IRAN’S CONSERVATIVE-DOMINATED JUDICIARY WAGED AN EXTENSIVE CAMPAIGN against the local reformist press, closing newspapers and prosecuting outspoken journalists throughout 2000. At year’s end, the most influential reformist newspapers had been silenced, at least six journalists were in prison because of their work, and one publisher had narrowly escaped assassination. The conservative establishment’s unrelenting assault brought…
TEN YEARS AFTER THE GULF WAR, Saddam Hussein’s brutal Baathist regime maintained its hold on the Iraqi police state, allowing no dissent and exerting relentless control over information. On December 4, the United Nations General Assembly overwhelmingly condemned what it termed Iraq’s “systematic, widespread, and extremely grave” abuses of human rights-an assessment that left little…
THE EXPLOSION OF VIOLENCE THAT BEGAN IN THE OCCUPIED TERRITORIES on September 29 has been unsparing of journalists, reinforcing the West Bank and Gaza Strip’s reputation as among the world’s most hazardous beats. Reasons why included the Israeli Defense Forces (IDF), Israeli security forces, and militant Jewish settlers. While no conclusive evidence exists that the…
IN HIS FIRST TWO YEARS ON THE THRONE, KING ABDULLAH II has spoken out in favor of strengthening press freedom and modernizing the media. In a February speech, the king advocated “transparency in our society, because we have nothing to fear.” The Jordanian press has seen several positive developments under King Abdullah’s reign, including the…
LEBANESE JOURNALISTS HAVE BEEN NOTED FOR THEIR FREEWHEELING STYLE, but the freedom and independence that characterized Lebanon’s media before the 15-year civil war have yet to return, for reasons that include censorship, self-censorship, archaic media laws, and occasional state intimidation. Nevertheless, an important taboo was breached in March, before Israel’s anticipated withdrawal from south Lebanon,…
THE GOVERNMENT CONTINUED TO PROSCRIBE OUTSPOKEN PUBLICATIONS under Article 11 of the 1991 Press Ordinance, which gives authorities power to ban any newspaper deemed detrimental to Islam or state authority, threatening to public order, or defamatory to foreign heads of state. During 2000, several independent newspapers were confiscated or suspended for long periods. Victims included…
CENSORSHIP, PROFESSIONAL BANNINGS, AND CRIMINAL PROSECUTIONS were among the official acts that eroded press freedom in Morocco in 2000, reversing gains seen in the final two years of the late King Hassan II’s reign, and following the 1999 coronation of his son, the liberal-minded King Muhammed VI. In December, the government permanently banned the weekly…
WITH A PALESTINIAN UPRISING RAGING IN THE ISRAELI-OCCUPIED TERRITORIES, the Oslo peace process dead, and his popularity slipping, the future of Yasser Arafat and his Palestinian National Authority (PNA) seemed precarious. But Arafat’s leadership position appeared unchallenged for the time being, with the result that press freedom remained under threat. The year was marked by…
IN DECEMBER, STRONGMAN OMAR HASSAN AL-BASHIR WON overwhelmingly in presidential elections that were boycotted by Sudan’s two main opposition parties. Both parties had conditioned their participation on an end to the 17-year civil war and to human-rights abuses, including restrictions on the press. State harassment of journalists and newspapers has been a persistent feature of…
PRESIDENT HAFEZ AL-ASSAD’S DEATH IN JUNE, after a 30-year reign, marked the passing of one of the most repressive dictators in modern Middle Eastern history. Assad ruled a police state that eliminated political opponents and stifled all independent debate. No independent or private media existed, and newspapers, television, and radio were mere propaganda outlets for…