imprisoned

New York, November 6, 2009—No charges have been brought against three American hikers nearly 100 days since they were detained after accidentally crossing the border from Iraqi Kurdistan into Iran while on a hiking trip on July 31. 

New York, November 4, 2009—The Committee to Protect Journalists is outraged that Tunisian police stripped and mistreated journalist Taoufik ben Brik, a well-known contributor to French newspapers and one of the top critics of President Zine El Abidine Ben Ali, during his arrest on October 29. CPJ urges Ben Ali to order Ben Brik’s immediate release and to end the intensifying campaign of intimidation and assaults against critical reporters, and censorship.

New York, October 30, 2009—Chinese police have reportedly arrested two Uighur journalists who published online about Uighur issues in Xinjiang, the Committee to Protect Journalists said today. Chinese authorities blamed local and international Uighur Web sites for fueling July's ethnic violence, according to international news reports. 

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Dear Secretary Clinton,

As you prepare for the Forum for the Future in Marrakesh next week, we’d like to bring to your attention a sharp spike in government repression in the host country, Morocco. The Committee to Protect Journalists, an independent, nonprofit organization that defends press freedom worldwide, has documented an aggressive crackdown on independent news outlets and journalists that has occurred over the last five months and has included judicial harassment, politicized prosecutions, obstruction, and censorship.

This month, a court in Rabat sentenced Driss Chahtan, managing editor of the independent weekly Al-Michaal, to a year in prison and reporters Mostafa Hiran and Rashid Mahameed to three months in prison ‎ for publishing “false information” about King Mohamed VI’s health during a period when the monarch had not been seen in public. Defense attorneys told CPJ that the trial did not meet basic fairness standards, notably in the court’s refusal to allow the defense to summon witnesses. We are concerned about his treatment in prison; colleagues have reported that Chahtan has been harassed by prison guards. This week, Chahtan was convicted again, this time for defamation in connection with stories claiming the relatives of the monarch had received favorable treatment from police. Chahtan and codefendant Mostafa Adarim, an attorney interviewed in one of the pieces, were ordered to pay 500,000 Moroccan dirhams (US$62,000) in damages.

Also this week, a Rabat court convicted editor Ali Anouzla and reporter Bochra Daou of the daily Al-Jarida al-Oula on charges of publishing “false information” about the king's health. The two, who were sentenced to suspended terms, had also addressed questions about the king’s health during his absence from public view. CPJ has documented earlier, politically motivated charges against Anouzla and his paper. A Casablanca court sentenced Anouzla and Publishing Director Jamal Boudouma in March to suspended jail terms and fines of 200,000 dirhams (US$24,190) each for “defamation” and “insulting the judiciary.” A different court had fined Anouzla in connection with the same article three months earlier.

In June, a court in Casablanca imposed fines and damages on three independent dailies for “publicly harming” Libyan leader Muammar Qaddafi and “injuring his dignity.” The court ordered each of the three newspapers—Al-Massae, the country's leading daily, Al-Jarida Al-Oula and Al-Ahdath Al-Magrebia—to pay a fine of 100,000 dirhams (US$12,484) and damages of one million dirhams (US$125,213) to Qaddafi. The papers had published opinion pieces that were critical of the Libyan leader.

Moroccan authorities delayed distribution of the July 15 issue of the French daily Le Monde and banned distribution of the July 9-15 edition of French weekly Le Courrier International, according to French and Moroccan news reports. Le Monde carried a critical opinion piece by award-winning journalist Aboubakr Jamai, former editor of the Moroccan weekly Le Journal Hebdomadaire, in which he said the king had been hostile toward independent journalism. In 2006, Jamai had been forced into exile following a politically motivated and record-breaking defamation ruling. The banned issue of Le Courrier International had republished an article previously run by Le Journal Hebdomadaire. The article, which detailed the wealth of King Mohamed VI, was accompanied by an editorial cartoon.

Three issues of Le Monde were barred from distribution in the country last week apparently because they republished from Moroccan newspapers editorial cartoons concerning the king. One issue of El Pais was also banned last week for the same reason.

On August 1, authorities seized 100,000 copies of the country's two leading newsweeklies—TelQuel and its Arabic-language sister publication, Nichane—after they published the results of a poll in which Moroccans were asked to assess their king. More than 90 percent of respondents expressed favorable opinions about the king. In a statement, Communications Minister Khalid Naciri called the survey an “attack” and said it was “not authorized.” The statement went on to say that the monarchy is not a permissible subject for polls and critical journalism. The Interior Ministry said the newspapers acted in violation of Article 38 of Morocco's press code, which forbids offending the king.

In September, the Interior Ministry shut down the independent daily Akhbar al-Youm for alleged “blatant disrespect to a member of the royal family.” In its September 26-27 weekend edition, the paper had published an editorial cartoon about the wedding of a cousin of the king. The popular newspaper remains shuttered.

The Moroccan government has been hailed for reforms that were first undertaken a decade ago. But in the last five years, CPJ has documented a steady and alarming decline in freedom of expression.

The Forum for the Future, as you know, provides a platform for political, business, and social leaders from the Middle East and industrialized nations to discuss the promotion of freedom and democracy in the region. Yet we note with deep concern the deterioration of freedom of expression in Morocco itself. Morocco and the United States were co-hosts of the first Forum for the Future, which took place in Rabat in 2004. We hope that you will take advantage of that ongoing partnership to impress upon the Moroccan authorities that a free press is a crucial component of any free society.

Thank you for your attention to these important matters. We look forward to your reply.

Sincerely,

Joel Simon
Executive Director

New York, October 29, 2009—The Committee to Protect Journalists strongly condemns and calls for the immediate release of freelance journalist and blogger Pai Soe Oo, who was detained by government authorities on Wednesday for questioning. 

Swathed in the traditional black face veil, or niqab, Yemeni women brandish banners with images of disappeared and imprisoned journalists. Every Tuesday, in Yemen’s capital city of Sana’a, Tawakul Karman, chairwoman of Women Journalists Without Chains (WJWC), leads these women into Freedom Square to demonstrate.

New York, October 22, 2009—Tunisian authorities must halt harassment of independent journalists, release a journalist jailed for taking photographs, and allow a prominent French reporter to enter the country, the Committee to Protect Journalists said today. CPJ has documented a spike in government attacks on independent journalists as Tunisian presidential and legislative elections approach‎.

New York, October 20, 2009—With the release of Newsweek reporter Maziar Bahari on bail, the Committee to Protect Journalists today called on Iranian authorities to release the 25 journalists who still remain in prison. 

Reacting to the release of Newsweek correspondent Maziar Bahari on bail in Iran today, we issued the following statement: “We are greatly relieved that Maziar Bahari is out on bail and at home with his family in Tehran,” said CPJ Executive Director Joel Simon. “We hope the many journalists who remain jailed in Iran will also be released soon.” Bahari was arrested on June 21. His wife, Paola Gourley, is expecting their first child on October 26 and has experienced complications during her pregnancy.