129 JOURNALISTS IN JAIL: As of December 31, 1997
As the world prepared to commemorate the 50th anniversary of the Universal
Declaration of Human Rights, at least 129 journalists were being held in
prison for exercising the right guaranteed to them in Article 19 to "seek,
receive and impart information and ideas through any media, and regardless
of frontiers." The Committee to Protect Journalists is calling for their
immediate release.
At the end of every year, CPJ attempts to document
every case of everyone held in prison anywhere in the world on charges
related to journalistic work. This includes newsgathering, writing, editing,
publishing, broadcasting, and photojournalism. It applies to opinion, analysis
and commentary, as well as to factual reportage. We undoubtedly miss some
cases. Information about these journalists and their convictions is often
extremely difficult to obtain and verify. There are many reported instances
of journalists' jailings we do not include because we cannot verify the
information or because we cannot demonstrate a direct relationship between
the imprisonment and the journalist's work.
What follows is a listing of journalists whose imprisonment was-according
to all available information-related directly to some facet of journalism:
129 cases in 24 countries as of December 31, 1997, including 29 in Turkey,
17 in Nigeria, 16 in Ethiopia, and 15 in China. The cases are presented
chronologically and by country, from Algeria to Zambia.
One year earlier, CPJ had reported a record 185 confirmed cases of journalists
in prison in 24 countries. The significant reduction in 1997 to 129 journalists
in prison is due largely to a dramatic drop in Turkey, from 78* confirmed
cases at the close of 1996 to 29 at the end of 1997. This is attributable
to a convergence of international pressure and a mid-year change of government
in Ankara. At least 37 of the journalists who CPJ reported in prison on
December 31, 1996, were released from Turkish prisons in 1997, including
six editors who were freed by a limited amnesty measure passed by parliament
in August following a CPJ mission to Turkey in July. Among those released
was Ocak Isik Yurtçu, a recipient in absentia of a 1996 International
Press Freedom award from CPJ and the focus of a sustained CPJ campaign
for his release. Yurtçu, who was imprisoned in 1994 and had faced
another 10 years in prison, traveled to New York after his release to speak
at the ceremony honoring recipients of the 1997 International Press Freedom
Awards. The release of 37 Turkish journalists was perhaps the single most
positive press-freedom development in the world last year.
Still, with 29 confirmed cases of journalists in prison as of December
31, 1997, Turkey once again heads CPJ's list, with more journalists in
jail than in any other country. This compares to 78* journalists in prison
at the close of 1996, 51 in 1995, and 74 in 1994. It is CPJ's hope and
expectation that these numbers will continue to decline. The statutes under
which these journalists were convicted remain on the books, however. The
Yilmaz government has pledged to CPJ and others that it will undertake
sweeping reform of the Anti-Terror Law and articles of the Turkish Penal
Code that have been used to prosecute working journalists. (More information
on CPJ's research on imprisoned Turkish journalists is presented on page
TK; for further background, see the Special Report on CPJ's Turkish press
freedom campaign on page 82.)
The most disturbing development of 1997 was the increasing persecution
of journalists in Nigeria, where at least 17 reporters and editors
were in jail at the end of the year-up from eight in 1996. The Abacha government
refuses in most cases to permit visitors to these prisoners, who are said
to be confined under extremely primitive conditions and subjected to physical
abuse by security officials. Among the prisoners is Sunday Magazine
editor Christine Anyanwu, a 1997 recipient of CPJ's International Press
Freedom Award. More than 400 leading American journalists and news media
executives have petitioned the Abacha government for her immediate release.
It is CPJ's commitment to intensify our campaign on behalf of Christine
Anyanwu in 1998. (For more information on Nigeria and Christine Anyanwu,
see pp. 139 and 169)
In Ethiopia, 16 journalists were jailed at year-end, all of them
newly inprisoned during 1997. This compares to 18 in 1996 and 31 in 1995.
For more than five years now, the Meles regime has made a habit of punishing
outspoken journalists with sentences ranging typically from six to 18 months
for allegedly "false" reporting or inciting "anxieties" and ethnic strife.
Journalists are also routinely detained for weeks or months at a time without
charges.
In China, at least 15 journalists remain in jail, for publishing
alleged "state secrets" or writing and distributing political leaflets
critical of Communist Party rule. In one of the more recent prosecutions,
Gao Yu, a correspondent for a Hong Kong monthly, was sentenced to prison
for reporting government financial data. She was the recipient of UNESCO's
1997 Guillermo Cano World Press Freedom Prize. There were no new prosecutions
of Chinese journalists in 1997.
The military government of Burma continues to hold eight opposition
journalists in jail, while Kuwait keeps in custody seven
foreign-born reporters-most of them Jordanians and Palestinians-convicted
of treasonous "collaboration" with Iraqi occupying forces in 1991. Vietnam
has five independent journalists in prison, including Doan Viet Hoat, the
recipient of CPJ's 1993 International Press Freedom Award and the 1997
Golden Pen of Freedom prize from the World Association of Newspapers.
Peru was the Western Hemisphere's leading jailer of journalists,
with four imprisoned reporters at the end of 1997. In prosecutions based
exclusively on their published articles, the four were convicted by secret
tribunals of alleged membership in the Tupac Amaru and Sendero Luminoso
guerrilla bands. Algeria, Cuba, Indonesia, Pakistan, Russia, Sudan,
and Tunisia each held two journalists in prison. Journalists were
also in jail at year's end in Azerbaijan, Cameroon, Iran, Iraq, Malaysia,
South Korea, and Zambia.
These are not simple statistics. Every name on this list represents
someone whom we as fellow journalists believe to have been unjustly imprisoned
because of his or her work. We have learned that with sufficient international
attention and pressure, many could and would be freed.
Not everyone on this list was a career journalist prior to his or her
arrest. We include political analysts, human rights activists, and others
who have been prosecuted because of opinion columns or news features they
have written. All working journalists in these countries are directly threatened
by such prosecutions, and we believe that we have an obligation to defend
such imprisoned writers as colleagues. Journalism is not the exclusive
domain of a professional fraternity. Anyone who is prosecuted for writing
or broadcasting political commentary or factual reportage should be defended
as a colleague by journalists around the world.
In totalitarian societies where independent journalism is not permitted,
CPJ often defends prosecuted writers who would be defined by their governments
as political dissidents, rather than journalists. This category would embrace
the samizdat publishers of the former Soviet Union, the wall-poster
essayists of the pre-Tiananmen period in China, and the underground pamphleteers
of today's Burma. CPJ also classifies as an imprisoned journalist anyone
with a news media background in an authoritarian in or totalitarian state
who, like several recent cases in Cuba, is prosecuted for campaigning on
behalf of the cause of free expression. We believe that working in the
defense of press freedom is as legitimate an activity for a journalist
as reporting or editing.
We also object in principle to any imprisonment of a journalist on the
basis of a conviction for criminal libel. Legitimate cases of defamation
should be matters for civil courts to resolve.
In addition to the 129 confirmed cases reported here, we have listed
a further 30 "unconfirmed" cases of imprisoned journalists in eight countries
(see page 75). In some of these cases, we could not confirm reports that
a jailed journalist had been released from prison before the end of 1997.
In others it remains uncertain whether the prosecution was directly connected
to the journalist's work. In all these cases CPJ is seeking additional
information from local sources and clarification from the governments in
question.
This year-end accounting offers an instructive global snapshot of patterns
of repression of journalists around the world. Though it omits the many
cases of journalists who have been jailed and released in the course of
the year, these incidents are often noted in the country sections of this
1997 report. Such cases are simply too numerous for CPJ to document comprehensively,
however. The annual year-end listing permits accurate year- to-year as
well as country-to-country comparisons, and focuses attention on long-term
prisoners whose cases might otherwise be forgotten.
The common denominators of the year-end case list are summary convictions
and harsh sentences equating some form of journalistic activity with treason.
There is little ambiguity in these cases. Governments explicitly or implicitly
acknowledge that the charges were prompted by critical reporting or commentary,
and that the intent of prosecution was censorship. Formal charges do not
always refer to journalistic work, however. In some countries-Turkey is
the main offender-journalists are often accused of unlawful collaboration
with armed insurgents, but the motivation for the prosecution and the evidence
for the charge appears to stem wholly or largely from the publication of
reportage or opinions deemed to be supportive of those rebel movements.
In other places-Ethiopia, Nigeria-journalists critical of the government
are often jailed with no formal charges at all.
With few exceptions, the journalists held in prison at the end of December
1997 will still be in jail when this report is published at the end of
March 1998. Most of them have been on CPJ's lists before. We again call
on the leaders of the 23 countries holding these 128 journalists in jail
to expedite their immediate release. We urge all journalists to join us
in appealing for the freedom of our imprisoned colleagues.
----------------
In Attacks on the Press in 1996 we reported that there
were 78 confirmed cases of Turkish journalists in prison at the end of
that year. We now believe that the correct number as of December 31, 1996,
was 74. In the current 1997 report, we have omitted four cases included
in the 1996 list because newly obtained information showed that those prosecutions
were not connected to the journalists' work. We reclassified another nine
of the original 78 cases as "unconfirmed" due to new information raising
questions about the relationship between the charges and the journalists'
profession (another four imprisoned journalists on the 1996 list are listed
as "unconfirmed" in 1997 because CPJ could not verify reports that they
had been released). We have also since learned of four other journalists
who were imprisoned as of December 31, 1996; two remained in jail a year
later, and two had been released. For more information on Turkey, see pages
49, and 82.
129 Journalists Imprisoned
The following is a list of journalists imprisoned around the world. Cases
appear chronologically, and are grouped according to the countries in which
the journalists are held.
Algeria
(2)
Please send appeals to:
His Excellency Liamine Zeroual
President of the High Council of State
The Presidential Palace
El Mouradia
Algiers, Algeria
Fax: 213 2 60 96 18
Djamel Fahassi, Alger Chaîne III
Detained: May 7, 1995
State security officials detained Fahassi, a reporter for the government-run
French- language radio station Alger Chaîne III and formerly a contributor
to Al- Forqane, a weekly organ of the Islamic Salvation Front (FIS)
that was banned in March 1992. Officials have refused to acknowledge his
arrest.
Aziz Bouabdallah, Al-Alam al-Siyassi
Detained: April, 12, 1997
Bouabdallah, a journalist who covered Islamist groups in Algeria for
the Arabic-language daily Al-Alam al-Siyassi, was abducted by three armed
men from his home in Algiers. The men identified themselves as Algerian
security agents and forced Bouabdallah into a waiting car. CPJ later received
information that Algerian authorities were holding Bouabdallah in an Algiers
detention center. He was reported to have been tortured repeatedly. Authorities
have denied any knowledge of his detention.
Azerbaijan
(1)
Please send appeals for the release of this journalist to:
His
Excellency Heidar Aliyev
President of Azerbaijan
Baku, Azerbaijan
FAX: 011-994-12-
92-26-63
Savalan Mamedov, Istintag
Imprisoned December 22,
1997
On December 22, Salavan Mamedov, editor of the Baku weekly Istintag, was
arrested and imprisoned. He was charged with libel (article 121 of
the Azerbaijani penal code) against the former Prosecutor of the Lenkoran
district, Nazim Tagiev. In a number of articles Mamedov claimed that Tagiev
had cooperated with Alikram Gumbatov, who was convicted of treason and
attempting to stage an uprising. According to Yeni Nesil, Mamedov was released
from police custody on January 23, 1998. Court hearings have not yet been
scheduled. Mamedov could serve a sentence of up to five years if he is
found guilty.
Burma
(8)
Please send appeals for the release of these journalists
to:
His Excellency General Than Shwe
Prime Minister and Minister of Defense
Chairman of the State Peace and Development Council
Ministry of Defense
Signal Pagoda Road
Yangon (Rangoon), Myanmar (Burma)
Tel: 87862
U Win Tin
Imprisoned: July 4, 1989
U Win Tin, former editor of two daily newspapers
and vice-chair of Burma's Writers Association, was arrested and sentenced
to three years' hard labor-a sentence that was subsequently extended. U
Win Tin was active in establishing independent publications during the
1988 student democracy movement, and he also worked closely with imprisoned
National League for Democracy leader Daw Aung San Suu Kyi.
Authorities extended U Win Tin's sentence by five more years on March 28, 1996, after
they convicted him of smuggling letters describing conditions at Insein
prison to Professor Yozo Yokota, the U.N. Special Rapporteur for human
rights in Burma.
In an October 1997 alert, Human Rights Watch cited reports
that U Win Tin was seriously ill and perhaps close to death in Rangoon
General Hospital. He was apparently transferred to the hospital in early
October 1997 from Myingyan jail, known to be one of the worst in Burma.
U Maung Maung Lay Ngwe
Imprisoned: September 1990
U Maung Maung Lay Ngwe was arrested and charged with writing and distributing publications that "make
people lose respect for the government." The publications were titled, collectively, Pe-Tin-
Tan.
In 1997, CPJ was unable to obtain new information on his status.
U Myo Myint Nyein,
U Sein Hlaing, What's Happening
Imprisoned: September 1990
U Myo Myint Nyein and U Sein Hlaing were arrested for contributing
to the preparation, planning, and publication of the satirical news magazine
What's Happening, which the Burmese government claims is anti-government
propaganda. They were sentenced to seven years in prison. On March 28,
1996, they were among 21 prisoners tried inside Insein Prison and given
an additional seven years sentence under the Emergency Provisions Act for
smuggling letters describing prison conditions to Professor Yozo Yokota,
the U.N. Special Rapporteur for human rights in Burma. In 1997, CPJ was
unable to obtain new information on their case.
Daw San San Nwe
U Sein Hla Oo
Imprisoned: August 5, 1994
Dissident writer Daw San San Nwe and
journalist U Sein Hla Oo were arrested on charges of spreading information
damaging to the state and contacting anti-government groups. San San Nwe
and Sein Hla Oo were sentenced on October 6, 1994 to 10 years and seven
years in prison, respectively. Three other dissidents, including a former
UNICEF worker, were sentenced to between 7 and 15 years in prison on similar
charges. Officials said the five had "fabricated and sent anti-government
reports to some diplomats in foreign embassies, foreign radio stations,
and visiting foreign journalists." San San Nwe allegedly met two French
reporters visiting Burma in April 1993 and appeared in a video they produced
to spread propaganda about the government. According to reports citing
Burmese officials, authorities seized confidential Energy Ministry data,
as well as documents and compact discs containing anti-government materials
from one of the dissidents. Both U Sein Hla Oo and Daw San San Nwe were
previously imprisoned for their involvement in the National League for
Democracy, Burma's main pro-democracy party. As of December 1994, all five
were being held at the Insein Prison in Rangoon. In 1997, CPJ was unable
to obtain new information on their case.
Ma Myat Mo Mo Tun
Imprisoned: 1994
The daughter of imprisoned dissident Daw San San Nwe, Ma Myat Mo Mo
Tun, was arrested in 1994 and sentenced to seven years in prison for spreading
information injurious to the state. She is alleged to have recorded "defamatory
letters and documents," made contact with "illegal" groups and sent anti-government
articles to a journal published by an expatriate group. In 1997, CPJ was
unable to obtain new information on her case.
Ye Htut
Imprisoned: September 27, 1995
Ye Htut was arrested on charges of sending fabricated news abroad
to Burmese dissidents and opposition media. Among the organizations to
which Ye Htut allegedly confessed sending reports was the Thailand-based
Burma Information Group (BIG), which publishes the human rights newsletter
The Irrawaddy. Burma's official media claimed that BIG had presented a
false picture of the country to foreign governments and human rights organizations.
He was sentenced to seven years in prison. In 1997, CPJ was unable to obtain
new information on his status.
Cameroon
(1)
Please send appeals for the release of these journalists
to:
Please send appeals to:
His Excellency Paul Biya
President of the Republic of Cameroon Presidential
Palace Yaoundé, Cameroon
Fax: 237-221-699
Evariste Menouga, Hebdo
Imprisoned: March 20, 1997
Menouga, editor in chief of the independent newspaper Hebdo, was convicted of "inciting rebellion within
the army" and "spreading false news," and remanded to the central prison in Keondengui. Menouga was
arrested in Yaounde after a warrant was issued against him
on March 13 by Defense Minister Philippe Menye. The arrest was in connection
with an article titled "Rebellion in the Army" published in the March 12 issue of Hebdo. Menouga
was scheduled for a court hearing on April 17.
China
(15)
Please send appeals for the release of these journalists
to:
President Jiang Zemin
Guowuyuan
9 Xihuangcheng Genbeijie
Beijing, People's Republic of China
Ji Kunxing, Shang Jingzhong,
Shi Qing, Yu Anmin, Pioneers
Tried: September 1989
Ji Shang, Shi, and Yu were tried in Kunming on charges of "fomenting a counter- revolutionary plot."
They had published an underground magazine called Pioneers, circulated anti-government leaflets, and put
up anti-government posters. Though they
were tried in 1989, their sentences have never been publicized. According to reports from 1994, Ji was
sentenced in 1991 and the others were still being detained. In 1997, CPJ was unable to obtain new
information on this case.
Chen Yanbin, Tielu
Imprisoned: Late 1990
Chen, a former University student, was arrested in late 1990 and sentenced to 15 years in prison and four
years without political rights after his release. Together with Zhang Yafei, he had produced an unofficial
magazine called Tielu (Iron Currents) about the 1989 Tiananmen Square massacre. Several hundred
mimeographed copies of the magazine were distributed. The government termed the publication
"reactionary" and charged Chen with dissemination of counter-revolutionary propaganda and
incitement.
Zhang Yafei, Tielu
Imprisoned: September 1990
Zhang, a former student at Beifang Communications University, was arrested and charged with
dissemination of counterrevolutionary propaganda and incitement. In March 1991, he was sentenced to 11
years in prison and two years without political rights after his release. Zhang edited an unofficial magazine
called Tielu (Iron Currents) about the 1989 crackdown at Tiananmen Square.
Wu Shishen, Xinhua News Agency
Imprisoned: October or November 1992
Arrested in the fall of 1992, Wu, a Xinhua News Agency reporter, received a life
sentence in August 1993 for allegedly providing a Hong Kong journalist with a "state-classified" advance
copy of President Jiang Zemin's 14th Party Congress address.
Gao Yu, free-lancer
Imprisoned: October 2, 1993
Gao was detained two days before she was to depart for the United States to start a one- year research
fellowship at Columbia University's Graduate School of Journalism. On November 10, 1994, she was tried
without counsel and sentenced to six years in prison for "leaking state secrets" about China's structural
reforms in articles for the pro-Beijing Hong Kong magazine Mirror Monthly. Gao had previously
been jailed for 14 months following the June 1989 Tiananmen Square demonstrations and released in
August 1990 after showing symptoms of a heart condition. In January 1997, Chinese authorities rejected an
appeal for bail on medical grounds. On May 3, 1997, Gao Yu
was awarded the World Press Freedom Prize by the United Nations Educational Scientific, and Cultural
Organization (UNESCO). The Chinese government attacked UNESCO and condemned its director general,
Federico Mayor, for supporting the presentation of the award to Gao Yu.
Ma Tao, China Health Education News
Sentenced: August 1993
Ma, editor of China Health Education
News, received a six-year prison term for allegedly helping Xinhua News
Agency reporter Wu Shishen provide a Hong Kong journalist with President
Jiang Zemin's "state-classified" 14th Party Congress address. According
to the Associated Press, Ma is believed to be Wu's wife.
Wang Dan
Imprisoned: May 21, 1995
Wang, a former student leader, pro-democracy activist, and
frequent contributor to overseas publications, was detained at an undisclosed
location. On October 30, 1996, he was sentenced to 11 years in prison for
conspiring to subvert the government. Wang's offenses consisted of publishing
articles in the overseas press that were deemed objectionable by Beijing
and receiving donations from overseas human rights groups. Foreign reporters
were barred from the courtroom during his trial, and the domestic press
was prohibited from reporting on the trial. Following the denial of his
appeal on November 10, Wang was sent to a prison in remote Jinnzhou, in
Liaoning province, 500 kilometers northeast of Beijing. Wang had previously
been jailed for three-and-a-half years after he lead pro-democracy protests
in Tiananmen Square in 1989.
Bai Weiji, Zhao Lei
Arrested: April 1993
Sentenced: May 1993
Bai, who once worked for the Chinese Foreign Ministry, monitoring foreign news and writing news
summaries, was sentenced in May 1993 to ten years in prison for passing information and leaking national
secrets to Lena Sun, a correspondent for the Washington Post. His appeal was rejected in July
1993. His wife, Zhao Lei, and two friends were also arrested for involvement in this case. Bai organized a
march of Foreign Ministry colleagues in June 1989 and reportedly lost his job as a result. Zhao was
working as a translator for Lena Sun when she was tried in secret and sentenced to six years in prison for
"illegally providing national secrets to a foreigner," said to be Lena Sun.
Khang Yuchun
Sentenced: December 1994
Khang was tried with 16 others on charges of being members of counter-revolutionary organizations, most
notably the Chinese Progressive Alliance, the Liberal Democratic Party of China and the Free Labor Union
of China. Among the accusations against him was that he commissioned people to write articles and set up
Freedom Forum, the magazine of the Chinese Progressive Alliance. He was sentenced in December
1994, to 12 years in prison for "organizing and leading a counter-revolutionary group" and an additional
seven year imprisonment for "counter-revolutionary propaganda."
Liu Jingsheng,Tansuo
Tried: 1994
Liu, a former writer and co-editor for the pro-democracy journal Tansuo, was sentenced to 15 years
in prison for "counterrevolutionary" activities after being tried secretly in July 1994. Liu was arrested in
May 1992 and charged with being a member of labor and pro- democracy groups, including the Liberal
Democratic Party of China, Free Labor Union of China, and the Chinese Progressive Alliance. Court
documents stated Liu was involved in organizing and leading anti-government and pro-democracy
activities. Prosecutors also accused him and other dissidents who were tried on similar charges of writing
and printing political leaflets that were distributed in June 1992, during the third anniversary of the
Tiananmen Square demonstrations.
Wang Ming
Arrested: November 1996
Wang was sentenced to three years re-education through labor for writing "Declarations on Citizens'
Freedom of Speech," an open letter which called on the government to release dissidents Wei Jingsheng
and Wang Dan. He is being held in Xishanping Reeducation Brigade in Sichuan Province.
Cuba
(2)
Please send appeals for the release of these journalists
to:
His Excellency Fidel Castro Ruz
President of Cuba
c/o Permanent Mission of Cuba to the United Nations
315 Lexington Avenue
New York, NY 10016
United States
Fax: (212)779-1697
Lorenzo Páez Nuñez, Buro de Prensa
Independiente de Cuba
Imprisoned: July 10, 1997
Páez was sentenced to 18 months in prison for defaming the national police. He was detained
because of his report about a police officer who allegedly killed a young man during harvest celebrations in
Pinar del Río. Páez was convicted after a one-day trial during which he was not permitted
legal assistance. On December 19, CPJ sent a letter to the Cuban authorities, asking for information on
Páez's legal status. No reply was received. On January 20, CPJ sent a letter asking that Páez be
released.
Bernardo Arévalo Padrón, Línea Sur 3
Imprisoned: November 18, 1997
On October 31, Arévalo was sentenced to six years in prison by the Provincial Chamber of the Court
of Aguada de Pasajeros, a town in the province of Cienfuegos. He was convicted on the charge of "lack of
respect" for Fidel Castro and Carlos Lage, a member of the Cuban State Council. The conviction stems
from a story Arévalo published on the leaders' privileges. He reported that a helicopter transported
meat from a farm in Aguada de Pasajeros to Havana, while the Aguada de Pasajeros inhabitants do not
have enough to eat. Arévalo was detained and jailed on November 18. He is serving his sentence in
Ariza prison in Cienfuegos, where Arévalo shares a filthy cell with common criminals. On
November 28, the Aguada de Pasajeros Court rejected Arévalo's petition to review the conviction.
On December 19, CPJ wrote a letter to Cuban authorities inquiring about the legal status of Arévalo.
No reply was received. On January 20, CPJ sent a letter calling for Arévalo's release.
Eritrea
(1)
Please send appeals for the release of these journalists
to:
His Excellency Issaias Afewerki
President of Eritrea
Asmara, Eritrea
Fax: 291-1-125123
Ruth Simon, Agence France-Presse
Imprisoned: April 25
Simon, an Eritrean national who works as a correspondent for the Agence France-Presse news agency, was
arrested and charged with endangering state security. In a story she filed the day before, she had quoted
President Issaias Afewerki as saying Eritrean troops were fighting alongside rebels in neighboring Sudan.
At press time, Simon remained in detention. Her colleagues have been denied visitation. She is allowed
visits from her family members only. In a letter to Afewerki, CPJ called for Simon's immediate release.
According to the Eritrean foreign ministry, Simon has been charged under a press law which states that
"any journalist who disinforms the public or any institution is liable to the damage he/she may cause as a
result."
Ethiopia
(16)
Please send appeals for the release of these journalists
to:
His Excellency Prime Minister Meles Zenawi
Office of the Prime Minister
Addis Ababa, Ethiopia
Fax: 251-1-552-030 (c/o Ministry of Foreign Affairs)
Abay Hailu Wolafen
Detained: February 1997
Abay was sentenced to one year in prison on November 25. He had been
in detention since February. At press time, CPJ learned that Abay had died in custody on February 13,
1998.
Sisay Negussie, Agere
Imprisoned: March 1997
Sisay appeared before court on April 7, and was detained at Kerchele prison for failing
to present a bail guarantor of approximately US$600. At press time, CPJ had no further information about
this case.
Samson Seyoum, Tequami and
Agere
Imprisoned: April 18, 1997
Samson, former editor in chief of Agere and Tequami, was sentenced to an undisclosed
prison term, on charges of "inciting war and spreading Islamic Fundamentalism," for articles he had
published in Agere. Detained before the sentencing and unable to produce the bail of approximately
US$730, Samson had just completed an 18-month prison sentence which he had begun in December 1995
after his conviction on charges of libel for an article in Tequami.
Tolera Tessema, Mede Welabu
Imprisoned: April 23, 1997
Tolera, deputy editor in chief of Mede Welabu, was sentenced to a year in prison. At press time,
CPJ had no further information on this case.
Nega Tariku, Quiyit
Imprisoned: September 3, 1997
Nega, a reporter with Quiyit magazine, was arrested, detained, and charged with
publishing pornographic material. His whereabouts are unknown.
Sisay Agena, Ethiop
Imprisoned: September 8, 1997
Sisay, publisher of Ethiop, was arrested near his office on September 8 on as yet unknown charges,
and detained at the Region 14 location. He was released on bail on September 10, but on September 16 had
been taken back into custody and moved from the Region 14 Criminal Investigation Office to the Central
Criminal Investigation Office Prison.
Tamrat Serbessa, Wenchif Admassu Tesfaye, Wenchif
Imprisoned: October 14, 1997
Tamrat, editor-in-chief of Wenchif, and Admassu, the paper's deputy editor, were detained at the
Central Criminal Investigation Office Prison. The two journalists are each charged on five counts, one of
which is libel against President Negasso Gidada. This charge stemmed from a report in Wenchif
that claimed the president was drunk at a gathering of Oromos.
Tesfaye Deressa, Urjii Solomon Nemera Urjii
Imprisoned: October 16, 1997
Tesfaye, editor-in-chief of the Urjii newspaper, and Solomon, the paper's deputy editor, were
abducted from a tea room near Urjii 's offices. The journalists were first detained at the Central
Criminal Investigation Office Prison and were later taken to a district police prison. The two were held
on charges related to a report in Urjii about the recent killing of alleged Oromo Liberation Front
(OLF) members in the Mekanissa area. The article contradicted the government media's version of the
same story. Tesfaye and Solomon appeared three times before a district court but were given new
appointments each time because of requests by police for more time to continue their investigation. After
the journalists' court appearance on December 12, police said they had concluded their investigation but
were awaiting the prosecutor's decision as to bail. However, no decision had been made when Tesfaye and
Solomon appeared again in court on December 19. They were scheduled for another court appearance on
January 9.
Garoma Bekele, Urjii
Imprisoned: October 27, 1997
Garoma, publisher of the newspaper Urjii, was detained on suspicion of being a member of the
outlawed Oromo Liberation Front (OLF). Garoma is being held at the Central Investigation Office Prison
along with others who have been detained for their alleged connection to a series of OLF bomb attacks in
Addis Ababa, Dire Dawa, and Harar. On October 31, Garoma appeared in court and made an appeal for
release on bail, but was denied by the prosecutor. He was given a new court appointment for January 13.
Fekadu Mahtemwork
Imprisoned: October 28, 1997
Fekadu, a distributor of private newspapers, was detained at the Central Criminal Investigation Bureau
prison. He was given a court appointment for a week later but has not yet appeared. The charges against
him are not known.
Garedew Demisse, Wenchif
Imprisoned: October 31, 1997
Garedew appeared in court on charges of false information regarding a number of stories in
Wenchif. The journalist was served a trial date of two weeks later. He was detained on October 28
at the Central Criminal Investigation Office Prison.
Iskinder Nega, Wenchif
Imprisoned: December 6, 1997
Iskinder, owner and publisher of Wenchif, was detained at the Central Criminal Investigation
Office Prison, and charged with reporting false information. He was later moved to Wereda 9 Police
Station.
Waqshum Bassa, Urjii Alemu Tolessa, Urjii
Imprisoned: December 23, 1997
Waqshum and Alemu were called in for questioning and detained at the Central Criminal Investigation
Office. After properly registering at the Press Licensing Office of the Ministry of Information and Culture,
the two had taken over publishing the Urjii newspaper. The paper's previous editors, Solomon
Nemera and Tesfaye Deressa, were arrested on October 16 and are still in detention. Alemu and Waqshum
were ordered to appear in court on January 9, 1998. The status of their trial is unknown.
Indonesia
(2)
Please send appeals for the release of these journalists
to:
His Excellency Suharto
Office of the President
Istana Merdeka
Jakarta, Indonesia
Fax: 62-21-345-2685
Andi Syahputra
Sentenced: April 1997
Syahputra, who manages the printing house that produces the Suara Independen magazine, was
sentenced to 30 months in prison on charges of defaming President Suharto. The magazine published an
article titled "Suharto in the Process of Becoming a Naked King" in October 1996. Chief Judge Marsel
Buchari of the South Jakarta District Court ruled that the article had "clearly" shown intent to defame
Suharto. Syahputra was sentenced several months after being arrested in a raid of the printing house on
October 28, 1996, when police confiscated 5,000 copies of the issue containing the article. They also
arrested Nasrul, a press operator. After the two were taken into custody at a South Jakarta police
station, security forces searched Syahputra's home. Syahputra and Nasrul were charged with defaming the
president. Syahputra is a member of Indonesia's only independent journalists union, the Alliance of
Independent Journalists (AJI). These actions were part of the government's suppression of Suara
Independen, published by the Melbourne-based Society of Indonesian Alternative Media, and its
predecessor, Independen, published by AJI.
Adnan Beuransyah, Serambi Indonesia
Imprisoned: August 16, 1990
Beuransyah, a journalist with the newspaper Serambi Indonesia, was arrested. He was tried and
convicted in March 1991 in Banda Aceh on charges of subversion and sentenced to eight years in
prison.
Iran
(2)
Please send appeals for the release of these journalists
to:
His Excellency Mohammed Khatemi
President of the Islamic Republic of Iran
The Presidency, Palestine Avenue
Azerbaijan Intersection
Tehran, Islamic Republic of Iran
Telex: 214231 MITI IR or 213113 PRIM IR
Fax: +98 21 674790 (via Foreign Affairs; ask for fax to be forwarded)
Faraj Sarkoohi, Adineh
Imprisoned: January 27, 1997
Sarkoohi, editor in chief of the monthly literary magazine Adineh, was arrested by Iranian
authorities and in September 1997, sentenced to one year in prison for "slandering the Islamic Republic," a
charge which stemmed from a letter he smuggled out of Iran in January describing his detention and torture
at the hands of Iranian authorities in 1996. Previously, in 1994, Sarkoohi had been one of 134 writers and
intellectuals who petitioned the Iranian government to end censorship and launch official efforts to
foster greater freedom of expression.
Morteza Firouzi, Iran News
Imprisoned: November 9, 1997
The official Iranian daily Joumhouri Islami reported that Firouzi, editor in chief of the English-
language daily Iran News, was arrested on charges of espionage. Prior to Joumhouri
Islami's announcement, Firouzi had been rumored "disappeared" for several months, since about the
time of the presidential election in May. Authorities have provided no further details about his case, but
CPJ has received reports that Firouzi's arrest was related to articles published in Iran News calling
for the release of foreign nationals from Iranian prisons, and for warmer relations with the United States.
The charge of espionage is frequently brought against individuals viewed as threats to the regime. The
charge has also been used by political factions within the government to attack their opponents' allies.
Iraq
(1)
Please send appeals for the release of these journalists
to:
President Saddam Hussein
c/o Iraqi Mission to the United Nations
14 East 79th Street
New York, NY 10021 United States
Aziz al-Syed Jasim, Al-Ghad, Al-Thawra
Imprisoned: April 18, 1991
Jasim, editor of Al-Ghad magazine and former editor of the official daily Al-Thawra, was taken
into custody at a secret police station in Baghdad and has not been heard from since. Reports suggest that
his refusal to write a book about Iraqi President Saddam Hussein precipitated his arrest. Government
officials deny that he is in prison.
Kuwait
(7)
Please send appeals for the release of these journalists
to:
His Highness Shaikh Sa'ad al-'Abdallah al-Sabah,
Crown Prince and Prime Minister
Al-Diwan al-Amiri
Al-Safat
Kuwait City, Kuwait
Telegrams to: His Highness Shaikh Sa'ad al-'Abdallah al-Sabah,
Kuwait City, Kuwait Fax: 965-243-0121
Ibtisam Berto Sulaiman al-Dakhil Usamah Suhail Abdallah
Hussein Abd al-Rahman Muhammad Asad al-Husseini Ahmad Abd Mustafa
Sentenced: June 1991
The four journalists were given life sentences for working for the Iraqi occupation newspaper Al-
Nida. They were taken into custody after Kuwait's liberation and charged with collaboration. The
trials, which began on May 19, 1991, in martial-law courts, failed to comply with international standards of
justice. The defendants were reportedly tortured during their interrogations. Their defense-that they were
coerced to work for the Iraqi newspaper-was not rebutted by prosecutors. On June 16, 1991, the journalists
were sentenced to death. Ten days later all martial-law death sentences were commuted to life terms,
following international protests.
Nawwaf Izzedin al-Khatib
Sentenced: June 20, 1992
Al-Khatib, a Palestinian journalist, was convicted of having worked for the Iraqi occupation newspaper
Al-Nida and sentenced by the State Security Court to 10 years in prison. The court also fined him
KD2000 and ordered that he be expelled from the country upon termination of his sentences.
Mufid Mustafa Abd al-Rahim Ghazi Alam al-Dine
Sentenced: July 28, 1992
The State Security Court convicted Abd al-Rahim and Alam al-Dine of working for the Iraqi occupation
ewspaper Al-Nida. Abd al-Rahim, a Palestinian, and Alam al-Dine, a Jordanian citizen and former
editor at the Kuwait News Agency (KUNA), were sentenced to 10 years in prison. Alam al-Dine had only
worked a total of 12 hours for Al-Nida. The court also fined each of the two men KD2000 and
ordered that they be expelled from the country upon termination of their sentences. Abd al Rahim, who is
in his sixties, suffers from paralysis in one his hands-the result of torture at the hands of Kuwaiti
authorities. Alam al-Dine, who is reported to be in his late fifties, is said to suffer from a serious heart
condition.
Malaysia
(1)
Please send appeals for the release of these journalists
to:
His Excellency Dato' Seri Dr. Mahathir Mohamad
Prime Minister and Minister of Home Affairs
Jabatan Perdana Menteri
Jalan Dato' Onn
Kuala Lumpur 50502
Malaysia Fax: 60-3-298-4172; 60-3-255-6264
Nasiruddin Ali, Karya One
Imprisoned: May 6, 1996
Nasiruddin, a director of the publishing firm Karya One, which published four magazines linked to the
banned Islamic movement al-Arqam--Tatih, O.K!, Ayu, and Dunia Baru--
was arrested and imprisoned at the Kemunting Detention Center near Ipoh, 25 miles north of Kuala
Lumpur. The magazines were suspended on June 4, 1996. Authorities detained Ali for the 60-day period
allowed under section 73(1) of the Internal Security Act (ISA), then on July 7 invoked section 8 of the ISA,
which allows up to two years' imprisonment without trial. The charges against Nasiruddin have never been
made public. However, the pro-government daily New Straits Times reported in May 1996 that
Nasiruddin had been arrested along with three other Al-Arqam members for attempting to revive the
activities of the sect, which the government banned in 1994 for allegedly deviating from true Islamic
teachings.
Nigeria
(17)
Please send appeals for the release of these journalists to:
General Sani Abacha
Chairman of the Provisional Ruling Council
and Commander in Chief of the Armed Forces
State House
Abuja
Federal Capital Territory, Nigeria
Fax: 234-95-232-138
Kunle Ajibade, TheNews
Imprisoned: May 5, 1995
Police arrested Ajibade, editor in chief of the daily TheNews, and demanded to know the source of
the articles "No One Guilty: The Commission of Inquiry Presents an Empty File Regarding Suspects in the
Coup d'Etat." They held him because he refused to divulge the whereabouts of his colleague Dapo
Olorunyomi, who went underground. In July 1995, a special military tribunal held a secret trial for Ajibade
and George Mbah of Tell Magazine [see below], charging them as accessories to treasonable
felony and sentencing them to prison terms of undisclosed length. On October 1, 1995, Nigeria's
Independence Day, the Provisional Ruling Council amended the sentence to 15 years in prison. Ajibade is
in Makurdi Prison, Benue State.
Christine Anyanwu, The Sunday Magazine
Imprisoned: May 31, 1995
Anyanwu, publisher and editor in chief of The Sunday Magazine, was arrested for her reports on
an alleged coup plot in March. In July 1995, a special military tribunal secretly tried Anyanwu, along with
Ben Charles Obi, editor of Weekend Classique. [See below] Both got life sentences. On October 1,
1995, Nigeria's Independence Day, the Provisional Ruling Council commuted their sentences to 15 years
in prison. Anyanwu and Obi have since been transferred to a prison in Bama, northeastern Nigeria,
notorious for its poor conditions. On four occasions, CPJ protested the arrests in letters to the Abacha
government and called for the journalists' immediate and unconditional release. In October, Anyanwu
was named a 1997 International Press Freedom Awardee by CPJ. As of the end of 1997, she was being
held at Kadu Prison in Kaduna State.
George Mbah,
Tell
Imprisoned: May 5, 1995
Soldiers arrested Mbah, assistant editor of
Tell, for contributing to a report about a military officer who died during
interrogation about his involvement in an alleged coup plot. In July 1995,
a special military tribunal tried Mbah and Kunle Ajibade of TheNews, charging
them with being accessories to treasonable felony. They were sentenced
to life in prison. On October 1, 1995, Nigeria's Independence Day, the
Provisional Ruling Council commuted their sentences to 15 years in prison.
Mbah and Ajibade have since been transferred to a prison in Bama, northeastern
Nigeria, notorious for its poor conditions. There are reports that Mbah,
who suffers from epilepsy, is consistently denied his medication. On four
occasions, CPJ protested the arrests in letters to the Abacha government
and called for the journalists' immediate and unconditional release. CPJ
also demanded that Mbah receive prompt and proper medical care. At the
end of 1997, Mbah was being held at Biu Prison in Borno State.
Charles Ben Obi, Weekend Classique
Imprisoned: May 1, 1995
Obi, editor of the weekly
newsmagazine Weekend Classique, was arrested for his reports on an alleged
attempted coup in March 1995. In July 1995, a special military tribunal
tried Obi and Christine Anyanwu of The Sunday Magazine. [See above] Both
received life sentences. On October 1, 1995, Nigeria's Independence Day,
the Provisional Ruling Council commuted their sentences to 15 years in
prison. Obi was transferred to a prison in northeastern Nigeria notorious
for its poor conditions. On four occasions, CPJ has protested his arrest
in letters to the Abacha government and called for his immediate and unconditional
release. At the end of 1997, Obi was being held at Agodi Prison in Ibadan
(Oyo State).
Jude Sinnee, Newspaper vendor
Imprisoned: March 1, 1996 Armed
agents of the Rivers State Internal Security Task Force arrested Sinnee,
a newspaper vendor in Bori, an Ogoni settlement in Rivers State, at his
newsstand. The agents also seized 500 copies of various publications and
the vendor's accumulated sales of the day. They then transported Sinnee
to the Internal Security Task Force's office at Kpor, near Bori, where
he is being held incommunicado. Sinnee, a disabled person, went on a hunger
strike to protest his detention
Okina Deesor, Radio Rivers
Imprisoned:
July 31, 1996
Deesor, a producer with Radio Rivers in the state of Rivers,
was arrested and detained at the Government House Cell prison, reportedly
without food or water. On August 3, 1996, he was transferred to the Mobile
Police Headquarters in Port Harcourt. According to Maj. Obi Umabi, who
ordered the arrest, Deesor's detention was in connection with the July
18, 1996, Radio Rivers broadcast of the national anthem of the Ogoni people.
In a letter to President Sani Abacha, CPJ denounced Deesor's continued
detention and asked for his immediate and unconditional release. At the
end of 1997, Deesor was still detained by the Rivers State Internal Task
Force in Kpor.
Moshood Fayemiwo, Razor
Imprisoned: February 1, 1997
Fayemiwo,
publisher of the now-defunct weekly Razor, was arrested and detained at
the Directorate of Military Intelligence (DMI) in Lagos. Fayemiwo, who
had been temporarily living in exile in Cotonou, Benin, was kidnapped by
Nigerian security agents and returned to Lagos. Fayemiwo was reportedly
tortured and his already poor health was deteriorating when he was imprisoned.
Mohammed Adamu, African Concord
Imprisoned: July 27, 1997
Adamu, the Abuja
correspondent of African Concord magazine, was arrested by three security
agents at his Abuja residence. The agents did not give a reason for the
arrest, but informed Adamu that he was being "invited for a chat." Friends
believed Adamu's arrest was in connection with the July 14 African Concord
cover story titled "Ali Mustapha: Ruthless Man Behind Abacha."
In a letter
to Nigerian leader Gen. Sani Abacha, CPJ called for Adamu's immediate and
unconditional release.
Soji Omotunde, African Concord
Imprisoned: October 25, 1997
Omotunde, editor of the African Concord, was abducted by security
agents as he was driving along a street in Ikeja, in mainland Lagos. The
two agents stopped him then tied, gagged, and bundled him into their car.
He was driven to an unknown location. At the end of the year, Omotunde
was still being detained, reportedly in the town of Abuja.
Adetokunbo Fakeye, PM News
Imprisoned: November 4
Fakeye, the defense correspondent of PM News, disappeared while on assignment at Army Defense Headquarters in Lagos. Staffers at PM News said that Fakeye was detained at the Defense Headquarters. No reason was given for the journalist's detention.
Jenkins Alumona, TheNews
Imprisoned: November 8
Three plainclothes operatives of the State Security Service (SSS) arrested Alumona, editor of TheNews magazine, on the premises of the Nigerian Television Authority (NTA), located on Victoria Island, Lagos.
A female member of the security team approached Alumona and escorted him out of the NTA offices. Her colleagues then placed him in one of the two waiting vehicles and drove him to the State Security Services detention camp in Abuja.
Alumona was released on December 31.
Onome Osifo-Whiskey, Tell
Imprisoned: November 10, 1997
Osifo-Whiskey, managing editor of Tell
magazine was arrested by officials of the Directorate of Military Intelligence
as he was on his way home from church with his family. His whereabouts
and the reason for his arrest are unknown.
Akin Adesokan, Post Express
Imprisoned: November 12, 1997
Adesokan, a reporter with the Post Express newspaper, was arrested by State Security Service (SSS) officers on November 12, at the Nigeria-Benin border. He was returning to Lagos from Austria, where, as an author and member of the Association of Nigerian Authors, he had attended a four-month writer-in-residence program. The security officers apparently objected to photographs of dissidents such as Ken Saro-Wiwa that Adesokan had in his possession. Adesokan was held at the State Security Service (SSS) Detention Camp, in Ikoyi, Lagos.
Adesokan was released on December 31.
Rafiu Salau, TheNews/Tempo/PM News Group
Imprisoned: November 14, 1997
Salau, administration manager
of The News/TEMPO/PM News group, was arrested and detained at the Directorate
of Military Intelligence (DMI) in Apapa, Lagos, on November 18, 1997. Salau
had gone to the offices of the DMI to check on his colleague Adetokunbo
Fakeye. Fakeye, defense reporter for PM News, who had been imprisoned since
October 25, was later released without charge. Salau remains in detention
at DMI.
Babafemi Ojudu, TheNews/Tempo/PM News Group
Imprisoned: November 17, 1997
Operatives of the State Security Service arrested Ojudu, managing
editor of TheNews/TEMPO/PM News group, upon his return to Lagos from Nairobi,
Kenya, where he had taken part in a seminar organized by the Freedom Forum.
He is being held at the Ikoyi prison. Authorities have given no reason
for this action. His detainment appears linked to a recent government clampdown
on TheNews publishing group, which has resulted in the arrests of several
other journalists affiliated with the group.
In a letter to Gen. Sani Abacha,
CPJ protested the November arrests of Ojudu and other journalists affiliated
with TheNews/Tempo/PM News group, and called for an end to the systematic
censorship of the group's publications.
Ben Adaji, TheNews
Imprisoned: December 4, 1997
Adaji, Taraba State correspondent for TheNews magazine,
was arrested by state security officers in Jalingo. He is being held at
an undisclosed location.
Security officers had launched a full-scale manhunt
for Adaji. He was wanted in connection with a story titled "War in Taraba,"
which he wrote in the October 27 edition of the TheNews. The story detailed
the build-up and outbreak of a factional conflict in the Takum district
of Taraba State and the roles of some military officers in this conflict.
Pakistan
(2)
Please send appeals for the release of these journalists
to:
His Excellency Muhammad Nawaz Sharif
Prime Minister of Pakistan
Office of the Prime Minister
Islamabad, Pakistan
Fax: 92-51-920-1835
Irfanul Haq, Iftikhar Adil, Lashkar
Sentenced: December 26, 1997
The Baluchistan High Court in Quetta sentenced sub-editor Irfanul
Haq and printer/publisher Iftikhar Adil of the Lahore-based Urdu-language
evening newspaper Lashkar to six months in prison for inaccurate reporting.
Despite their written apologies, the two journalists were convicted after
publishing a report on the alleged theft of court records. The journalists
were also fined Rs. 5000 (US$109). On January 12, 1998, Iftikhar Adil was
released from prison after the Baluchistan High Court accepted his appeal
and said that the days he spent in jail were adequate for his punishment.
Haq was released a few days later.
Peru
(4)
Please send appeals for the release of these journalists
to:
His Excellency Alberto Fujimori
President of the Republic of Peru
Palacio de Gobierno
Lima 1, Peru
Fax: 51-14-266-770
Javier Tuanama Valera, Hechos
Imprisoned: October 16, 1990
Tuanama, editor in chief of the magazine Hechos, was sentenced to 10 years in prison by a "faceless judge" from the Superior Court of Lambayeque. He was first detained on October 16, 1990, and charged with having links to guerrilla group Revolutionary Movement Tupac Amaru (MRTA). He was found not guilty of the charges in two trials held in 1994. He was subsequently released but arrested again soon after. Under the Repentance Law, which allows terrorists to turn themselves in and inform on former comrades, a former member of the MRTA confessed that Tuanama had recruited him into the MRTA. CPJ protested his November 7, 1994 conviction in a trial that fell far below international standards of due process. In June 1995, one of his sisters complained that Tuanama's medical condition seriously worsened as he had no access to specialized medical care his arthritis required. In April 1996, he was transferred to the Huacaris prison in Cajamarca. Tuanama appealed the sentence. The Oversight Commission (Comisióon de Indultos) is currently reviewing the case. The Oversight Commission was created by the government of Alberto Fujimori to examine cases of those convicted under Peru's anti-terrorism laws. CPJ inquired about Tuanama's legal status in December 22, 1997, letter, to which the Peruvian authorities did not reply.
Hermes Rivera Guerrero, Radio Oriental
Imprisoned: May 8, 1992
Rivera, a reporter for Radio Oriental, in the province
of Jaén in the Andean department of Cajamarca, was sentenced to
20 years in prison on May 13, 1994, for alleged terrorist activity. In
his defense, Rivera said policeman Idelfonso Ugarte Valdivia arrested him
arbitrarily on May 8, 1992, and brought the false charges against him.
Rivera's wife, Dilsia Miranda, also accused the policeman of demanding
$500 for the release of her husband and making uninvited sexual advances.
When she refused to cooperate, Miranda said, Ugarte apparently falsified
evidence to show Rivera's participation in terrorist attacks in the area.
On January 26, 1995, Rivera, who was being held at the Picsi prison in
the city of Chiclayo, sewed his mouth closed with thread and began a hunger
strike in protest of the ratification of his sentence. He ended his hunger
strike three weeks later. On March 7, his defense lawyer presented an appeal
for review of his case before the Supreme Court of Peru. On September 5,
1995, the Supreme Court revoked the 20-year prison sentence and ordered
a retrial.
CPJ sent a letter of inquiry on December 22, 1997, but Peruvian
authorities did not provide any information on Rivera's legal status.
Augusto Ernesto Llosa Giraldo, El Casmeno, Radio Casma
Imprisoned: February 14, 1995
Llosa, editor in chief of the newspaper El Casmeno and a reporter
with Radio Casma, was arrested in the northern city of Casma and charged
with involvement in a 1986 terrorist incident in Cuzco, where he was staying
in a hotel at the time. Police raided his home and confiscated several
documents, including National Association of Journalists (ANP) posters
urging the release of several detained journalists, and an issue of ANP's
newsletter. A secret tribunal of the Fifth Criminal Chamber of the Superior
Court of Cuzco convicted him of involvement in the terrorist incident,
and on August 10, 1996, he was sentenced to six years in prison. Three
weeks after the verdict, he was unexpectedly transferred to the maximum
security Yanamayo prison. He is the only journalist among the inmates,
most of whom are serving life sentences. Llosa requested the nullification
of the sentence before the Surpeme Court of Peru, which was accepted.
On
June 30, 1997, a new verdict was reached, and Llosa was sentenced to five
years. Llosa again requested the sentence be nullified. CPJ did not receive
a reply to the letter it sent on December 22, 1997, inquiring about Llosa's
legal status.
Pedro Carranza Ugaz, Radio Oriental
Imprisoned: November 29, 1993
Carranza, a correspondent with Radio Oriental de Jaén in
Cajamarca, was detained on November 29, 1993, and sentenced on November
7, 1994, to 20 years in prison on the charges of being a member of the
terrorist group Revolutionary Movement Tupac Amaru (MRTA). He is currently
being held in the Picsi prison in Chiclayo. Carranza lived in Moyabamba.
In 1997, the Oversight Commission (Comisión de Indultos) is currently
reviewing the case. The Oversight Commission was created by the government
of Alberto Fujimori to examine cases of those convicted under Peru's anti-
terrorism laws.
Russia
(2)
Please send appeals for the release of these journalists
to:
President Boris Yeltsin
The Russian Federation
Moscow, Russia
Fax: 011-7-095-224-0366
And also to:
President Aslan Maskhadov
The Chechen Republic
Grozny, Chechen Republic
Fax: 011-90-212-257-6817
Krzysztof Galinski, Mac Pariadka and Zycie Marek
Kurzyniec, Marscho and Zycie
Imprisoned: December 17, 1997
Galinski and
Kurzyniec were kidnapped in Chechnya along with three other Polish citizens
by unknown assailants while trying to deliver a shipment of food aid. All
five undertook the mission on behalf of the National Federation of Anarchists
in Poland, of which they are all members.
Galinski is an editor with the
Gdansk-based Mac Pariadka, the country's largest national anarchist monthly
magazine. Kurzyniec edits his own small political bulletin Marscho, also
in Gdansk.
Although their primary mission was the food aid delivery, both
carried press credentials from Zycie, a national daily newspaper in Gdansk.
They had agreed to a request from the editor to write free-lance articles
about the situation in Chechnya upon their return.
The National Federation
of Anarchists reported that all five hostages were safe as of mid-January.
Rumors that the hostage-takers demanded ransom from Zycie and the anarchists'
group could not be confirmed.
The kidnapping is the latest in a long series
of abductions of foreign journalists and aid workers in Chechnya, usually
for ransom.
South Korea
(1)
Please send appeals for the release of these journalists
to:
President Kim Dae Jung
The Blue House
#1 Sejong-no, Chongno-gu
Seoul
Republic of Korea
Fax: 822-770-0253
Richard Choi, Radio Korea
Imprisoned: December 19, 1997
Choi, a veteran
reporter and the vice president of Radio Korea, a Korean- language radio
station in Los Angeles, was arrested at the Koreana Hotel in Seoul and
charged with criminal slander and defamation on the basis of a story he
broadcast from Seoul to Los Angeles. The brief report, which aired on December
15 in Los Angeles on Radio Korea (KBLA AM-1580), concerned the current
economic difficulties of the Korea Times/Hankook Ilbo publishing company
and its rumored merger with the Hyundai Corporation. The report was not
broadcast in South Korea.
According to Jang Hee Lee, the owner of Radio
Korea, the report angered the owners of the Korea Times, which brought
the defamation suit against Choi that led to his arrest. At the year's
end, Choi was being detained in the Seoul Jail. On January 7, 1998, the
South Korean government released Choi on his own recognizance. Choi must
still stand trial on charges of criminal slander. He is being prosecuted
under a section of the Korean criminal code which allows private companies
to file a criminal complaint against persons accused of defaming their
reputation. He faces up to five years in jail if convicted.
Sudan
(2)
Please send appeals for the release of these journalists
to:
His Excellency Lt. General Omar Hassan al-Bashir
c/o His
Excellency Mahdi Ibrahim Muhammad
Embassy of Sudan
2210 Massachusetts Avenue,
N.W.
Washington, D.C. 20008
Osama Ghandi, Sudanese Television Hassan Saleh,
Sudanese Television
Imprisoned: February 1996
Television cameraman Osama
Ghandi and technician Hassan Saleh of the state- owned Sudanese Television
were arrested and accused of being involved in an alleged coup attempt.
They were among 10 civilians who went on trial in late August 1996 in an
in camera military court trial, in which most of the defendants were military
officers. Ghandi told the court on Sept. 18 that military intelligence
agents had coerced his confession by torturing him. CPJ received reports
in 1997 that the military court had reached a verdict, although it was
not clear whether the two journalists were convicted or if they remained
in prison.
Syria
(5)
Please send appeals for the release of these journalists
to:
His Excellency Hafez al-Assad
President of the Syrian Arab Republic
Presidential Palace
Damascus, Syria
Telex: 419160 munjed sy
Faisal Allush
Imprisoned: 1985
Allush, a journalist
and political writer who has been in jail since 1985, was sentenced in
June 1993 to 15 years' imprisonment for membership in the banned Party
for Communist Action. He is reportedly being held in Sednaya Prison.
Anwar
Bader, Syrian Radio and Television
Imprisoned: December 1986
Bader, a reporter
for Syrian Radio and Television who has been in jail since his arrest by
the Military Interrogation Branch in December 1986, was convicted in March
1994 of being a member in the Party for Communist Action. He was sentenced
to 12 years in prison.
Samir al-Hassan, Fatah al-Intifada
Imprisoned: April
1986
Al-Hassan, Palestinian editor of Fatah al-Intifada, who has been in
jail since his arrest in April 1986, was convicted in June 1994 of being
a member of the Party for Communist Action. He was sentenced to 15 years
in prison.
Salama George Kila
Imprisoned: March 1992
Kila, a Palestinian
writer and journalist, was arrested in March 1992 by Political Security
in Damascus. His trial began in the summer of 1993. According to the London-based
International PEN, Kila had "reportedly written an article on censorship
in Syria for a Jordanian daily paper." The court ruled that he was guilty
of a misdemeanor rather than a felony. Since the maximum sentence for a
misdemeanor is three years, his release was expected in March 1995. But
he remains in prison.
Nizar Nayouf, free-lancer
Imprisoned: January 1992
Nayouf, a free-lance journalist who has contributed to Al-Huriyya and Al-Thaqafa al-Ma'arifa, was arrested in January 1992 in Damascus with several human
rights activists from the Committees for the Defense of Democratic Freedoms
and Human Rights in Syria. In March 1992, he was sentenced by the State
Security Court to 10 years in prison for "disseminating false information
and receiving money from abroad." He was severely tortured during his interrogation.
He remains in solitary confinement in Mezze military prison
in prison.
Tunisia
(2)
Please send appeals for the release of these journalists
to:
M. Zine El Abidine Ben Ali
President of the Republic of Tunisia
Presidential Palace
Tunis, Tunisia
Fax: +216 1 744 721
Hamadi
Jebali, Al-Fajr
Imprisoned: January 1991
Jebali, editor of Al-Fajr, the
weekly newspaper of the banned Islamist Al-Nahda party, was sentenced to
16 years in prison by the military court in Bouchoucha on Aug. 28, 1992.
He was tried along with 279 others accused of belonging to Al- Nahda. Jebali
was convicted of "aggression with the intention of changing the nature
of the state" and "membership in an illegal organization." During his testimony,
Jebali denied the charges against him and displayed evidence that he had
been tortured while in custody. Jebali has been in jail since January 1991,
when he was sentenced to one year in prison after Al-Fajr published an
article calling for the abolition of military courts in Tunisia. International
human rights groups monitoring the mass trial concluded that it fell far
below international standards of justice.
Abdellah Zouari, Al-Fajr
Imprisoned: February 1991
Zouari, a contributor to Al-Fajr, the weekly newspaper of
the banned Islamist Al- Nahda party, was sentenced to 11 years in prison
by the military court in Bouchoucha on August 28, 1992. He was tried along
with 279 others accused of belonging to Al-Nahda. He has been in jail since
February 1991, when he was charged with "association with an unrecognized
organization." International human rights groups monitoring the trial concluded
that it fell far short of international standards of justice.
Turkey
(29)
Please send appeals for the release of these journalists
to:
His Excellency Mesut Yilmaz
Prime Minister
Basbakanlik
06573 Ankara, Turkey
Sinan Yavuz, Yoksul Halkin Gücü
Imprisoned: August 9, 1993
CPJ believes that Yavuz, editor
of the left-wing weekly Yoksul Halkin Gücü, was arrested during
a police raid on an Istanbul fabric shop. Police had reportedly been told
that the shop served as a front and arms-trafficking station for Devrimci
Sol (Dev Sol), an outlawed leftist organization responsible for numerous
armed terrorist operations in Turkey. The charges under which Yavuz was
prosecuted show that he was alleged to be a member of Dev Sol, apparently
on the basis of his affiliation with Yoksul Halkin Gücü, which
the state avers is the groups publishing arm. The evidence against Yavuz
consisted of unspecified "documents" relating to Dev Sol and two copies
of the magazine Kurtulus (a legal, far-left publication), which had allegedly
been discovered during a search of the shop. Yavuz was alleged to have
resisted arrest after attempting to flee the raid. He had been detained
on previous occasions but released for lack of evidence.
Yavuz confessed
to nothing in police custody, but the prosecution said that other members
of Dev Sol who were detained in the same roundup testified that he was
a member of the group. He was convicted, sentenced on December 29, 1994,
to 12 years and six months in jail, and sent to Canakkale Prison.
Atilim
Journalists in Turkey and informed observers of Turkish politics
regarded the now-defunct weekly socialist newspaper Atilim (Leap Forward)
and its successor publications as sympathetic to the outlawed Marxist-Leninist
Communist Party (MLKP), an extreme-left urban guerrilla group which the
government holds responsible for acts of domestic terrorism, including
bombings and robberies. Atilim's predecessor was the monthly Emegin Bayragi
(Labor's Flag) and the magazine Iscinin Yolu. Atilim began publication
in October 1994; in 1996, it changed its name to Ozgur Atilim (Free Leap
Forward). In September 1997, Ozgur Atilim changed its name to Ozgurluk
ve Sosyalizm Yolunda Atilim (Leap Forward for Freedom and Socialism), under
which it continues to publish as a weekly newspaper based in Istanbul.
Ozgurluk ve Sosyalizm Yolunda Atilim and its predecessors have all been
legally registered publications. The Turkish government has repeatedly
harassed Atilim, confiscating editions of the newspaper and detaining and
allegedly torturing its reporters. On March 29, 1996, Istanbul's State
Security Court ordered Atilim closed for one month and sentenced Ismail
Akkin, the weekly's editor, to six months in prison for allegedly disseminating
"separatist propaganda." The order also suspended publication of Ozgür
Genclik, a magazine for young people, published by Atilim's parent company.
The government has prosecuted Atilim's journalists on numerous occasions:
Bülent Öner, Atilim
Imprisoned: June 15, 1995
CPJ believes Öner
is imprisoned for his work as a reporter for Atilim. He was taken into
custody during a police raid on the newspaper's Mersin bureau on June 15,
and formally charged with membership in the outlawed Marxist- Leninist
Communist Party (MLKP) on June 24.
Investigators reportedly found numerous
unspecified "documents" linking Öner to the MLKP. Two witnesses testified
for the state, which asserted that Atilim was the publication of the MLKP
and further accused Öner of writing and distributing unspecified declarations
of the group. According to court documents, the prosecutor had stated that
banners depicting a "disappeared" political activist were found in Öner's
office. Öner was convicted and sentenced to 12 years and six months
in jail; he was sent to Erzurum Prison.
Mesut Bozkurt, Atilim
Imprisoned:
June 15, 1995
Bozkurt, bureau chief of Atilim's Iskenderun office, was
convicted of membership in the outlawed Marxist-Leninist Communist Party
(MLKP), evidently on the basis of his work for the paper. He was arrested
during a police raid on Atilim's offices in June 15, 1995. Court documents
reveal that copies of Atilim-described by the prosecution as "bulletins"
of the MLKP-comprised the principal evidence in his trial. The prosecution
also said that Bozkurt had rented a house in Mersin on behalf of the MLKP,
and that police searching the premises found unspecified "illegal documents."
It is not clear whether these confiscated documents were introduced as
material evidence.
Bozkurt was sentenced to 12 years and six months in
prison on January 26, 1996, along with Atilim colleagues Fatma Harman,
Bülent Öner, and Hasan Abali.
Fatma Harman, Atilim
Imprisoned: June 15,
1995
Harman, a reporter for Atilim, was taken into custody during a police
raid on the newspaper's Mersin bureau in June 15, 1995. CPJ believes that
her arrest was the result of a crackdown on the publication and that she
has been imprisoned for work as a journalist.
Harman was formally arrested
on June 24, 1995, and sentenced in 1996 to 12 years and six months in prison
under Article 168 of the Penal Code. Atilim's lawyer reports that she was
convicted of membership in the outlawed MKLP on the argument that Atilim
was the publication of that group. The prosecution reportedly offered copies
of Atilim found in Harman's possession as evidence of her affiliation,
and said that several unspecified banners were found in the Atilim office.
Further, the prosecution said that Harman and Bülent Öner, another Atilim reporter, lived together in a house belonging to the MLKP. Harman
was last reported in Adana Prison.
Ibrahim Çiçek, Atilim
Imprisoned: March 15, 1996
The use of articles from Atilim as material
evidence against Çiçek leads CPJ to believe that he was prosecuted
for his work as a journalist. According to court documents, Çiçek, former editor in chief
of the leftist weekly Atilim, was detained on March 15, 1996, on his way
to his father's home and that his wife was detained the following day at
their home. Çiçek was charged with membership in an illegal
organization, but his lawyer reports that the only evidence against Çiçek
was his affiliation with Atilim, which the state asserted was the mouthpiece
of the Marxist-Leninist Communist Party (MLKP).
According to the Ministry
of Justice, Çiçek "was taken into custody in relation to
the armed attack carried out by the MLKP illegal leftist organization against
government office buildings in the Sultanbeyli district of Istanbul as
well as the offices of the MHP political party in the same district around
1 a.m. on March 14, 1996. The incident prompted the decision of the Istanbul
State Security Court to detain Mr. Çiçek with his collaborators
on March 29, 1996. Currently, he is in Bayrimpasa Prison in Istanbul."
Court documents show that Çiçek was charged with being a
leader of the MLKP (Article 168/1)-specifically, of ordering an armed assault
on the offices of an ultra-right-wing party in Istanbul-and of running
Atilim. The prosecutor produced as evidence a story that appeared in Atilim's
March 23, 1997, issue, about the assault on the ultra-right-wing party
in Istanbul. Two witnesses testified against him. According to the defense
statement, Çiçek said that he was tortured by police, but
made no confession. He was sentenced to a minimum of 15 years in prison.
Nabi Kimran, Iscinin Yolu
Imprisoned: September 9, 1996
CPJ believes that
Kimran's prosecution and imprisonment resulted from his work as editor
of the leftist weekly Iscinin Yolu, which was subject to repeated government
harassment during his tenure. Kimran is currently being held in Sakarya
Prison for alleged membership in an outlawed organization under Article
168 of the Penal Code. His lawyer told CPJ that Kimran had also faced charges
under Articles 7 (engaging in propaganda for an outlawed organization)
and 8 (disseminating separatist propaganda) of the Anti-Terror Law (ATL).
Staffers from the socialist weekly Atilim said these charges arose from
news articles that appeared in Iscinin Yolu during his tenure. The Penal
Code violation case was prosecuted but the ATL cases were eventually suspended
following the government's August 14, 1997, amnesty for jailed editors.
According to court documents, Kimran was apprehended by police on a bus
on September 9, in a police operation in advance of the anniversary of
the Marxist- Leninist Communist Party (MLKP). The prosecution claimed that
Kimran was a leader of the organization-a claim based on the testimony
of an individual allegedly affiliated with the group who said that Kimran
had given instructions to bomb a city bus. Kimran was also caught with
a counterfeit I.D., which he admitted having because of his fear of being
detained in the course of his journalistic work. The prosecution stated
that police searching of Kimran's apartment found documents in his handwriting
that demonstrated his affiliation with the MLKP.
Alinteri
Alinteri (Sweat of the Laborer), a now-defunct Istanbul-based socialist weekly,
began publication on October 31, 1993. Since 1995, it has published under
the name Emekci' nin Alinteri. Both are/were legal publications. Journalists
in Turkey and informed observers of Turkish politics regarded Alinteri
as sympathetic to the outlawed Turkish Revolutionary Communist Union (TIKB),
a small urban guerrilla group. The government has confiscated editions
of the newspaper and prosecuted its journalists on numerous occasions:
Erdal Dogan, Alinteri
Imprisoned: July 10, 1995
Dogan, an Ankara reporter
for Alinteri, was detained by police on July 10, 1995, and later tried
and convicted of membership in the Turkish Workers and Peasants Union (TIKB)
on the basis of his attendance at opposition events in his capacity as
a journalist.
Court papers indicate that the prosecution argued that Alinteri
was the publication of the TIKB. The case against Dogan was based on the
following evidence: 1) A photograph of Dogan, taken at a 1992 May Day parade,
allegedly showing him standing underneath a United Revolutionary Trade
Union banner; 2) A photograph of Dogan taken on the anniversary of a TIKB
militant's death; 3) A photograph alleged to show Dogan attending an illegal
demonstration in Ankara; 4) Testimony of an alleged member of the TIKB,
who said Dogan belonged to the organization. The defense claimed that the
witness' testimony was extracted under torture. Dogan's lawyer told CPJ
that the photograph from the militant's memorial was blurry, and Dogan
testified in court that he had attended the May Day parade as a journalist.
He was sentenced to 12 years and six months in prison under Article 168/2
of the Penal Code. and has been confined to Bursa Prison.
Serpil Günes,
Alinteri
Imprisoned: September 7, 1996
Günes, an editor and owner
of Alinteri, was arrested in Izmir when police raided a vacation apartment where
she and her Alinteri colleagues were staying. She has been in
jail since her arrest.
The prosecution stated that police found a counterfeit identification card in Günes' possession, and
seizeded unspecified illegal publications and handwritten documents
which purportedly linked her and her colleagues to the Turkish Revolutionary
Communist Union (TIKB). Günes was accused of membership in an outlawed
organization based on the these allegations, as well as on witness testimony.
Günes denied all the accusations.
Former Alinteri staffers said Günes was charged and convicted of violating
Article 7 of the Anti-Terror Law (propagandizing on behalf of an outlawed
organization) and Article 312 of the Penal Code (inciting racial hatred)
for articles published in the newspaper during her tenure. She was also charged with membership in the TIKB
Günes'
lawyer told CPJ that there had been about 20 cases against her as editor
and owner of Alinteri, all of which were suspended following the August
14, 1997 amnesty for editors. Her lawyer said Günes has been fined
nearly one billion TL in her capacity as owner of Alinteri. CPJ sees in
these previous convictions a pattern of state harassment against Alinteri
for publishing news and dissenting opinion.
As a result of the raid, Günes
was also charged in a separate indictment with "membership in an outlawed
organization" under Article 168 of the Penal Code. Günes' lawyer characterized
her conviction in this case as a "political decision" and said that she
received the maximum 15-year sentence because the state considers Alinteri
the mouthpiece of the TIKB. Günes is in Usak Prison.
Erhan Il, Devrimci Emek
Imprisoned: February 16, 1996
Il is a reporter for the magazine
Devrimci Emek, and was editor in chief from 1993 to 1994. Court documents
state that Il was arrested and charged under Article 168/2 of the Penal
Code with belonging to the Turkish Communist Leninist Labor Party's (TKEP-L)
youth organization. The prosecution also alleged that he rented a house
in December 1994 for the TKEP-L, stored weapons for the organization, and
possessed a counterfeit I.D.
Il's colleagues at Devrimci Emek told CPJ
that he was prosecuted on the basis of articles published in the magazine
during his tenure as editor. In response to an inquiry from CPJ The Ministry
of Justice stated that Il was convicted "according to amended Article 8/1
of the Anti-Terror Law [disseminating separatist propaganda], and not according
to Article 168 of the Penal Code[.]" He is in Byrampasa Prison.
Kurtulus and Mücadele
Kurtulus, a weekly socialist magazine based in Istanbul, is the latest
incarnation in a series of publications that since 1986 has included Çözüm,
Yeni Çözüm, and Mücadele. Although its circulation
is relatively small, Kurtulus is available at major kiosks and bookstores
in Ankara and Istanbul.
Journalists in Turkey and informed observers of
Turkish politics regard Kurtulus (Liberation) as the publication sympathetic
to the outlawed armed group Revolutionary People's Salvation Party/Front
(DHKP-C), formerly known as Dev Sol. Over the years, these militant Marxist
organizations have claimed responsibility for the killings of generals,
police officers, government officials, and foreigners. The group also took
responsibility for the 1996 assassination of a member of one of Turkey's
most powerful business families.
Examples of state harassment of Kurtulus'
predecessors include:
Hüseyin Solak, Mücadele
Imprisoned: October
27, 1993
Solak, the Gaziantep bureau chief of Mücadele, was arrested,
charged with membership in the outlawed Dev Sol, and convicted on the strength
of witness testimony that he had been seen distributing the magazine.
Transcripts
of Solak's trial indicate the prosecution witness also testified that Solak
had hung unspecified banners in public, and had served as a lookout while
members of Dev Sol bombed a bank in Gaziantep. The prosecution also cited
"illegal" documents found after searches of Solak's home and office. Solak
confessed to the charges while in police custody, but recanted in court.
Solak was sentenced on November 24, 1994, to 12 years and six months in
prison under Article 168/2 of the Penal Code. He is in Cankiri Prison.
Serdar Gelir, Mücadele
Imprisoned: April 25, 1994
Gelir, Ankara bureau
chief for the now-defunct weekly magazine Mücadele, was detained on
April 16, 1994, and arrested 10 days later for being a member of an illegal
organization. CPJ believes he has been imprisoned for attending an opposition
rally as a reporter and his association with Mücadele.
During the
trial, the prosecution introduced into evidence a handwritten note- written
on a copy of Kurtulus magazine-found in Gelir's possession, which discussed
local elections in Turkey. Excerpts from the document said that "the state
has held elections in Kurdistan by force, with the force of 150,000 soldiers.
The state has shown that it can hold elections in this region by blood.
By disqualifying the representatives of the Kurdish people, by massacring
the Kurdish people, that [sic] the state can get the results it wants from
the elections..."
The prosecution also claimed that Gelir had handwritten
a four-page document that discussed revolution, colonialism, and armed
struggle. Prosecutors further alleged that Gelir had attended an illegal
demonstration and distributed copies of the newspaper. This was cited as
proof of his membership in Dev Yol, an outlawed organization affiliated
with Dev Sol. They said that Gelir had confessed to the accusations in
police custody but later recanted.
In his defense, Gelir insisted that
he was covering the demonstration for Mücadele, and his lawyer added
that Gelir had filed a story on the event. Gelir said that he had been
detained on April 6 and held for 16 days but was released due to lack of
evidence. On April 25, he was arrested again and then charged. Gelir cited
the Turkish government's hostility toward the press, which he said that
such groups as RSF and the Press Council have documented.
The Ministry
of Justice told CPJ that Gelir was tried under Article 168/2 of the Penal
Code and Article 5 of the Anti-Terror Law 3713 and sentenced to 15 years
imprisonment by the Ankara State Security Court for being a member of an
armed, illegal leftist organization (Revolutionary Left/Dev Sol). Court
records, however, indicate that he was sentenced to 12 years and six months
in Ankara Closed Prison.
Aysel Bölücek, Mücadele
Imprisoned: October 11, 1994
Bölücek, a correspondent in Ankara for Mücadele,
was arrested at her home and charged under Article 168/2 of the Penal Code
based on a handwritten document allegedly linking her to Dev Sol and the
testimony of two witnesses. She has been in prison since her arrest.
Court
documents show the state also used as evidence the October 8, 1994, issue
of Mücadele, arguing that the weekly was the publication of Dev Sol.
The prosecutor claimed that articles in the October 8 issue insulted the
security forces and state officials, and praised Dev Sol guerrillas who
had been killed in clashes with security forces.
The defense argued that
it was illegal for the defendant to be tried twice for the same crime.
(Earlier in 1994, Bölücek had been acquitted of a charge of membership
in Dev Sol for which the primary evidence had been the same handwritten
document.) The defense accepted the claim that Bölücek had written
the document, but said that she was forced under torture to write it while
in police custody. The defense also said that a legal publication could
not be used as evidence. It said the individuals who testified against
Bölücek had done so under torture. Bölücek was sentenced
to 12 years and six months on December 23, 1994. She is being held in Canakkale
Prison.
Burhan Gardas, Mücadele
Imprisoned: March 23, 1995
Gardas,
the Ankara bureau chief for Mücadele, has been the target of several
legal cases since 1994 relating to his work as a journalist.
Court records
state that Gardas was detained on January 12, 1994, at his office. During
a search of the premises, the police reportedly found four copies of "news
bulletins" of the outlawed Dev Sol. The prosecution also said that police
found banners with left-wing slogans and photographs of Dev Sol militants
who had been killed in clashes with security forces. The prosecution said
that when Gardas was taken into custody he shouted anti-state slogans.
The prosecution said that Gardas was using Mücadele's office for Dev
Sol activities. He was charged with violating Article 168/2 of the Penal Code.
Gardas denied all charges. His attorney argued that the
confiscated illegal publications were part of the newspaper's archive,
and that Gardas had been tortured while in detention. His lawyer presented
a medical report to document the torture. Gardas was released on May 14,
1994, pending the outcome of his trial. While awaiting the verdict, he
was arrested again on March 23, 1995, on new charges of violating Article
168/2 of the Penal Code, this time in connection with his activity as Ankara
Bureau Chief of Kurtulus (the successor publication to Mücadele).
The police raided his office in connection with the later charges and seized
three copies of Kurtulus "news bulletins" and six articles from Kurtulus
regarding the announcement of some illegal rallies. His second trial was
held at the Number 2 State Security Court of Ankara-again on charges of
violating Article 168/2 of the Penal Code. Court documents reveal that
the prosecution's evidence against Gardas consisted of his refusal to talk
during a police interrogation-allegedly a Dev Sol policy-and his possession
of publications of outlawed organizations, including Mücadele and
Kurtulus. The state also introduced the testimony of a witness named Ali
Han who worked at Kurtulus' Ankara bureau and stated that Gardas was a
Dev Sol member. Gardas denied the claim, and his defense argued that his
silence during police interrogation was a constitutional right and proved
nothing.
On July 4, 1995, the Number 1 State Security Court of Ankara sentenced
Gardas to 15 years in prison on the Mücadele charges. In 1996, he
was sentenced to an additional 15 years on the second set of charges. He
has thus been convicted twice of membership in Dev Sol, in each case based
on his work as a journalist. Gardas is reportedly serving these sentences
successively at Aydin Prison.
Özlem Türk, Mücadele
Imprisoned:
January 17, 1995
Türk, a reporter for Mücadele, was arrested
and charged with being a member of the outlawed Revolutionary People's
Liberation Party-Front, an offshoot of Dev Sol. She has been in prison
since her arrest.
Court documents state that the state cited as evidence
the fact that Türk collected money for Mücadele, as well as a
handwritten document allegedly found in the home of a member of the Revolutionary
People's Liberation Party-Front. Two witnesses testified that she was a
member of the group.
Türk maintained that the money she had collected
came from sales of copies of Mücadele. The same court documents reveal
that Türk said she was forced to confess to the charges under torture.
The only material evidence presented in the case were copies of legal publications-Mücadele, Tavir, and Devrimci Genclik- found at her home, and copies of the biography
that she allegedly had written. Police provided the expert testimony to
authenticate the incriminating document.
According to court document, Türk
was sentenced to 15 years in prison. She is in Canakkale Prison.
Necla Can, Kurtulus
Imprisoned: April 9, 1995
CPJ
believes Can, a reporter for the leftist weekly Kurtulus, is being imprisoned
for attending an insurgent's funeral in her capacity as a journalist.
Trial
documents obtained in December 1997 relate that Can was apprehended by
police at her home on April 9, 1995, after two witnesses had testified
against her. The witnesses alleged that Can was a member of the Revolutionary
People's Liberation Party/Front (DHKP-C) but later recanted their testimony.
Can was convicted on December 21, 1997, and sentenced to 12 years and six
months in prison under 168/2. Can's lawyer told CPJ that the basis for
the charge against her had been her attendance at the funeral of a member
of the DHKP-C.
Can's lawyer told CPJ that the basis for the charge against her had been her attendance at the funeral of a member of the DHKP-C. In defending Can, her lawyer had said that she had been
there as a journalist. The lawyer also said that Can had testified in court
to being beaten while in custody.
Can was tried along with 19 other alleged members of the DHKP-C. Can was convicted on December 21, 1997 and sentenced to 12 years and six months in prison under Article 168/2 of the Penal Code. She is in Istanbul's Umraniye Prison,
Özgür Güdenoglu, Mücadele
Imprisoned: May 24, 1995
Güdenoglu, Mücadele's Konya bureau chief, was arrested,
charged, convicted under Article 168 of the Penal Code. Hee was sentenced
to 12 years, 6 months in prison for alleged membership in Dev Sol. CPJ
believes his prosecution is related to the state's well-documented harassment
of Mücadele. He is in Konya Prison.
Kamber Inan, Kurtulus
Imprisoned: July 11, 1995
CPJ believes Inan has been jailed as part of a campaign of
harassment against Kurtulus, for which he was a reporter. Inan was arrested
under the terms of Penal Code Article 168/2 for membership in the Revolutionary
People's Liberation Party-Front (DHKP-C). Court documents obtained from
Inan's lawyer in December 1997, said that he had refused to answer questions
during his detention and upon conviction was sentenced to 15 years in prison.
He is in Bayrampasa Prison.
Ufuk Dogubay, Kurtulus
Imprisoned: July 27, 1995
CPJ believes that the prosecution of Dogubay, and editor of Kurtulus
was motivated by his work as a journalist and is part of a pattern of harassment
against the magazine. Court documents state that Dobubay was arrested and
imprisoned on July 27, 1995, and accused of writing a document that indicated
that Kurtulus was the publication of the Revolutionary People's Salvation
Party-Front (DHKP-C). He denied the charge, but an expert witness for the
prosecution concluded that he had written the document. Two witnesses testified
against him at his trial. The prosecution also claimed that Dogubay shouted
leftist slogans during his arrest. He was convicted and sentenced to 12
years and six months in prison under 168/2 of the Penal Code. The court
documents refer to him as a journalist and an engineer. He is in Sagmalcilar Prison.
Sadik Çelik, Kurtulus
Imprisoned: December 23, 1995
Although Çelik was detained
and formally charged with membership in the outlawed Revolutionary People's
Salvation Party-Front (DHKP/C), the state's case rested almost exclusively
on his activities as a reporter and Zonguldak bureau chief for Kurtulus.
Court documents state that Çelik was detained on December 23, 1995.
The prosecution asserted that Kurtulus was the publishing organ of the
DHKP/C, and that Çelik's position with the magazine proved he was
a member of the group. Çelik was accused of conducting "seminars"
for the DHKP/C in the paper's office, propagandizing for the organization,
transporting copies of the newspaper from Istanbul to Zonguldak by bus,
and organizing the paper's distribution in Zonguldak. The prosecution said
that Çelik's name appeared in a document written by a leader of
the DHKP/C (it is not clear whether the document was introduced as material
evidence). Moreover, the prosecution said Çelik's refusal to testify
in police custody proved his guilt.
The defense argued that the prosecution
could not substantiate any of its claims. Çelik acknowledged distributing
the newspaper in his capacity as Kurtulus' bureau chief. He said that he
held meetings in the office to discuss matters pertaining to the paper.
The defense presented two reporters as witnesses, who corroborated Çelik's
statements.
Çelik was sentenced on October 17, 1996, to 12 years
and six months in prison. Court documents indicate he was sent to Ankara
Closed Prison.
He was reportedly released in February. 1998
Asaf Sah, Kurtulus
Imprisoned: January 4, 1996
CPJ believes
that Sah, an Antakya reporter for Kurtulus, was imprisoned as part of the
state's campaign of harassment against the paper. Sah was convicted under
Article 169 of the Penal Code for aiding an outlawed organization. He was
sentenced on April 16, 1996, to three years and nine months in jail and
is currently in Nevsehir Prison.
Yazgül Güder Öztürk, Kurtulus
Imprisoned: March 31, 1996
CPJ believes Öztürk has been prosecuted as part of the state's
harassment of Kurtulus, for which she was a reporter. Court papers obtained
in December 1997 state that Öztürk was detained and imprisoned
on March 31, 1996. The prosecution accused her of gathering information
for the outlawed Revolutionary People's Liberation Salvation Party-Front
(DHKP-C) in Gaziantep, near the Syrian border, and Konya, in central Turkey.
She was also accused of attending unspecified illegal demonstrations in
Istanbul and the funeral of two members of the DSKP-C who were killed during
a robbery in Ankara.
According Öztürk's lawyer, the prosecution
additionally claimed that she had coordinated the propaganda activities
of the DHKP-C.
In her defense, Öztürk cited her work as a journalist and denied all charges. She was convicted of
membership in the DHKP-C and is in Bayrampasa Prison.
Ayten Öztürk, Kurtulus
Imprisoned: October 13, 1997
Court documents suggest strongly
that Öztürk has been imprisoned because she published and edited
Kurtulus. In September 1997, Öztürk was already facing charges,
under Article 7 of the Anti-Terror Law, of spreading propaganda in the
press on behalf of an outlawed organization. Those charges were voided
on September 4 by an Istanbul State Security Court in accordance with the
government's August 14 amnesty for editors. On September 19, however, a
warrant was issued for her arrest for a violation of Article 168/1 of the
Penal Code-a statute not covered by the amnesty.
Özturk surrendered
to the court on October 13, and thereupon was charged with leading the
outlawed Revolutionary People's Salvation Party-Front (DHKP-C). The main
evidence cited at her trial was her publication and distribution of an
unspecified "special edition" of Kurtulus. The prosecution also said she
had met with two alleged members of the DHKP-C. She was convicted on December
24 and sentenced to 22 years and five months incarceration. She is currently
in Ankara Closed Prison.
Utku Deniz Sirkeci, Tavir
Imprisoned: August 6, 1994
CPJ believes that Sirkeci, the Ankara bureau chief of the leftist
cultural magazine Tavir, was imprisoned for attending the funeral of a
Dev Sol activist in his capacity as a journalist. He was convicted of membership
in the outlawed group and sentenced to 12 years and six months in prison.
Court records show the state accused Sirkeci of firebombing a bank in Ankara,
but the documents do not stipulate what evidence was introduced to support
this charge. It is not clear that a firebomb was ever thrown. Prosecutors
also cited Sirkeci's attendance at the funeral of a political activist
to support the charge that he was a Dev Sol member. Sirkeci maintained
he attended the funeral in his capacity as a journalist. During the trial,
he provided detailed testimony of his torture at the hands of police, who
coerced him to confess. He is in Ankara Closed Prison.
Baris Yildirim, Tavir
Imprisoned: March 21, 1995
CPJ believes that Yildirim, a columnist
for the leftist cultural magazine Tavir, was imprisoned for his work as
a journalist. He was arrested, charged, and subsequently tried and convicted
under Article 168 of the Penal Code for membership in Dev Sol, but interviews
with his colleagues in 1996 indicated that his conviction was based largely
on the fact that he worked for the magazine.
The prosecution's stated that Yildirim was arrested in Izmir and tried in the
State Security Court for membership in the Dev Sol. On the basis of witness
testimony he was accused of being a spokesman for the organization, taking
part in firebombings, and hanging banners around Izmir on orders from the
organization. The prosecution alleged that he had participated in the occupation
of the center-right True Path Party's Izmir offices.
Yildirim was sentenced
to 12 years and six months and is being held in Buca Prison in Izmir.
Bülent Sümbül, Özgür Halk
Imprisoned: April 24, 1995
Sümbül, a reporter in the Diyarbakir bureau of the pro-Kurdish
monthly magazine Özgür Halk, was arrested and charged under the
Anti-Terror Law during a police raid on his Diyarbakir office. CPJ believes
that the state's case stemmed from his work as a journalist.
Sümbül's
lawyer told CPJ his client had been accused of violating Article 169 of the Penal Code, aiding the outlawed Kurdistan
Workers' Party (PKK). To establish Sümbül's guilt, the prosecution
relied on photographs of alleged PKK members which they claim Sümbül
delivered to an imprisoned colleague in Diyarbakir Prison. Sümbül's
lawyer responded: "When you take something to the prison, everything is
searched. There is no way that he [Sümbül] could have given her
the photos of some PKK members. The guards would have found them...inside
the stationery. So, he [Sümbül] denies that he had given [the
imprisoned colleague] the photos."
The prosecution's statement shows that
Sumbul was also accused of "being the leader of an organizational cell,
taking an active role in an illegal organization, [and] acting as liaison
for militants in rural and urban areas." According to this lawyer, the
prosecution also produced a written confession, which police coerced him
to sign.
Sümbül denied the charges. He was convicted and sentenced
to three years and nine months. He is in Bismil Prison.
Mehmet Çakar, Partizan Sesi
Imprisoned: February 13, 1995
Çakar, Ismir bureau chief of the leftist monthly Prtizan Sesi, was arrested and charged with being a member of the outlawed Marxist-Leninist Communist Party.
According to Çakar's lawyer,the prosecution had based its case on the fact that Çakar had distributed copies of the magazine. The prosecution also said that Çakar had met with two unspecified members of an outlawed organization--a charge that Çakar denied, according to his attorney. Court documents obtained in Decemmber 1997 verified the lawyer's statements.
Çakar's lawyer told CPJ that his client had been convicted of membership in the Marxist-Leninist Communist Party and sentenced to 12 years and six months in Bursa Prison.
Özgür
Gündem
The pro-Kurdish daily Özgür Gündem published
from 1992 to 1994 before being forced to close under sustained government
pressure. Successor papers have included Yeni Ulke, Özgür Ulke,
Politika, Özgür Yasam, and Demokrasi. Each was forced to close
because of state legal action. The paper currently publishes under the
name Ulkede Gündem. Journalists in Turkey and informed observers of
Turkish politics regard the paper as sympathetic to the outlawed Kurdistan
Workers Party (PKK).
Throughout its existence, Özgür Gündem
experienced systematic government harassment in response to its coverage
of the state's ongoing conflict with Kurdish insurgents in southeastern
Turkey. In 1993, CPJ documented 246 cases pending against the newspaper.
Authorities suspended or confiscated numerous issues of the newspaper and
prosecuted its journalists under various provisions of the Anti-Terror
Law and Penal Code for articles published in the paper. At least four of
its responsible editors have served or are currently serving prison terms.
Ismail Besikçi
Imprisoned: November 13, 1993
Besikçi, a prominent
scholar and author of numerous books and articles on the Kurds in Turkey,
was arrested and charged with violating the Anti-Terror Law for an article
he wrote in the now-defunct daily Yeni Ülke. He was tried and sentenced
to one year in prison. Since this initial conviction, however, Besikçi
has been found guilty in other cases for articles he published on the Kurdish
question in Özgür Gündem, and for books he has written on
the subject. By the end of 1997, he had been sentenced to more than 100
years in prison. He remains in Bursa Prison, with additional charges pending
against him.
Hasan Özgün, Özgür Gündem
Imprisoned: December 9, 1993
CPJ believes that Özgün's imprisonment is a
result of his work as a journalist and is of a piece with the state's well-documented
harassment of Özgür Gündem. Özgün, Diyarbakir
correspondent for Özgür Gündem, was taken into custody during
a police raid on the paper's Diyarbakir bureau and charged under Article
168 of the Penal Code with being a member of the outlawed Kurdistan Workers
Party (PKK). He was sentenced to 12 years and five months in prison.
Transcripts
of Özgün's trial show that the prosecution based its case on
what it described as Özgür Gündem's pro-PKK slant. The prosecution
also used as evidence copies of banned PKK publications (Serkhabun and
Berxehun) found in Özgün's possession, as well as photographs
and biographical sketches of PKK members found in the newspaper's archive.
The state further cited Özgün's possession of an unauthorized
handgun as evidence of his membership in the PKK.
In his defense, Özgün
maintained that the PKK publications were used as sources of information
and that the photos of PKK members found in the archive were related to
interviews the newspaper had conducted. Özgün admitted to purchasing
the gun on the black market, but denied all other charges.
The Ministry
of Justice replied to CPJ's request for information saying that "In fact,
Mr. Özgün had extensive ties to the PKK terrorist organization.
Accordingly, he was convicted of the following charges: being an active
member of the PKK terrorist organization; being a courier for the PKK's
mountain team; inciting the public to participate in propaganda activities
organized by the PKK; informing the PKK of rich locals who could be targeted
for extortion and ransom schemes organized by the organization; supplying
food and medicine for the members of the PKK terrorist organization; carrying
a gun without a license; providing arms for PKK mountain teams; distributing
separatist propaganda material on behalf of the PKK terrorist organization."
RSF and International PEN have voiced strong objections to Özgün's
prosecution. RSF reported that on the day after Özgün's arrest,
more than 150 journalists and employees of Özgür Gündem
were arrested throughout the country. RSF noted that the accusation against
Özgün was based on the discovery in the Özgür Gündem
office of petitions signed by detained PKK members. Responding to an RSF
letter, the Turkish Embassy in France stated that "Mr. Hasan Özgün,
not having the title of journalist, was accused of belonging to the terrorist
organization PKK, for having organized activities on behalf of this organization,
for publicity and praise of said organization in the paper, for having
given the organization the names of wealthy people for levying a compulsory
tax for financing PKK, for possession of an illegal weapon, for having
smuggled arms to terrorists posted in the mountainous areas of southeastern
Anatolia, for having kept in his house and distributed numerous pamphlets
and other pro-PKK publicity materials."
According to RSF, Özgün
told the court that petitions belonging to detained PKK members had been
entrusted to him by people close to the prisoners so that he could write
an article about their case. Özgün denied ever having been a
PKK member and complained that both he and Özgür Gündem
were being persecuted.
International PEN, in its mid-year 1997 report,
concluded that Özgün did not receive a fair trial, noting that
he had additionally been accused of arranging medical treatment for PKK
guerrillas of and having communicated with PKK guerrillas in prison. PEN's
report said that "part of the evidence [was] said to relate to [an] interview
with PKK leader published in Özgür Gündem. Defense says
the [same] interview was run in other Turkish newspapers without charges
being brought."
Özgün is currently in Aydin Prison.
Kemal Sahin, Özgür Gündem
Imprisoned: November 1995
Sahin, the former
editor in chief of ^#214;zgür Gündem, was arrested and charged with
membership the outlawed Kurdistan Workers Party (PKK). CPJ believes that
his prosecution and imprisonment is part of a campaign of harassment against
Özgur Gündem.
Sahin had initially been convicted of violating
Articles 6, 7, and 8 of the Anti- Terror Law and Article 312 of the Penal
Code for articles published in the newspaper during his tenure as editor.
Court documents from his trial on the Article 8 charges (disseminating
separatist propaganda) show that among the numerous, mostly unspecified
articles cited by the prosecution was one that appeared in Özgür
Gündem on October 10, 1994, titled "Escape from the Army."
Sahin was
sentenced to seven years and eight months in prison and fined more than
319 million TL (US$1,595) for the Article 8 conviction. It is unclear whether
he was ever imprisoned on these charges, which were subsequently suspended
by the government's limited amnesty for editors of August 14, 1997. New
charges were brought against him under Article 168 of the Penal Code, however,
for which he was arrested, charged, and eventually imprisoned.
Sahin's
lawyer told CPJ that the new charges against him were based on the testimony
of Sahin's brother, who accused him of being a member of the PKK. It is
unclear whether Sahin's brother had been coerced into giving this testimony.
Sahin is being held in Umraniye Prison in Istanbul.
Vietnam
(5)
Please send appeals for the release of these journalists
to:
His Excellency Le Kha Phieu
General Secretary of the Central Committee
Communist Party of Vietnam
1 Hoang Van Thu
Hanoi, Socialist Republic of Vietnam
Doan Viet Hoat, Dien Dan Tu Do
Imprisoned: November 17, 1990
Public security police arrested Hoat, editor and publisher of the pro-democracy
newsletter Dien Dan Tu Do (Freedom Forum). The Ho Chi Minh City People's
Court sentenced him in late March 1993 to 20 years of hard labor for his
involvement with the newsletter. He is currently serving out his sentence,
commuted to 15 years on appeal, in Thanh Cam Prison. Located in northern
Vietnam, near the Laotian border, Thanh Cam is normally reserved for serious
criminal offenders. Hoat suffers from kidney stones, a condition that developed
during his previous 12-year incarceration by the Hanoi regime. In November
1997, the World Association of Newspapers awarded its Golden Pen for
press freedom to Doan Viet Hoat for his "extraordinary courage" in the
fight for press freedom in Vietnam.
Nguyen Van Thuan (Chau Son), Dien Dan Tu Do
Imprisoned: Late 1990
Thuan, whose pen name is Chau Son, was arrested
in the fall of 1990 and in March 1993 was sentenced to 12 years in prison
for his involvement with the pro- democracy newsletter Dien Dan Tu Do (Freedom
Forum). His sentence was reduced on appeal to eight years. Thuan suffered
a stroke on February 25, 1994, that left him partially paralyzed. He is
reportedly being held in a re-education camp where he is not forced to
carry out labor, although the lack of medical facilities raises concerns
for his health.
Le Duc Vuong, Dien Dan Tu Do
Imprisoned: Late 1990
Vuong
was arrested in the fall of 1990 and sentenced in late March 1993 to seven
years in prison for his involvement with the pro-democracy newsletter Dien
Dan Tu Do (Freedom Forum). CPJ believes Vuong is incarcerated at Xuan Phuoc
labor camp.
Nguyen Dan Que
Sentenced: November 1991
Que was convicted of
compiling and distributing subversive literature and sentenced to 20 years
in prison. Before he was imprisoned, he had distributed political handbills
and sent documents abroad. Que, who suffers from hypertension and a bleeding
gastric ulcer, is imprisoned at the Xuyen Moc labor camp in Dong Nai Province.
Nguyen Hoang Linh, Doang Nghiep
Arrested: October 8, 1997
Hoang Linh, editor
of the state-run business newspaper Doang Nghiep, was arrested on charges
of revealing state secrets. The charges were linked to articles he wrote
that explored questionable practices of Vietnam's General Customs Department
in the purchase of coastal patrol boats. Local journalists said the arrest
was interpreted as a warning to reporters to stay away from stories about
government corruption. The arrest followed restrictions imposed earlier
in the year concerning financial and banking information. The government
also barred Vietnamese journalists from giving information to their foreign
counterparts without first obtaining state permission.
Zambia
(1)
Please send appeals for the release of these journalists
to:
His Excellency Frederick Chiluba
President of the Republic of Zambia
\
State House
Independent Avenue
Lusaka, Zambia
Fax: 260-1-221-939
Fredrick Mwanza
Imprisoned: November 14, 1997
Mwanza, a writer and journalist,
was detained under the Preservation of Public Security Act of 1960, accused
of involvement with a failed coup attempt on October 28. He appeared in
court on November 26, but was not charged. Mwanza then applied for a writ
of habeas corpus, challenging the government to show cause why he could
not be released. At a hearing on December 2, the government responded by
serving Mwanza with a presidential detention order, which allows the police
to hold the journalist indefinitely under the state of emergency currently
in force.
Mwanza has denied all allegations that he was present at a meeting
finalizing the coup plot against President Frederick Chiluba's government.
The journalist has been questioned in prison about several articles critical
of government policies. His lawyer, Patrick Mvunga, has stated that Mwanza
was tortured during interrogation and has been denied access to his family.