The report urges the Commonwealth Ministerial Action Group (CMAG) to fulfil its mandate to address systematic constraints on civil society and the media.
In October 2024, in a major breakthrough, Commonwealth leaders had adopted a landmark set of guidelines on freedom of expression and the media’s role in good governance at their summit meeting in Samoa. That decision had followed an eight-year campaign of advocacy and consultation led by representative grass roots organisations affiliated to the Commonwealth. The report urges the secretariat and member states to act resolutely, together with non-governmental organisations, to ensure observance of the 11-point Commonwealth Principles on Freedom of Expression and the Role of the Media in Good Governance adopted by Heads of Government in Samoa. https://thewire.in/rights/213-journalists-killed-in-19-commonwealth-countries-between-2006-2023-report
The Federal, India: https://thefederal.com/category/news/press-freedom-under-siege-in-the-commonwealth-india-and-south-asia-in-spotlight-206208
Counterview, India: https://www.counterview.net/2025/09/commonwealth-report-warns-colonial-era.html
Dawn, Pakistan: “The CHRI, CJA and CLA urged member states to develop action plans with state and non-state actors to accelerate the repeal of criminal legislation for speech and anti-state offences in line with international best practice. “Collaborate with civil society and international human rights organisations, including UNESCO, to monitor and support the implementation of the Commonwealth Media Principles,” the three bodies urged, requesting that members prioritise the protection of civil and political rights.” https://www.dawn.com/news/1940516/punitive-laws-impede-free-speech-in-commonwealth-nations-report
Rural Media Network Pakistan: COMMONWEALTH RESEARCH REPORT SAYS PUNITIVE LAWS IMPEDE FREE SPEECH AND SEEKS SWEEPING REFORMS
ASIAN AGE, BANGLADESH https://dailyasianage.com/news/342301/reports-show-press-freedom-at-stake-in-several-commonwealth-countries
EUROPE
aej-uk.org Who controls the narrative? Legal restrictions on freedom of expression in the Commonwealth
Newsbook, Malta: “Malta has been singled out in a scathing Commonwealth report documenting the erosion of press freedom across member states, with the country identified as having the highest number of strategic lawsuits against journalists per capita in the European Union and facing serious allegations of spyware targeting. The Commonwealth report arrives amid mounting evidence of Malta’s systematic failure to implement press freedom reforms promised following the Daphne Caruana Galizia public inquiry. Last month, the Daphne Caruana Galizia Foundation delivered a devastating assessment concluding that “four years on, almost nothing has changed” since the inquiry’s damning recommendations.”
AFRICA
The Point, Gambia: The three Commonwealth Accredited Organisations, whose networks span across the globe, call on all Member States, in accordance with the mandate provided by Heads of Government at the 2024 CHOGM, to urgently repeal laws that criminalise legitimate public speech. They also call for decisive action to protect media workers and others who perform a public watchdog role from violence and intimidation. https://thepoint.gm/africa/gambia/headlines/commonwealth-research-says-punitive-laws-impede-free-speech-seeks-sweeping-reforms
Ghana News Association: “The report comes less than a year after Commonwealth leaders adopted the Commonwealth Principles on Freedom of Expression and the Role of the Media in Good Governance at their October 2024 summit in Samoa. It urges governments, in partnership with civil society and UNESCO, to develop action plans for repealing criminal speech and to prioritise the protection of civil and political rights across the Commonwealth.” https://gna.org.gh/2025/09/commonwealth-report-slams-member-states-for-restricting-press-freedom
The Standard, Gambia: “Commonwealth governments must take urgent actions to reform laws that unduly restrict expression, enact protections against violence and harassment, and strengthen oversight and judicial accountability mechanisms,” stated the report in its way Forward. Articles 2, 7 and 8 of the Media Principles make this clear: laws that criminalise speech must be repealed or amended; State authorities must prevent, investigate and prosecute attacks on journalists; and effective redress mechanisms must be in place… Accountability mechanisms too are key. The Commonwealth Ministerial Action Group (CMAG), mandated to address serious violations of Commonwealth values, can be revitalised to fulfil its role more proactively, including by responding to systemic constraints on civil society and the media, the report observed, while highlighting, similarly, that the Commonwealth Secretariat be resourced and empowered to assist Member States in translating commitments into action, including through legal reform and institutional strengthening.” https://standard.gm/the-commonwealths-credibility-in-the-face-of-new-threats-to-free-expression/
THE AMERICAS
Kaieteur News, Guyana: “Guyana’s cybercrime law has been brought under the spotlight of the Commonwealth, with the international organisation urging the government to prevent the misuse of the law to suppress online speech. It is also calling for the strengthening of judicial independence to prevent the misuse of laws that restrict freedom of expression and media freedom…The report stated that Guyana’s Cybercrime Act of 2018 criminalises sedition, humiliation, and unauthorised storing and sharing of data relating to national security. It said efforts are underway to expand the Act to cover social media platforms, which could further suppress online discourse.” https://kaieteurnewsonline.com/2025/09/10/cybercrime-law-under-scrutiny
