Your World Tonight - World Press Freedom Day, U.S. deportees in the Congo, Raptors and Habs each facing a game seven, and more

Episode Date: May 3, 2026

Today is World Press Freedom Day, and a new study is exposing troubling trends eroding journalists work around the world. More and more journalists have become targets of kidnapping, arbitrary detention and killings. And the troubles are not just in authoritarian or war-torn countries.Also: They came from Latin America, hoping to find safety and security in the United States. They never expected to end up in the Democratic Republic of Congo. But that's what happened to 15 men and women from Colombia, Ecuador and Peru, after they were deported by U.S. authorities. They say they want to leave, and many Congolese officials want the same.And: For Canadian sports fans, the hopes of the entire country now rest on the shoulders of two teams. The Toronto Raptors and The Montreal Canadiens. Both teams are playing winner-take-all game sevens tonight. We'll take you to Montreal and Cleveland to hear from fans, and how the teams are looking to move ahead in their playoff runs.Plus: The politics around Canada-U.S. crossborder pipelines, Wildfire season beings in Western Canada, The struggles of Indigenous people expressed through dance, and more.

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We're seeing record levels of journalists in prison and criminalized, not just in authoritarian regimes, not just in conflict zones, but increasingly in supposed democracies. It's a day meant to revere the fourth estate, but a new study shows journalism is in a fragile place. We look at World Press Freedom Day at a time when the press may be anything but. This is your world tonight. I'm Gina Louise Phillips. Also on the podcast, it's Prime Minister Carney's first full day in Armenia. he aims to deepen ties with European allies and advance support for Ukraine. And?

There's lots of fuel out there for any kind of fire to take off. And it just happened yesterday with a warm, slight breeze. It didn't take much to set that fire off. An unwelcome season in Canada begins, wildfire season, as some parts of the country are already feeling the burn. Today is World Press Freedom Day, and a new study is exposing troubling trends, eroding journalists' work around the world.

Reporters Without Borders highlights the tough conditions and how more journalists are targets of kidnapping, arbitrary detention and killings. Tali Asarv tells us more. On a stairwell in southern Gaza, a makeshift newsroom turned scene of despair. Five journalists killed after an Israeli strike in August, which the Israeli leader described as a tragic mishap. It is the war in Gaza that has made it. one of the deadliest periods for journalists, if not the most deadly periods for journalists ever.

Jodie Ginsburg is CEO of the Committee to Protect Journalists. That protection, she says, harder than ever and its need more widespread. It's not just in war zones that journalists are in danger. That's where the wearing of a press vest now doesn't protect you, but may attract fire instead. But it's worldwide. We're seeing journalists being denigrated and smeared. According to the committee, a record 120. media workers were killed last year, 86 of them Palestinian. It says that's an indictment on the state of press freedom on its annual day of recognition.

Pope Leo on Sunday addressing a pact St. Peter's Square. Press freedom is a right often violated. He says sometimes blatantly, sometimes mochied. A new report by Reporters Without Borders reveals media independence has hit a 25-year low. More than half of countries now classified as having difficult or very serious press freedom environments. It comes the same week as media organisations call on Israel to lift a ban, which prevents foreign journalists from independent access to Gaza. Independent media cannot work independently.

In Afghanistan, the concept of independent press is eradicated under the Taliban. Zara Neda is an Afghan-Canadian journalist. She runs Zan Times, a women-led newsroom in exile. I'm scared for my journalist on the ground. If they're arrested, they don't have any way of releasing them. So this is this anxiety is a lot. Afghanistan's ranked 175th out of 180 countries in this year's World Press Freedom Index. Bizarra says the risk, particularly for female journalists, is only increasing.

They must have a coverage story of why they're outside. The United States has fallen seven places to 64th on the index, a historic low. While Canada sits at 20, listed as satisfactory. But Zara says Canadians can still help the unheard be heard. Listen to them, hear their voices and see what they're saying. The ultimate privilege in an increasingly silenced world. Talia Sar, CBC News, Toronto. Politics, trade and security are all on the agenda in Armenia.

Prime Minister Mark Carney is in Yerevan for the European Political Community Summit. Canada is the first non-European country to be invited to this summit, which started after Russia's invasion of Ukraine. As Evan Dyer tells us, the shadow of that war is front of mind for the host country. Thank you for accepting this invitation. It's my honor. It's my honor. Mark Carney met with Armenian Prime Minister Nigo Pashinian today,

a man whose mind is as much on next month's Armenian election as it is on this week's summit. Pashinian is still favored to win over his Kremlin-friendly opposition because a majority of Armenians want to draw closer to Europe and not be drawn back into the orbit of Russia. Christopher Waters of the University of Windsor says Armenia, beset by troubles and threats on all sides, wants to integrate more closely with the European Union. It's going to be a difficult and long process for European accession,

but Armenia has started on that path and is very much looking to countries like Canada. Ukraine and Armenia's neighbor, Georgia, both had similar political dynamics, and both ended up being invaded by the Russian army. By holding this summit here, the Europeans are sending a message to Moscow that they don't want that to happen in Armenia. This is an important part of Canada showing that it is committed not to let the European Union just fight on its periphery on its own. Christian Luprecht of RMC Kingston and Queens says Carney's Davos speech helped convince the Europeans Canada is on their side.

So the speech did have a significant impact in Europe. I think it read the tea leaves quite well. and it understood its audience at Davos. But I think very much European leaders are looking to the prime ministers. So in concrete action, what does that really mean? Carney's been clear he wants to integrate Canada into Europe's defense planning and procurement as the continent rushes to rearm. Lirprecht says the Europeans have responded enthusiastically,

with multiple visits in the past year by Germany's defense and energy ministers. but the Europeans want something in return for the market access and alliance they're extending to Canada. There's an expectation of us as a reliable ally that we will take the resources with which we have been blessed and put them to use, to good use for the security, stability and sovereignty of our closest allies and partners. Leoprich says the Europeans are now at the stage where they want to see the substance behind Canada's talk of integration with Europe. what's in it for Europe. Canadian energy and critical minerals are what interests the most, and they want to see real movement on those fronts soon. Evan Dyer, CBC News, Yerevan, Armenia. U.S. President Donald Trump has announced a U.S.-led operation to free stranded ships in the Strait of Hormuz.

The stalemate in talks between the U.S. and Iran over the future of the crucial waterway has kept it at a standstill. High-level contact continues, although the two countries appear to be still far apart on resolving the conflict. And as Katie Simpson reports from Washington, Trump faces more domestic pressure to do so. American forces patrolling the waters leading into the Strait of Hormuz will soon have a new role. President Donald Trump says the U.S. will work to escort stranded ships and their crews out of the area starting Monday morning local time. Trump says ships from countries and companies that have nothing to do with the conflict will be freed. Warning if this humanitarian process is interfered with, bad actors will be dealt with forcefully. An unexpected announcement as Trump says his team is in contact with Iranian negotiators.

They told me about the concept of the deal. They're going to give me the exact wording now. On Saturday, the U.S. reviewed Iran's latest proposal to end the conflict. Today, a spokesman for Iran's foreign ministry said it has. had received a response from the U.S. through intermediaries in Pakistan, and the regime is now reviewing that response. But in the lead-up to the exchange, both sides had actively downplayed hope of a breakthrough. On Iranian state TV, the deputy parliamentary speaker said Iran will not step back from the strait of Hormuz, and it will not return to its pre-war state.

Trump tempered his expectations as well. Writing on social media, Iran has not yet paid a big enough price. for what it's done to humanity. He would also not rule out resuming military strikes. If they misbehave, if they do something bad, but right now, we'll see. But it's a possibility that could happen, certainly. The Trump administration is facing intense criticism at home

over its ongoing military operation. Strategically, we're in, in many respects, a much worse position. Senator Jack Reed, a Democrat, accuses Trump of ignoring the law. After 60 days of fighting, a president is required to get permission from Congress to continue with a war. In this case, that deadline was Friday. The White House says it does not need approval since a ceasefire is in place. An argument, Reed and other Democrats reject. The language of the statutes does not provide for timeout like in a football game.

Trump's allies are aggressively defending the president, including Todd Blanche, the acting attorney general. He's acting within his duty to the American people to keep us safe. He's not engaged in a popularity contest when it comes to what we're doing in Iran. Since the war began, gas prices in the U.S. have nearly doubled, and there are new warnings the Federal Reserve may raise interest rates if the uncertainty drags on. Katie Simpson, CBC News, Washington. Still ahead, telling a story of violence through dance. A Canadian performance makes its way to Mexico City, turning a spotlight on the

the shared struggles of indigenous people. That's coming up later on your world tonight. Canadian oil is front and center of the trade relationship between Canada and the U.S. This week, President Donald Trump clearing the way for a new cross-border pipeline from Alberta to American refineries. But Prime Minister Mark Carney isn't signing on just yet. As J.P. Tasker reports, Ottawa is eyeing other markets as it decides how to play its hand. It's a huge deal in terms of long-term energy dominance.

U.S. President Donald Trump wants more Canadian crude oil as gas prices in the U.S. surge, signing an executive order paving the way for a new pipeline to funnel Alberta oil to American refineries. Slightly different than the last administration. They wouldn't sign a pipeline deal as we have pipelines going up. The new cross-border Bridger project would carry some 550,000 barrels. of oil a day to points further south, reviving parts of the scrap Keystone XL pipeline. While not outright opposed, Prime Minister Mark Carney says he's leery of becoming more dependent on the U.S. market.

Should we be further integrating our energy markets with the United States at a time they view that as, quote, leverage? After decades of selling oil to the U.S. at a discount, Carney's energy minister, Tim Hodgson, says what Ottawa really wants is more export capacity to Asia. And the prime minister's been clear, we need to more than double our exports to the non-U.S. countries. Pushing the Alberta back pipeline to the Pacific, so Canadian oil and gas can command higher prices. Today, we trade almost all of our natural gas and oil with the United States. We think it's in our interest to diversify that. That's what. Canadian energy could be a bargaining chip to force Trump's hand on a trade deal. Frank McKenna, Canada's former.

Ambassador Ambassador to Washington says that's why Carney should play it cool on the prospect of a new cross-border pipeline. We have to be careful that we keep doubling down on a captive market. But a new pipeline to the BC coast is nowhere close to being operational, says Heather Exner-Perrault, an energy policy expert at the McDonald-Loreate Institute. The world is calling out for barrels right now. We want to go to that market share. Trump is dangling the possibility of moving Canadian product fast and cheap. and she expects the industry will jump at the chance. The United States is going to make it easy for us, Canada, to continue to be their energy colony.

Conservative leader Pierre Poliev, meanwhile, wants to draw closer to the Americans. Let's be clear. We're never going to cut our American allies off of our energy. He's pitching energy access in exchange for renewing Kusma. We can offer in the negotiations to build up our resources in a way that helps our continental security that keeps both of us safe, strong, and rich. The Trump administration is warning Canada against using energy as leverage in the Kusma review. But with Trump's tariffs pummeling steel, autos and lumber, that's exactly what the government is preparing to do, trading a new pipeline for tariff relief. That's all part of

the discussion. J.P. Tasker, CBC News, Ottawa. It's been 10 years since a devastating wildfire hit Fort McMurray, one of Canada's most costly disasters. It caused close to $10 billion in damage, destroying over 2,500 homes. This difficult anniversary comes as this year's wildfire season begins in Western Canada. Joe Horwood has more. As Canada emerges from the cold frost of winter, wildfire season is rekindling in the West. In Sandy Beach, a summer village about 50 kilometers, northwest of Edmonton, an emergency alert issued Saturday night, warning its few hundred residents

to prepare for a possible evacuation. That fire jumped across the road and is burnt about two and a half hectares of forest and that is what the firefighting efforts are involved with right now, is keeping that under control. Director of Emergency Management for the village, Brian Brady, says it began as a structure fire. Three homes were engulfed within minutes by flames, higher than the trees before it grew into a wildfire. There's lots of fuel out there for any kind of fire to take off. And it just happened yesterday with a warm, slight breeze. Mayor David Noyes says firefighters were able to bring the flames under control Sunday morning.

But the emergency alert remains in place. While most of Sandy Beach escaped damage, it's a reminder of how quickly wildfire can spread, especially at this time of year. There is this period between when the snow melts and when, when the trees and shrubs and start to absorb the water from the ground. So this period is called the spring dip. A fire information officer with the BC Wildfire Service, Carly DeRosier says that province has recorded 120 wildfires since April 1st

about what she expects for the spring dip. But what is the biggest factor really is the rain that we get in May and June. And if we don't get any rain, then we're certainly going to be prepared for worse conditions and worse fire season. DeRosier says there are. are 23 active wildfires in BC, the largest burning out of control since Wednesday in the Caribou Fire Center, as regions of the province remain under open fire restrictions. And it's possible that with the excessively hot temperatures that we have this week,

that additional prohibitions and restrictions could be implemented if the fuels get especially dry. Sunday afternoon, the Alberta government issuing another emergency alert for wildfire, this time in Parkland County. Natural Resources Canada says two main factors behind wildfires are moisture and temperature. The organization says with Canada warming at a rate twice the global average, more wildland fires are igniting, spreading faster and affecting more Canadians. An unwelcome thought for many, as Fort McMurray and Alberta mark 10 years of rebuilding from one of the worst wildfires in Canada's history. Joe Horwood, CBC News. They came from Latin America, hoping to find safety and security in the United States.

They never expected to end up in the Democratic Republic of Congo. But that's what happened to 15 men and women from Colombia, Ecuador, and Peru, after they were deported by U.S. authorities. They say they want to leave. And as freelance reporter, Chris Oshamringa tells us, many Congolese officials want them to leave as well. I'm more afraid of being in this country than in my own, says Hugo Palencia Ropero. Ropero is originally from Colombia.

He says, even though he faces danger in his home country, he would rather return there than stay in the Democratic Republic of Congo. He is one of 15 men and women from Latin America deported from the United States last month. It's clear the country is very dangerous, he says. You can see that it's plagued by extreme poverty. Some of the deportees, including Roperos, say they were flown out of the U.S. despite having ongoing court cases. The Congolese government agreed to take them in after signing a deportation deal with the United States. That deal is proving to be controversial in Kinshasa. Several

civil society activists are criticizing the government for accepting the deputies. Arthur Omar Kuyumba is one of them. The DRC has a fragile system in governance, public and health services, he says. We are unable to contain armed violence in Kinshasa and the East, but our leaders agreed to take in a group of people rejected by a country with a strong security system. Congo's Minister of Communication, Patrick Muyaya, dismisses such criticism. The people deported to our country pose no security threat, he says, and will not cost the government any money for their upkeep.

Just weeks after the U.S. deputies arrived, more people could soon be arriving in the DRC. According to an aid group called Afghan Evac, the Trump administration plans to transfer more than a thousand Afghan refugees to the DRC, many of whom helped U.S. forces during the war in Afghanistan. U.S. President Donald Trump has denied any knowledge of that plan, but that hasn't stopped some Congolese leaders like Hesroni Balumé from opposing it. If we don't stop the plan to bring in Afghan refugees early, he says, we will regret it. The U.S. has taken over the DRC and is seeking to divide it.

Last year, the Trump administration mediated a peace agreement between the DRC and Rwanda in exchange for access to the DRC's critical minerals. The Congolese government now considers the U.S. a strategic. strategic partner. Congo isn't the only African country with a migration pact with the U.S. Uganda, Rwanda, South Sudan, and East Watini have also agreed to take in deputies from the U.S. Chris Ochamringa for CBC News, Kinshasa. In Mexico City, an innovative dance theater performance tells the story of an indigenous woman's journey, trekking over mountains and through valleys to reach safety in the capital. It's a personal story for the show's Mexican

Canadian director, and he hopes it can illuminate the common struggles between indigenous peoples across the continent. Jorge Barrera has more. It's opening night in Mexico City for Carlos Rivera Martinez's dance production, Rosa. Rosa is a piece that I create to honor the spirit of my grandmother. She passed away almost 10 years ago. The lights dim inside the dance theater at the National autonomous university in Mexico City. The music starts, and a lone woman dancer moves and sometimes fluid, sometimes jarring movements across the stage, as projected landscape images of flowing water, cacti, and a Sierra Valley flow across a canvas screen.

He suffered lots of violence from my grandfather and from the family, the in-law family. Rosa, who was from a Nawa indigenous community and spoke no Spanish, fled with her five children, to Mexico City. This is the first time Rivera Martinez, a Mexican-Canadian and co-artistic director of Montreal's indigenous Odinoc Theater Company, is showing this piece in Mexico, which birth this story.

This production is based on the memories of his father, 88-year-old Hustino Rivera Islas. Rivera Isla says the mountains, molded from straw on the stage, represent the part of the Mexican state of Puebla, which is Mother Cross with him and his four siblings in tow. His niece, Patricia Rivera Maldonado, stars as Rosa, who interprets her grandmother in all her forms.

Rosa is woman, but also spirits, animal, tree, ancestor, earth, she says. Carlos Rivera Martinez says the struggles that unite indigenous people in Canada and Mexico, are embodied in Rosa's story. I think many indigenous women face the same reality that my grandmother faced it a long time ago. Rosa will travel to Regina's Globe Theater, May 3rd and 4th. Jorge Barrera, CBC News, Mexico City.

For Canadian sports fans, the hopes of the entire country now rest on the shoulders of two teams, the Toronto Raptors and the Montreal Canadiens. Both teams are playing winner-take-all game sevens tonight. Let's start with the Havs. They're playing in Tampa Bay, but the Bell Center is jam-packed with fans for a massive watch party. And Quabina O'Duro is there. Covina, you are in the epicenter of Havs energy right now.

What is that like? Ab's fans are in a sea of red inside the Bell Center right now. Game 6 was amazing in terms of atmosphere because it was a home game. But this is different because this is the first time during the playoffs. that the Montreal Canadians have opened the bell center for an away game. I ran into Montreal legend Ivan Lambert, and he says that he's looking forward to a good game. He's hoping Montreal will come out on top.

I ask Montreal fans, if they could be in the locker room and talk to the team before the game, what would they tell the team? Here's what they had to say. We're all here for you. Every game, we're cheering you on, and you have a great support system. Think of your city.

Think of the people who live here. We all got your back. I've been waiting for this all my life, and they've been the most exciting theme I've ever watched in Montreal Canaan. And so let's go Habs. You're going to win. It's that simple. It's as simple as that. You're going to win.

So a lot of fans think that it's that simple that the Montreal Canadians are going to win. I had the opportunity to ask fans about their score predictions. They're all over the place. Some saying that it's going to go to overtime. Some saying double overtime. Some thinking that Montreal will blow out Tampa Bay. Only thing that was consistent is that everyone said that Montreal is, going to win tonight.

A lot of positivity coming from the fans, but we have to face the reality that the haves are coming off a devastating loss in overtime on Friday night. So what are the players and coaches saying about game seven? The coaches and players have put game six behind them. It was a hard fought battle, but they say that they are battle tested. They are ready to go. Martin St. Louis, Brendan Gallagher and Josh Anderson all spoke this morning. And here's what they had to say.

We obviously know that what's on the line here tonight, but I think going into the night, I think we're all feeling the same thing, you know, confident in the job if we're able to show up and prepare like we can. We're going to bring, you know, a game plan and, you know, follow through it and execute it. What's at stake?

I think it elevates everybody's game. And that's what playoff does individually, collectively. So the Montreal Canadians are the only Canadian team left at a shot at hoisting the Stanley Cup. Tampa Bay is looking to advance past the, first round for the first time in a couple of years. So it's going to be a battle-tested matchup and Habs stands here are hopeful that the Canadians will come out on top. Well, thanks for bringing this to Esquivina. Enjoy that party amongst that sold-out crowd at the Bell Center. Have a good one.

Thank you. In the NBA, the Toronto Raptors are hoping to trounce the Cleveland Cavaliers and the high horse they rode in on. Greg Ross is in Cleveland for us tonight. Now, Greg, you're deep in Cavs Country. Cleveland was the favorite to win this series, maybe at the beginning. But after RJ Barrett's epic, game-winning shot on Friday, what is the feeling on the street today? Well, I'll tell you what, I think a lot of fans are probably in a bit of disbelief that they're here right now. I was here for games one and two, and the confidence was soaring.

It looked like this series was all but done. But then the Raptors bounce back. They defend home court. But now, look, both teams have defended home court. Neither team has won a game on the road. But the momentum right now is squarely in Toronto's court. If you think about what happened in game six, R.J. Barrett in overtime, when it looked like the Raptors were all but finished, he makes that three-pointer.

Not quite a buzzer-beater here, but it's off the back of the rim. And Scotchmank Arena erupted. Right now the Raptors have some momentum, but they do have an uphill battle. They've never won a game, a playoff game in Cleveland. they have to find a way to get it done. They have to be the first team in this series to win a game on the road tonight. I mean, you're surrounded by Cavs fans. Do you get the sense that they're surprised that the Raptors are hanging on?

I think they're surprised. I think they might also be in for a bit of a surprise just by the amount of support that the Raptors get for this game. We're already seeing lots of Raptor fans that have made the trip down here for this game. So Raptors fans are hungry. I think they'll make their presence known in Rocket Arena tonight. That's awesome. I love to hear that. Okay, what do the Raptors need to do to actually pull off a win tonight? The Raptors have to find a way to stay calm.

This is a young Raptors team. This is the biggest moment from every player on that roster. But if they're able to do it, if they're able to build on that momentum from game number six of this series and bring it here to Cleveland, we could see this young Raptors team playing in the second round of the playoffs. Oh, I hope you are right. Thanks for bringing this to us, Greg. Greg Ross reporting from Cleveland and Quabina Oduro in Montreal. And finally, we end on a musical note and another feather in the late Gord Downey's already feathered cap.

A beloved Canadian band, singing about a star, Canadian towns, the tragically hip can't really get any more Canadian. Or can it? After selling 14 million albums worldwide and winning 17 Juno Awards, you'd think the revered group from Kingston would already live in the Canadian Songwriters Hall of Fame. But it doesn't. Until now. The hip join other homegrown talent to be hoisted into the hall at an induction ceremony in Toronto this fall. Indie pop hitmaker Feist also joins the ranks. The Calgary songwriter can now count the Hall of Fame, along with the multiple Grammy Noms and 11 Juno Awards on her shelf.

And Acadian Rock Voisin, who hit it big in the late 80s, proves his staying power. And lastly, the duo behind the relentless rock of Lover Boy, songwriters Mike Reno and Paul Dean will be inducted. The band formed in the late 70s in Calgary and found huge international success, fueling many of us through our day jobs. From everyone here at CBC who are working on the weekend, it's been a pleasure bringing this show to you. This has been your world tonight for May 3rd.

I'm Gina Louise Phillips. Good night. For more CBC podcasts, go to cbc.ca.ca slash podcasts.