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Judicial nightmare for journalists in new wave of prosecutions

by Courtesy

Judicial nightmare for journalists in new wave of prosecutions
10 October 2011 – Reporters without Borders

Reporters Without Borders is alarmed by a wave of trials involving journalists although the government lifted the state of emergency and announced the start of a “national dialogue.”

In the most high-profile case, three senior journalists with Al-Wasat, the country’s only opposition newspaper – editor Mansour Al-Jamari, managing editor Walid Nouihid and local news editor Aqil Mirza – are to appear in court tomorrow on charges of disseminating false information and undermining the country’s image. All three were forced to resign in April when the newspaper was temporarily banned.

Jamari admits that several articles contained false information but he points that all of this information was sent from the same IP address and he suspects that the newspaper was set up, especially as it has been target of a major smear campaign in the government media in recent months.

Reporters Without Borders urges the court to drop all the charges against these three journalists in line with the spirit of the national dialogue that King Hamad II proposed at the start of July.

As already reported, the prison sentences imposed on 14 Shiite activists including the blogger Abdeljalil Al-Singace were upheld on appeal on 27 September. According to the Bahrain Centre for Human Rights (BCHR), they have begun a hunger strike to protest against the arrests of 40 women activists who staged a protest on 23 September to demand their release.

Around 20 of the women protesters, including Noor Aqeel Al-Ghasra, a journalist with the daily Al-Ahad, have been charged with illegal assembly, disturbing public order by using violence, and inciting a revolt. According to some sources, Al-Ghasra was tortured by the police during her first night in detention. Her lawyer has condemned the conditions in which they are being held and the court’s refusal to let defence witnesses testify. …more