The Mantra of ‘Change’ Makes Arab Autocrats Nervous
November 18th, 2008 by Tariq
Daoud Kuttab writes in the Huffington Post about how the Egyptian government sought to expunge a newspaper cartoon that hoped for change in Egypt much like the one seen in the U.S. election. “The weekly stated that 150,000 copies of the paper’s first edition were quickly removed from the streets and destroyed and the ‘troublesome’ phrase disappeared from future prints that day.”
Moreover, “The Egyptian government’s overreaction is a sign of the concern that moderate pro-US Arab regimes fear as a result of the US elections and the de-escalation of the so called War on Terror. As long as ideological Washington was engulfed in this war, repression of genuine democratic activities was ignored. Arab leaders used their special alliance with the Bush Administration in the war on Islamic fundamentalists to act against all opponents including secular opposition like that of Ayman Nour.”
Posted in Arab media, Egypt, Election 08, Freedom, Journalism | 1 Comment »
Archives and Scholarship in the Arab World
November 11th, 2008 by Tariq
Rob at Arab Media Shack points to an interesting article by Robert Fisk in Egypt’s Daily News, wherein he highlights a major problem in Arab society, “In Damascus, a massive statue of the late President Hafez Al-Assad sits on a mighty iron chair outside the 22,000 square meters Assad Library, a giant book open in his right hand. Behind him lie the archives of his dictatorship. But not a single state paper is open to the people of Syria. There are no archives from the foreign ministry or the interior ministry or the defense ministry. There is no 30-year rule — for none is necessary. The rule is forever. There is no Public Record Office in the Arab world, no scholars waiting outside the National Archives.”
Posted in Arab media, Freedom, Journalism, Syria | Comment »
Ben Ali, 21 Years and Counting
November 10th, 2008 by Jason
On the 21st anniversary of President Zine El Abidine Ben Ali’s bloodless coup in Tunisia, the Committee to Protect Journalists calls for an end to his government’s repressive media tactics. The CPJ notes that “through years of harassment, censorship, and imprisonment of journalists,” Ben Ali has “largely eradicated independent journalism in the country.” A recent CPJ report on Tunisia’s human rights record concludes that “Tunisia wants you to believe it is a progressive nation that protects human rights. It is, in fact, a police state that aggressively silences anyone who challenges President Ben Ali.”
Posted in Human Rights, Journalism, Tunisia | Comment »
Egypt: Blogs, the Brotherhood, and Old Boys of the NDP
November 4th, 2008 by Tariq
Michael Allen has another post worthy of reading today at Democracy Digest, this time he sums up the conclusion of Egypt’s National Democratic Party’s annual conference. There is nothing new to mention here: “most commentators [agree] that it had failed to meet the meeting’s declared purpose of offering ‘New Thoughts for Egypt’s Future’” More interestingly, however, he mentions the influence of the parallel cyber-conference, and the effects of blogging on the old actors of the Egyptian stage, the Muslim Brotherhood, and the NDP. “As the regime has stifled freedom of criticism, harassing journalists and seeking to curb satellite TV, the web has become a vital outlet for expressing grievances and criticism of the regime - and for confronting opposition elites too.”
On a related note, here is an interesting video on internet freedom in Egypt.
Posted in Egypt, Events, Journalism, Muslim Brotherhood, Technology | Comment »
Press Freedom Under Assault in Morocco
October 31st, 2008 by Jason
An appeals court in Morocco just upheld a $600,000 fine against Moroccan daily Al Massae under the charge of “public slander.” It is the largest defamation suit ever rewarded in Morocco. As with similar cases against prominent journalists in the past, Al Massae must either stop publishing, or its Director and star columnist, Rachid Niny, will have to leave the country to avoid paying the parallelizing fine.
For more information about this case, and in-depth news, research, and analysis on Morocco, go visit POMED’s new Morocco Country Page. And check out all of POMED’s country pages while you’re there.
Posted in Arab media, Human Rights, Journalism, Morocco | Comment »
The Plight of Dissidents in Egypt
October 28th, 2008 by Tariq
Jeffrey Fleischman at Babylon & Beyond writes on the status of three political dissidents in Egypt: Ibrahim Issa was pardoned by Mubarak to affirm the president’s “concern for freedom of opinion”; Ayman Nour, is still in jail, however, since 2005; and, Saad Eddin Ibrahim remains in exile, avoiding a 2-year sentence handed down in absentia for “tarnishing Egypt’s reputation.”
Posted in Arab media, Egypt, Freedom, Human Rights, Journalism | Comment »
Reporters San Frontieres
October 27th, 2008 by Sarah
Reporters Sans Frontieres (better known in English as Reporters Without Borders) has released its 2008 index, measuring the state of freedom of the press in 173 countries. “The same six Middle East champions of repression that are near the bottom of the world press freedom index every year have confirmed their status this year again.”
Iraq placed 158th, Syria was 159th, Libya 160th, Saudi Arabia 161st, the Palestinian Territories 163rd, and Iran 166th, the lowest in the region.
For the full report, click here.
Posted in Freedom, Journalism | Comment »
Press Freedom in Egypt
October 8th, 2008 by Jason
Daily News Egypt has more information on President Mubarak’s pardon of Al-Dostour editor Ibrahim Eissa. The pardon was championed and mediated by the head of the Journalists’ Syndicate in Egypt. Going forward, the Syndicate said it wants to implement a Journalists’ code of ethics that it alone can enforce, as well as introduce a freedom-of-information act to allow easier access to official state information.
An editorial in Al-Dostour states that “the newspaper welcomes and greets the pardon, yet will continue to fight and stand against corruption of all types and will still continue challenging the current regime…the pardon only corrects a wrong decision that should not have been made in the first place, as all of the laws that stand against freedom of the press should be eliminated at the roots.”
Posted in Arab media, Egypt, Freedom, Journalism | Comment »
Egyptian Journalist Ibrahim Eissa Pardoned
October 7th, 2008 by Jason
Hosni Mubarak has pardoned Ibrahim Eissa, editor of the Egyptian independent daily Al-Dostour. Eissa was sentenced to two months in prison by an appeals court last month for publishing rumors about Mubarak’s health.
After the sentencing, the influential Journalists’ Syndicate organized a protest and called for a postponement of the prison sentence. This seems to have been a deciding factor in gaining the pardon.
In a statement Eissa said, “While I welcome this ruling, I think the issue is larger than that between one reporter and the president. The issue is that of Egyptian journalism, which suffers from an arsenal of laws that negate freedoms.”
Posted in Arab media, Egypt, Journalism | Comment »
This Message Was Paid For By the U.S. Government
October 6th, 2008 by Sarah
After the Washington Post reported that the Defense Department “will pay private U.S. contractors in Iraq up to $300 million over the next three years to produce news stories, entertainment programs and public service advertisements for the Iraqi media in an effort to ‘engage and inspire’ the local population to support U.S. objectives and the Iraqi government,” Marc Lynch at Abu Aardvark warns that this strategy is deeply flawed. When U.S. involvement is inevitably exposed, not only are the specific messages discredited, “but also every other pro-U.S. message which will quite reasonably then be dismissed as ‘paid for by the United States.’” Lynch also argues that it compromises “the long-term objective of building free, credible and independent media as the foundation of a democratic system.”
Posted in Arab media, Iraq, Journalism, US foreign policy | Comment »
POMED Notes: Dexter Filkins at the Wilson Center
October 2nd, 2008 by Jason
Yesterday afternoon the Wilson Center hosted New York Times foreign correspondent Dexter Filkins to discuss his new book, The Forever War, about his experiences reporting from Afghanistan and Iraq.
Filkins talked about his time in Afghanistan in 1998 as well as during the U.S. invasion in 2001. He said the situation is very bad there and has no apparent solution. He noted that much of the resistance now is not religious but nationalistic and ethnic.
On Iraq, Filkins said the surge is working and the positive changes have been extraordinary. He attributes the success to the new counterinsurgency strategy as well as overreach by al-Qaeda. He called the Sunni Awakening “very fragile” as the federal government takes command over it.
For full POMED notes on this event, click here.
Posted in Afghanistan, DC Event Notes, Iraq, Journalism, Publications, US foreign policy | Comment »
“Black September” for Journalists in Egypt
October 2nd, 2008 by Jason
The Middle East Times reports that Ibrahim Eissa–sentenced to two months in prison for writing about Hosni Mubarak’s health–is just one of many independent and opposition journalists who have come under the government’s wrath in recent months. Local press, or what’s left of it, called the month “Black September” as it witnessed 11 journalists in total receiving prison sentences for either insulting the NDP or the president.
Don’t dare jump to the conclusion that press freedom is under assault. President Mubarak comforts: “I want all journalists to rest assured that this freedom will not be touched.”
Posted in Egypt, Human Rights, Journalism | Comment »
Last Gasps of Press Freedom in Egypt
September 29th, 2008 by Jason
Babylon and Beyond reports that Ibrahim Issa, the outspoken editor of the Egyptian independent newspaper Al Dustour, was sentenced to two months in prison for publishing rumors in 2007 that President Hosni Mubarak was ill and near death. “The verdict opens the door of hell,” said Issa. “It deals a blow to all illusions of a free press.”
Issa has been a constant critic of Mubarak’s regime, and that he is only now sentenced means “that the degree of freedom the independent press had enjoyed in recent years may be over.” The post mentions the increasing number of red-lines imposed by the regime on the press in recent months. Mubarak’s health, the regime, corruption, or the suffering economy are all no-go areas. Also, recently a gag order was put on the case of a Hisham Talaat Mustafa, the billionaire MP accused of ordering the slaying of a Lebanese pop star.
Posted in Egypt, Human Rights, Journalism, Judiciary | Comment »
Press Freedom Under Attack (literally)
September 24th, 2008 by Jason
At Babylon and Beyond, Borzou Daragahi laments U.S. silence in the face of increased violence against journalists in the Middle East. He tells the story of a Tunisian web journalist stuffed in a car and threatened with death for criticizing the president last week; Also last week, a Saudi cleric issued a fatwa declaring that all writers who challenge religious leaders should be fired from their jobs, flogged, and jailed.
“The U.S. gets all hot and bothered about human rights abuses and suppression of speech in places such as Iran or Syria. But it has remained relatively silent about an apparent uptick in repression of journalists among its allies in the Arab world, like the staunchly pro-American Tunisia or Saudi Arabia.”
Posted in Human Rights, Journalism, Saudi Arabia, Tunisia | Comment »
Gamal Mubarak’s Media Close-up
September 11th, 2008 by Jason
It appears the Egyptian press is being overly deferential to its modern-day prince, Gamal Mubarak. The independent Daily News Egypt reports that other MPs have filed complaints that Gamal is receiving a disproportionate amount of media coverage, at the expense of opposition party politicians, such as they exist.
In a statement most depressing for its need to be uttered at all, one rival MP said, “If he is receiving this kind of coverage because he is the son of the president and not because of his position in the NDP, then this is totally unethical.”
I’ll just start now on tomorrow’s post in which this brave MP gets his own close-up with the internal security service.
Posted in Egypt, Journalism, Political Parties | Comment »
Media Suppression in Iran
August 4th, 2008 by Sarah
Tony Perry at Babylon and Beyond reviews “Head Wind,” a documentary by director Mohammad Rasoulof on how the Iranian government attempts to isolate its citizens from the global community by “banning satellite dishes, western movies and music videos, and other “immoral” content.” The film follows a dangerous profession: those who illegal install satellite dishes and clandestinely translate the content into Farsi.
Posted in Arab media, Iraq, Journalism | Comment »
Cracking Down on Speech
July 28th, 2008 by Sarah
Egypt has banned a book by British journalist John R. Bradley about Egyptian politics and society entitled “Inside Egypt: The Land of the Pharaohs on the Brink of a Revolution.”
In a similar move, the Egyptian government continues to target Facebook users. Noha El-Hennawy at Babylon and Beyond reports that last weekend, Egyptian police arrested about 14 Facebook activists who earlier this year called for a national strike over inflation. The arrests come a month after the proposal of draft legislation that would open Facebook activists and bloggers up to legal liability.
Posted in Arab media, Egypt, Freedom, Journalism, Legislation | Comment »
POMED Notes: Fighting Internet Censorship
July 15th, 2008 by Sarah
This afternoon Freedom House invited U.S. Rep. Chris Smith (R-NJ), sponsor of the Global Online Freedom Act, and Jules Maaten, Member of the European Parliament and sponsor of the European Global Online Freedom Act, to discuss pending bills that would prevent U.S. and European companies like Google, Yahoo! and Microsoft from sharing technology with repressive governments.
The event was particularly relevent in light of a recent high profile lawsuit against Yahoo! for disclosing information that ultimately led to the arrest and torture of a Chinese dissident.
For POMED’s full notes, click here.
Posted in EU, Journalism, Technology, US foreign policy | Comment »
Mubarak’s Media Monopoly
July 15th, 2008 by Adam
Noha El-Hennawy at Babylon & Beyond writes about the leak of an alleged draft bill that would grant the Egyptian government sweeping powers in controlling the media in order to uphold, “social peace, national unity, citizenship, public order and morals.” The bill, which is expected to be considered in the fall, has provoked outrage due to the vague wording which many believe could be used as a pretext to crack down on journalists, political opponents, and other activists. If enacted, the bill would provide the government greater control over the internet and allow them to potentially silence Facebook activists and bloggers, which have been important in mobilizing Egyptian opposition forces.
Posted in Arab media, Egypt, Journalism, Technology | 2 Comments »
Losing Hope in the Egyptian Political System
July 11th, 2008 by Amanda
At Abu Aardvark Marc Lynch comments on the ruling National Democratic Party’s (NDP) draft legislation aimed at governing the Egyptian media, as reported in the Egyptian newspaper Masry al-Youm. Lynch says that if imposed the law would “establish a new national agency to issue all broadcast licenses, …regulate and censor all forms of broadcast media” and “would effectively destroy any serious politically independent media, putting an end to the only remaining area where anyone can find hope in the Egyptian political system.”
Posted in Egypt, Journalism | Comment »
