Libel

The Al-Dokki Criminal Court on May 28, 2013, sentenced Islam Afifi, former editor-in-chief of Al-Dustour newspaper, to a fine of 10,000 Egyptian pounds (US$1,431) after convicting him of libel against Essam al-Eryan, a leader in the Muslim Brotherhood. Al-Eryan filed a complaint against Afifi after the journalist published a report in June 2012 that alleged that some leaders in the Muslim Brotherhood had held secret meetings to plan violent acts in the event that Morsi did not win the presidential elections.

New York, January 31, 2013--Appellate courts in Brazil should overturn a decision ordering journalist Lúcio Flavio Pinto to pay more than $200,000 in damages in connection with a libel suit, the Committee to Protect Journalists said today. The journalist, who was initially found liable in late 2012, lost an appeal in a ruling publicized on January 23.

In a notoriously litigious country like the Philippines, it's bewildering that the government coupled a law targeting so-called cybercrimes like cybersex, child pornography, identity theft, and spamming with the hoary and over-used concept of libel. And no matter how abusive those crimes may be, it's an even bigger mystery why the government felt it should suspend its lengthy heritage of due legal process by giving the Department of Justice power to shut down websites and monitor all online activities without a warrant.

Trickling back from the summer recess, European press freedom advocates and media lawyers are taking stock of facts and statements that went underreported during the holiday lull. And libel reform stands on top of the pile.  

Johannesburg, August 2, 2012--An appeals court in the Mozambican city of Beira should reverse the criminal libel conviction of a journalist who wrote about a disagreement between a private school and the family of a disabled student, the Committee to Protect Journalists said today. Falume Chabane was sentenced to a 16-month suspended prison term on July 20 and ordered to pay damages of 150,000 meticais, according to news reports.

New York, July 9, 2012--Algerian appellate courts should reverse rulings against two journalists who were sentenced to prison in June on libel charges, the Committee to Protect Journalists said today.

New libel legislation proposed by the British government has been met with general approval by reform campaigners, who will now train their sights on further strengthening some aspects of the bill during the parliamentary process.