Press Freedom in Egypt

Egyptian blogger to face military tribunal for writing a post critical of military academy

2010-02-26T00:09:00.000-08:00

The Egyptian government frequently uses military courts for cases it deems security issues, circumventing due process.

Here's what the blogger Meit has to say (Arabic): http://43arb.info/meit/?p=1671

Publisher detained for Gaddafi book

2010-02-10T05:29:00.000-08:00

Police briefly detained a publisher of a book criticizing Libyan leader Muammar al-Gaddafi, according to an AFP report citing Gamal Eid, director of the Arabic Network for Human Rights Information.

The Egyptian author of the book "The Leader Cuts His Hair," Idris Ali, was also wanted for questioning, said Eid.

The AFP wrote:
"Ali's book is a memoir of several years he spent working in Libya.

Police arrested the book's publisher, Gumeili Ahmed Shehata, in Cairo and took him to a nearby station."

Egypt banned insults against leaders of friendly states until 2006, when its law was narrowed down to forbid insults against Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak, Eid said."

Anti-sectarian bloggers and activists detained

2010-01-28T05:41:00.000-08:00

Several bloggers were detained at the Naga Hammadi train station when they arrived on Saturday following the killing of six deacons outside of a church on Orthodox Christmas, according Pakinam Amer of Al-Masry Al-Youm. One blogger said she slept on a cold floor in jail and was left without food or drink for ten hours. They were released after a day. When they returned to Cairo, they gathered at the Hisham Mubarak Law Center to discuss what happened.
“We weren’t going to do anything political. We were just going to pay our respects,” said Mostafa el-Naggar, who helped organize the trip. Then he laughed and added, “We had leftists and Nasserists and Islamists and Christians. It was all of Egypt in that jail cell.” Ashraf Khalil reports that the state press has largely ignored the sectarian element of the story, focusing on revenge killings in Upper Egypt.

Human rights activist in jail; report accuses US of helping oppress human rights in the Arab world

2009-12-09T16:24:00.000-08:00

Amnesty International is calling for the release of Egyptian novelist and human rights activist Musaad Abu Fagr, who has been in detention since February 15, 2008. His wife Shaimaa has a blog about the ordeal here.

Also see this great story by Saif Nasrawi about US-backed Arab governments against human rights. The Cairo Institute for Human Rights Studies (CIHRS) released its second annual report on Tuesday about this topic.

2009-11-21T07:02:00.000-08:00

The author and publisher of the Metro graphic novel has each been fined £E 5,ooo and issues of the novel have been confiscated. The Misdemeanor Court of Qasr El Nil ruled the novel is immoral to the public.

Three human rights organizations published the press release condemning the ruling:
Arabic Network for Human Rights Information
Association of Freedom of Thought and Expression
Hisham Mubarek Law Center

The release did not cite which parts of the novel were deemed immoral, but regardless, the ruling is certainly against freedom of expression.

Blogger denied university entrance

2009-11-19T04:11:00.000-08:00

Blogger Amr Salama was denied admission to Sinai University and was interrogated about his political writings when he applied to the Canadian University in Cairo, according to statements he gave to Arabic Network for Human Rights Information, or ANHRI. His blog "Lesa 3aish" touches politically sensitive issues such as Egypt's prevention of humanitarian aid to Palestine and treatment of Bedouins. ANHRI said that Egyptian security had previously forced the closing of his blog.

BBC: UN stifles Internet debate in Egypt

2009-11-16T05:08:00.000-08:00

According to the BBC and a video on youtube the UN forced the removal of a poster promoting Internet freedom at a conference in Sharm El Sheikh on Internet governance.

Medill's ongoing affair with prosecutors

2009-11-10T14:26:00.000-08:00

The Chicago Tribute reports that my alma mater, the Medill School of Journalism, is under investigation for the role students played in finding witnesses to exonerate a death row inmate: http://www.chicagobreakingnews.com/2009/11/hearing-today-on-prosecutors-bid-to-get-journalism-students-grades.html

Two journalists jailed

2009-10-28T03:16:00.000-07:00

A journalist and editor from the daily al-Shorouq have been sentenced in absentia to one year in jail for defamation, according to Al-Masry Al-Youm.

The article appeared today as follows:
By Muhammad Abdel Khaleq Mussahil and Shaimaa el-Qarnashawi 28/ 10/ 2009

A Cairo court sentenced prominent journalist Salama Ahmed Salama, chief editor of independent daily Al-Shorouq, along with another reporter from the same newspaper, to one year each in prison on Tuesday. Both men were tried in absentia.

The lawsuit was initially filed by Ali el-Naggar, an architect working for Sabbour Consultants, who accused Salama of defamation for claiming in a 30 March article that he had been bribed by businessman Ahmed Omar for a lucrative construction contract.

Press Syndicate President Makram Ahmed offered to mediate between the two men in an effort to amicably resolve the difference. Ahmed, however, noted that responsibility generally lies with the reporter in such cases and not with a newspaper's chief editor.

Translated from the Arabic Edition.

Egypt still low on press freedom rankings

2009-10-22T00:49:00.000-07:00

Reporters Sans Frontières (RSF) says Egypt remains one of the worst countries in the world for press freedom, according to its annual report. "Press freedom in Egypt remains shackled by a host of draconian laws, and state interference," wrote Sarah Carr of the Daily News.

Press syndicate stifles free press

2009-09-30T03:51:00.000-07:00

Press syndicate stifles free press:

http://www.thenational.ae/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20090922/FOREIGN/709219877/1002

Another Journalist to be deported from Egypt

2009-09-29T11:03:00.000-07:00

Another Journalist to be deported from Egypt:

http://advocacy.globalvoicesonline.org/2009/09/29/egypt-another-journalist-to-be-deported/

Press release from Amnesty International

2009-06-03T23:35:00.001-07:00

Press release from Amnesty International

Egypt: Free expression still outlawed in Egypt

1 May 2009

AMNESTY INTERNATIONAL

PUBLIC STATEMENT

Amnesty International has challenged the Egyptian government to mark this World Press Freedom Day, 3 May, by decriminalizing freedom of expression in Egypt.

In a letter to Egypt's President Hosni Mubarak, the organization notes that Egyptian journalists and bloggers continue to face imprisonment and heavy fines, as well as harassment on the basis of criminal defamation charges, preventing the reporting of matters of public interest. This comes despite the president's own promise, in 2004, to end prison terms for publishing offences. Amendments of the Penal Code in 2006 failed to live up to that promise and many controversial provisions of the Penal Code and the Press Law remain in force.

In its letter, Amnesty International also noted the continued imprisonment of the blogger Karim Amer, who was sentenced in 2007 to four years in prison. He was charged with "spreading information disruptive of public order and damaging to the country's interest", "incitement to hate Islam" and "defaming the President of the Republic" under articles 102bis, 176 and 179 of the Penal Code.

Egypt's repressive legislation and practices were condemned by the UN Working Group on Arbitrary Detention (WGAD), a group of human rights experts of the United Nations, when it ruled in November 2008 that Karim Amer has been arbitrarily detained, and called for his release. The WGAD also said that charges related to defamation, libel and slander should be dealt with by the Egyptian authorities under civil, not criminal, law, and that there should not be prison sentences for such charges. The WGAD stated:

"The fundamental right to freedom of opinion and expression, which is the core basis of the human rights system, must prevail when it implies political criticism, even when this criticism is focused in the activities of some concrete persons who have assumed high political responsibilities."

On 30 March, a symposium in Cairo marked the 100th anniversary of the 1909 first ever demonstrations in Egypt for press freedom, when 25,000 people marched against the Publication Law of 1909, which gave the authorities the ability to close newspapers. The symposium's attendees, including Egyptian human rights organizations and activists, journalists, bloggers, writers and media workers, could only reflect how, 100 years later, freedom of opinion and expression in Egypt remains under threat.

Amnesty International now calls on the Egyptian authorities to begin a review of, or repeal, a number of articles in the Penal Code which allow for the imprisonment of journalists and others for their peaceful activities. These include Articles 80(d), 98bis(b), 98(f), 102, 102bis, 171, 178, 179, 181, 188, 201 and 308 of the Egyptian Penal Code, which have been frequently used to criminalize freedom of opinion and expression, and to punish journalists, bloggers and others who are considered to be critical of the authorities.

Background:

The decision of the United Nations Working Group on Arbitrary Detention is available at: http://www.amnesty...

In March 2008, Ibrahim Eissa, editor-in-chief of the daily newspaper al-Dustour was sentenced to six months in prison, reduced to two months by an appeal court in Cairo in September 2008. He was charged with publishing information considered by the authorities to be damaging to the public interest and Egypt's national stability under articles 171 and 188 of the Penal Code. The newspaper articles in question suggested that the president's health had deteriorated. He was pardoned by the president in October 2008.

Public Document

Cairo News Company Acquitted

2009-04-19T09:19:00.000-07:00

In a follow up of a previous post, the Cairo News Company has been acquitted of charges of operating without a license, according to the Arabic Network for Human Rights Information. The group and its managing director were originally fined a total of E£150,000 and had equipment valued in the millions of Egyptian pounds confiscated.

Shoe Thrower Gets Reduced Sentence

2009-04-07T16:09:00.000-07:00

It's not in Egypt, but he was a journalist in the region. Muntadar Al Zaidi received a reduced jail sentence to one year for showing a shoe at Bush. The new ruling was that he was insulting a foreign leader rather than assaulting one. It's a good sign of freedom of expression, and also he'll probably be released in September taking into consideration "pre-trial custody and the customary reductions of sentences," according to the BBC.

When he's released, this guy will never pay for a meal in the rest of his life. I wouldn't be suprised if he gets elected to office.

A Century of Press Restrictions

2009-04-05T17:26:00.000-07:00

The Daily News Egypt published a story about the history of Egyptian press restrictions here, connecting the current day to exactly one hundred years ago:
http://thedailynewsegypt.com/article.aspx?ArticleID=20774

Egyptian Blogger Released

2009-04-05T00:52:00.001-07:00

Authorities released Egyptian blogger Diaa Eddin Gad in the end of March, after seven weeks of detainment, according to Reuters.

Police arrested the 22-year-old blogger and activist on February 6 outside his home in Gharbiya after he wrote against the Egyptian government's role in the Israeli attack on Gaza in his blog Sawt Ghadib or "An Angry Voice" (http://soutgadeb.blogspot.com), the news agency said.

Egyptian Journalist Sparks Religious Violence

2009-04-04T03:50:00.002-07:00

Violence against people of the Bahai faith recently broke out in Egypt following a legal decision to allow them to not list one of the three recognized Abrahamic faiths in Egypt (Judaism, Christianity & Islam) on their identity card. During the program “Al Haqiqa” (The Truth) on the satellite channel Dream, Gamal Abdel Rahim, a journalist for the state run newspaper Al-Gomhuria, accused Bahais of apostasty and told the Bahai woman on the show "she should be killed," according to Daily News Egypt's chief editor, Rania Al Malky. Violence in a few towns in Egypt ensued. Al Malky suggested that the Journalists' Syndicate, of which Abdel Rahim is a board member, should discipline Abdel Rahim for inciting violence by using hate speech.

See the editorial here: http://thedailynewsegypt.com/article.aspx?ArticleID=20838
Also see the story about violence: Citizens Set Fire to Homes of Four Baha'is in Sohag Following the Appearance of One of them on Television

List of detained bloggers & activists

2009-04-04T03:46:00.001-07:00

The Arabic Network for Human Rights Information interviewed six bloggers and Internet activists who have been abducted by the Egyptian security since November, 2008.

The five abductees are:

1. Abdul Aziz Mogahed, AL-Mogahed blog http://elmogahed02.blogspot.com, kidnapped November 3, 2008 and released on March 3, 2009.
2. Mohammed Adel, nicknamed 'Dead' http://43arb.info/meit, kidnapped November 20, 2008, and released March 8, 2009.
3. Philip Rizk, Tabula Gaza blog, http://tabulagaza.blogspot.com, kidnapped February 6, 2009 and released February 11, 2009.
4. Dia Eddin Gad, an angry voice, http://soutgadeb.blogspot.com, kidnapped February 6, 2009 and released March 27, 2009.
5. Rami Al-Swisi, an activist in the 6th of April youth movement "I Need to Take My Right Back", http://www.facebook.com/inbox/readmessage.php?t=1096729544357#/profile.php?id=668175403&ref=share , kidnapped March 2, 2009 and released March 3, 2009.

6. Yousef Al-Eshmawi, an internet activist, kidnapped in Saudi Arabia, August 24, 2008, and still held in detention without charge and without any action or comment from the Egyptian Ministry of Foreign Affairs.

Court Fines Four Editors, No Jail Time

2009-02-01T13:01:00.001-08:00

An appeals court in Egypt reversed the sentence of four newspaper editors from one year in prison and a E£10,000 fine to a fine of E£20,000 each.
The editors Ibrahim Issa, Adel Hammouda, Wael el-Ebrashi and Abdel-Halim Qandil were accused of publishing articles that damaged the reputation of President Mubarak, his son and his governing National Democratic Party.

“The Egyptian government is notorious for its human rights record and for its hostility to press freedom in particular. we believe in the solidarity of the civil society to support the journalists, and stand by the peoples right to knowledge and to express their opinions," said a statement by the Arabic Network for Human Rights.

"The 2007 convictions also signaled an escalation of what political analysts describe as a campaign by the National Democratic Party against independent newspapers that have reported that President Hosni Mubarak is grooming his son Gamal to succeed him. Both father and son deny that," said the New York Times.

Egyptian Photojournalists Protest Police Abuse

2009-01-26T02:31:00.001-08:00

On Sunday, which happened to be Egyptian National Police Day, photojournalists protested violence against journalists.

"Hossam Diab, head of the League of Photojournalists — which
organized the protest — called for an investigation into the assaults on
photographers which took place during demonstrations against the Israeli attack
on Gaza," wrote Sarah Carr of the Daily News (http://thedailynewsegypt.com/article.aspx?ArticleID=19331(

"In addition to demanding an end to all police violence
against photographers, Diab called for the cancellation of the system whereby
photographers are required by the interior ministry to obtain permits, which he
said is in violation of the Press Law."

Diab said that interior ministry officials referred to a hotline journalists can call when harassed, but Diab said that when he called the number, a junior police member said no one was there.

Photographers in Egypt are frequently harassed by security officials, particularly during protests, and have been injured in many instances. Egyptian and Arab photographers are usually under much more pressure than foreigners.

Egyptian Internet Activist in Saudi Prison

2009-01-20T05:21:00.001-08:00

Egyptian Internet activist Yousef Al Ashmawi has been in a Saudi prison for five months, according to the Arabic Network for Human Rights Information (ANHRI), where he has been subjected to torture. ANHRI accuses the Egyptian government of failing to defend the rights of Al Ashmawi, who has yet to be formally accused of a crime and has not been visited.

Egypt bans journalists from entering Rafah

2009-01-14T13:00:00.001-08:00

Egyptian authorities have not been letting journalists enter the village of Rafah on the border of the Gaza Strip, according to Sarah Carr of the Daily News Egypt.
Carr also reported that one broadcaster told her on a condition of anonymity that journalists were recently encouraged to "photograph certain things such as a van bearing the inscription 'this is a gift from [Egypt's ruling] National Democratic Party.'"
Another journalist, however, was critical of the press, saying that the area was a militarized zone and journalists were not supposed to be there.

Press Freedom in the Middle East

2009-01-13T13:02:00.001-08:00

Round-up provided by Arabic Network for Human Rights Information

Reda Abdel Rahman to be Released
Egypt's supreme state security court issued a final judgment ending the detention of the Koranic blogger Reda Abdel Rahman. Rahman was arrested under emergency law last October on the basis of his religious beliefs. The Egyptian Initiative for personal Rights has demanded that the Interior Ministry complies with the court's decision and releases the blogger without delay.

Source: The Egyptian Initiative for Personal Rights

American forces shoot and wound female Iraqi TV journalist
Hadil Emad, an editor with the montage department of Biladi Iraqi television has been shot by American forces. A bullet exploded in her abdomen and passed through to the kidney requiring surgical removal. Doctors prevented relatives and media correspondents from visiting Emad while she was convalescing. The US forces claimed that she did not follow instructions and warnings and acted suspiciously while crossing the road.

Source: Press Freedom Watch

Media Worker Dies from Head Injuries
Bassil Ibrahim Farag, 22, an assistant cameraman with Algerian TV was killed in Gaza on 7 Jan 2009. Farag suffered fatal head injuries after his crew came under fire on the first day of military campaign on Gaza 27/12/2008.
Source: The Palestinian Centre for Development and Media Liberties

Also, from a press release by Human Rights Watch on January 5:
"Israel should immediately allow journalists and human rights monitors access to Gaza, Human Rights Watch said today. Their presence can discourage abuse by warring parties and help save lives."

"The presence of journalists and human rights monitors in conflict areas provides an essential check on human rights abuses and laws-of-war violations, Human Rights Watch said."

"On November 21, 22 executives from the world's major news organizations, including the Associated Press, BBC, CNN, and Reuters, sent a letter to Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert, complaining about the 'prolonged and unprecedented denial of access to the Gaza Strip for the international media.'"

Babylon & Beyond on the Media

2009-01-11T13:48:00.000-08:00

The LA Times' blog series about the Middle East, Babylon & Beyond, reported a few stories on Israel's control of the flow of information between the military and journalists...since reporters are banned from the conflict in Gaza.
Two reporters were arrested for violating censorship by reporting Israeli troop movements in real time to Arabic media outlets. One of these reporters is the head of the Israeli Arab National Party, and he responded that non-Arab Israelis were reporting the same information, but were not arrested.
And an Israeli anchorwoman, Yonit Levi, has a petition against her–signed by 25,000 people–because she acknowledged the deaths of Palestinian casualties.
Censors were also erasing content from a Hebrew-language site, Rotter.net, according to its forum administrator via the Times.
The Times also had another piece about a code of conduct the Iraqi government was trying to force journalists to sign that required a two-day media silence period prior to the upcoming provincial election day and giving equal time to candidates. The Times' Kim Yoshino quoted a judge who said the Iraqi election commission would not force journalists seek accreditation for the election, albeit after an uproar by local press.