IFEX Communique Vol 16 No 30 , 24 July 2007

IFEX Communiqué Vol 16 No 30 , 24 July 2007

The "IFEX Communiqué" is the weekly newsletter of the International Freedom of Expression eXchange (IFEX), a global network of 71 organisations working to defend and promote the right to free expression. IFEX is managed by Canadian Journalists for Free Expression (www.cjfe.org).

INDEX

FREE EXPRESSION SPOTLIGHT: 1. Mexican Government Ineffective in Protecting Journalists, Say IFEX Members

REGIONAL NEWS: 2. Iran/Iraq: Kurdish Journalists Die in Suicide Bomb in Iraq; Two Others Sentenced to Death in Iran 3. Indonesia: Criminal Defamation against Government Ruled Unconstitutional 4. Nepal: Parliament Passes Right to Information Bill 5. Azerbaijan: President Ignores Pleas to Pardon Journalists

UPDATES: 6. Tunisia: Human Rights Activist Mohamed Abbou Freed 7. Ethiopia: Protesters Pardoned, but Two Journalists Still Jailed

TAKE ACTION! 8. Send a Solidarity Message for Detained Moroccan Journalist

AWARDS AND FELLOWSHIPS: 9. Alfred Friendly Press Fellowships

JOB NOTICES: 10. Freedom House Seeks Program Officer and Research Assistant/Assistant Editor

ALERTS ISSUED BY THE IFEX CLEARING HOUSE LAST WEEK: PLEASE NOTE: Alerts issued last week will not be listed in this edition of the "IFEX Communiqué". Instead, in addition to the usual newsletter, you have been receiving the pilot version of a proposed new IFEX information product: the IFEX Digest. See below for details.

FREE EXPRESSION SPOTLIGHT

1. MEXICAN GOVERNMENT INEFFECTIVE IN PROTECTING JOURNALISTS, SAY IFEX MEMBERS

Mexico is the second most dangerous country after Iraq for journalists, and the Mexican government is to blame for being grossly ineffective in protecting journalists and the right to freedom of expression, five IFEX members and three other human rights groups told the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights (IACHR).

The eight groups, including IFEX members the National Center for Social Communication (Centro Nacional de Comunicación Social, CENCOS), ARTICLE 19 - Mexico, Center for Journalism and Public Ethics (Centro de Periodismo y Ética Pública, CEPET), World Association of Community Radio Broadcasters (AMARC) and Reporters Without Borders (Reporters sans frontières, RSF), took their protests to an IACHR hearing on the press freedom situation in Mexico on 18 July in Washington, D.C.

State authorities, organised crime groups and, in particular, drug traffickers have made 2006 the worst year on record for Mexico's media, especially because of the impunity they enjoy. "Regrettably, this trend is continuing during Felipe Calderón Hinojosa's administration," the group of eight says. According to RSF, 32 journalists have been murdered and seven have disappeared since 2000. Just recently, on 10 July, the search was called off for two TV Azteca employees who went missing on 10 May in an area particularly exposed to drug trafficking and organised crime.

Although Mexico is a signatory to the Universal Declaration of Human Rights as well as other international covenants, the authorities lead the list of perpetrators, accounting for 42 percent of 131 acts of aggression committed against journalists in 2006.

So although the federal government created the Office of the Special Prosecutor for Crimes against Journalists (Fiscalía Especial para la Atención de Delitos en contra de Periodistas, FEADP) in February 2006, it has so far not solved a single case.

A promise made last December to monitor acts of aggression against journalists and media outlets and post results on a public website and in bi-annual reports has not been fulfilled either, says the group.

"The state's failure to prevent, investigate and punish attacks on journalists is generating a climate of self-censorship among media outlets," the group says, particularly in the northern border states, where drug traffickers' violence has affected journalists more than in other places. On 25 May, the owner of "Cambio" newspaper in Sonora temporarily shut down the newspaper, following two grenade attacks that damaged the paper's facilities, reports CENCOS.

At the IACHR hearing, with the Mexican government present, the group demanded that more resources be given to FEADP, and that the Mexican authorities immediately investigate 11 recent murder cases and disappearances of journalists.

The Mexican government subsequently agreed to take all necessary measures to shed light on violence against journalists, and to report to the IACHR in the next few months on the progress made in the investigations, including accepting an official visit by the IACHR's Special Rapporteur for Freedom of Expression. The government also agreed to accept IACHR support in drafting a new law that would better recognise community and electronic media.

Meanwhile, a hemispheric conference last week in Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic on "The Judiciary, the Press and Impunity", led by the Inter American Press Association (IAPA), noted the deteriorating state of press freedom in Mexico, stressing that violent crimes against journalists constitute a serious violation of the public's right to be informed. The 200 delegates, including 20 justices from the highest courts in the Americas, are urging legal reforms to combat impunity in crimes against journalists.

Visit these links: - Joint statement issued to IACHR: http://www.ifex.org/en/content/view/full/85018/ - Full joint statement (Spanish only): http://cencos.org/es/node/16470 - Joint report on Mexico press freedom by CENCOS and ARTICLE 19: http://www.ifex.org/en/content/view/full/85030/ - RSF on IACHR hearing: http://tinyurl.com/2pgebm - IAPA on legal reforms: http://tinyurl.com/2lh4dy - IAPA on press freedom violations: http://tinyurl.com/38s7ko - IFEX alerts on press freedom violations in Mexico: http://www.ifex.org/en/content/view/full/97/

REGIONAL NEWS:

MIDDLE EAST

2. IRAN/IRAQ: KURDISH JOURNALISTS DIE IN SUICIDE BOMB IN IRAQ; TWO OTHERS SENTENCED TO DEATH IN IRAN

A suicide bomb attack in Kirkuk, northern Iraq on 16 July killed at least 85 people, including an editor and a reporter, and wounded more than 180 others, report the Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ) and London-based Kurdistan Journalists Syndicate (KJS). The driver of a truck packed with explosives detonated the vehicle near one of the offices of the Patriotic Union of Kurdistan, says CPJ, which damaged several adjacent buildings, including the Kirkuk Cultural and Social Association office, which is funded by the Kurdistan Regional Government and publishes the weekly newspaper "Kirkuk al-Yawm" and the quarterly "Kirkuk".

Swedish-Iraqi dual national Mustafa Gaimayani, editor for "Kirkuk al-Yawm", and Majeed Mohammed, one of the paper's sports reporters, were killed in the blast as they were preparing the paper for publication. Both journalists were also correspondents for the Kurdish-language weekly "Hawal". According to KJS, a journalist named Tayib Abdulla Jaff was also killed. Several other journalists, including the editors in chief of both "Kirkuk al-Yawm" and "Kirkuk", were wounded in the explosion.

Meanwhile, two Kurdish journalists were sentenced to death in Iran's Kurdish northwestern region on 16 July, reports Reporters Without Borders (Reporters sans frontières, RSF) and KJS. Adnan Hassanpour, who wrote articles on the Kurdish issue for the now defunct magazine "Asou", was found guilty in a closed trial of "activities subverting national security" and "spying". The charges against Abdolvahed "Hiva" Botimar, a contributor to "Asou" and an active member of the environmental NGO Sabzchia, were not known at the time of writing.

According to RSF, Iran continues to be the Middle East's biggest prison for the press with eight journalists currently in jail.

Visit these links: - CPJ: http://cpj.org/killed/killed07.html - RSF: http://www.rsf.org/article.php3?id_article=23028 - KJS: http://www.kurdistanjournalists.org/

ASIA-PACIFIC

3. INDONESIA: CRIMINAL DEFAMATION AGAINST GOVERNMENT RULED UNCONSTITUTIONAL

The Indonesian Constitution Court has ruled that criminal defamation against the government is unconstitutional and therefore no longer binding, the Alliance of Independent Journalists (AJI), Southeast Asian Press Alliance (SEAPA) and Human Rights Watch report.

On 17 July, Indonesia's Constitutional Court declared unconstitutional articles 154 and 155 of the country's Criminal Code, the "hate sowing" offences, which criminalised "public expression of feelings of hostility, hatred or contempt toward the government" and prohibited "the expression of such feelings or views through the public media." According to SEAPA, the articles, inherited from the former Dutch colonialists, allowed for prison terms of up to seven years.

The rights groups say the articles had been frequently used to protect government officials from public criticism. "Articles 154 and 155 were clearly backward and antiquated, and have no place in a modern society with aspirations for genuine democracy," SEAPA says. "Former president Suharto used the crude laws to imprison his critics over his three decades in power, and even after he had been deposed, the laws continued to hang over the heads of Indonesians who had anything to say about government and country."

Activist Panji Utomo had challenged the code at the Constitutional Court after he was sentenced to three months in prison by the Banda Aceh District Court for "spreading hatred" against the government during a 2006 protest rally. AJI also points to a 1995 case in which two of its members and one staff were sentenced to three years in jail under Article 154.

Human Rights Watch called on the Indonesian government to publicly acknowledge the court's decision and to immediately and unconditionally release all those currently imprisoned under the laws, including Yusak Pakage and Filep Karma, who were sentenced in April 2005 to 10 and 15 years in prison respectively for having raised the Papuan independence flag in the province of Papua.

"The court's decision to strike down this legislation raises hopes that it will also tackle the myriad other repressive laws still on Indonesia's books," says Human Rights Watch.

In December 2006, the Constitutional Court made another landmark ruling in favour of freedom of expression when it revoked three similarly restrictive articles that banned insults against the president, reports SEAPA.

Visit these links: - AJI: http://tinyurl.com/3drbr9 - SEAPA: http://www.seapabkk.org/ - Human Rights Watch: http://tinyurl.com/2ldgy5 - December 2006 ruling: http://tinyurl.com/3art3z

4. NEPAL: PARLIAMENT PASSES RIGHT TO INFORMATION BILL

IFEX's Nepalese members the Center for Human Rights and Democratic Studies (CEHURDES) and the Federation of Nepalese Journalists (FNJ) and the International Federation of Journalists (IFJ) welcomed the Parliament-Legislature's unanimous passage of the Right to Information bill on 18 July.

The law, which guarantees every Nepali citizen the right to access information from any sector, includes provisions for penalties and compensation (1,000 to 25,000 Rupees - US$15 to US$388) if requests for information are not answered within 15 days or if the information provided is false.

The bill requires that an independent National Information Commission be formed to oversee local information departments and officers, which must also publish reports about their services, completed requests, as well as the names of their information officers every three months.

IFJ says that despite the legislation, efforts to increase access to information in Nepal are being thwarted by continued threats to journalists' safety. "Free access to information is one of the cornerstones of a democratic society, but until the Nepalese government can ensure the safety of its journalists, they still have a long way to go," IFJ says.

Just last week, Parshuram Shah, publisher and editor of "Janadharana Weekly", received death threats from local authorities in Siraha, an eastern district of Nepal, for trying to collect budget information. A Kanchanpur-based journalist, Prakash Singh Thakuri, has been missing since 5 July. A group calling itself the National Republican Army Nepal has claimed they abducted and killed him for his pro-monarchy activities.

"Immediate attention should be given to the Nepalese media, who are constantly being threatened from both authoritative and vigilante groups on a daily basis," IFJ says.

Visit these links: - CEHURDES: http://www.ifex.org/en/content/view/full/84970/ - FNJ: http://www.fnjnepal.org/release_detail.php?id=51 - IFJ: http://www.ifj.org/default.asp?index=5143&Language=EN - "IFJ Concerned over Continuing Attacks on Journalists in Nepal": http://www.ifj.org/default.asp?index=5127&Language=EN

EUROPE AND CENTRAL ASIA

5. AZERBAIJAN: PRESIDENT IGNORES PLEAS TO PARDON JOURNALISTS

President Ilham Aliyev did not pardon the seven journalists jailed in Azerbaijan as was anticipated on National Press Day (22 July).

Despite numerous protests by human rights groups and appeals to the State Pardon Commission sent by the family members of the journalists, the Press Council, the Ombudsman and the Working Group of Political Prisoners, the seven imprisoned journalists have not been released.

They are: Sakit Zahidov, Eynulla Fatullayev, Rafig Tagi, Samir Sadagetoglu, Faramez Allahverdiyev (Novruzoglu), Rovshan Kebirli and Yashar Agazadeh.

"The imprisonment of these seven journalists has severely damaged Azerbaijan's reputation as the country prepares for next year's presidential elections," says the Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ).

According to a senior government official, President Aliyev is away on vacation and no decision would be made about pardons until his return. He also noted that the journalists themselves did not request pardons and therefore had not yet admitted their "guilt".

One jailed journalist went on hunger strike and sewed his mouth shut in protest over his imprisonment. Faramez Allahverdiyev of the weekly newspaper "Nota Bene" was convicted for defamation on 30 January and sentenced to two and a half years in prison for articles he wrote on corruption in the Interior Ministry. According to the Institute for Reporter Freedom and Safety (IRFS), Allahverdiyev is also trying to reject his citizenship and wants asylum in Israel.

A "solidarity" fundraising marathon organised by IRFS to benefit the families of the jailed journalists raised US$2,265.

On a 16-17 July visit to Azerbaijan to campaign for the release of the journalists, Human Rights Watch's executive director, Kenneth Roth, recommended a moratorium on any further criminal prosecution of journalists. "President Aliyev today has unprecedented political strength and popularity," Roth said. "But strong governments do not imprison journalists. Strong governments do not use the criminal law to prevent people from hearing what journalists have to say."

IRFS is asking members of the local and international community to send appeals to Aliyev calling for the journalists' release. Fax your appeal to: +994 12 492 0625

According to CPJ, Azerbaijan is the region's leading jailer of journalists and one of the top 10 backsliders on press freedom worldwide, and President Aliyev made RSF's 2007 list of "press freedom predators".

Visit these links:

CPJ: http://tinyurl.com/ynrpyd - RSF: http://www.rsf.org/article.php3?id_article=23003 - Human Rights Watch on Azerbaijan: http://tinyurl.com/2gfuz9 - CPJ "Backsliders": http://www.cpj.org/backsliders/index.html - RSF "The Predators of Press Freedom": http://tinyurl.com/2deklk

UPDATES:

6. TUNISIA: HUMAN RIGHTS ACTIVIST MOHAMED ABBOU FREED

Tunisian lawyer and human rights defender Mohamed Abbou was released on 24 July after spending more than two years in jail for criticising the government on the Internet, reports the Observatory for Freedom of the Press, Publishing and Creation (Observatoire pour la liberté de presse, d'édition et de creation, OLPEC). Members of IFEX's Tunisian Monitoring Group (TMG), who have been campaigning for his release this year - including visiting him in prison in March - joined OLPEC and other rights groups in welcoming his release.

After being freed with no advance warning, Abbou returned to his family at their home in Tunis, according OLPEC. According to his wife, Samia Abbou, no reason was given for the release. The release came one day before the 50th Anniversary of the Proclamation of the Republic of Tunisia on 25 July.

Abbou's case has largely been a symbol of Tunisia's appalling human rights record and the subject of numerous campaigns and days of action. He was tried and sentenced on appeal in June 2005 to three and a half years in jail for exposing torture in Tunisia on the Internet, and for comparing the treatment of prisoners in Tunisia to conditions in Abu Ghraib prison in Iraq. The TMG called his trial a "parody of a lawsuit without questioning nor pleadings." Abbou's detention conditions were also substandard, and his family faced continuing harassment from the political police force while he was in jail.

"As a former prisoner of conscience, I would like to thank all those in Tunisia and the rest of the world who stood by my side during the ordeal I have been through. The Tunisian authorities offered time and again to release me from prison on condition of signing a letter of apology. But I refused to do so," said Abbou in an interview with the broadcast network Al Jazeera on the evening of his release.

"My release is the result of actions of resistance to oppression undertaken by Tunisians capable of saying no to a regime in violation of basic human rights. The Tunisian Constitution and international human rights law guarantee the right to criticise the government, as long as there are human rights abuses and corruption. The lack of freedom led some young people to use violence which I strongly denounce," added Abbou, in his first interview since his arrest in March 2005.

Visit these links: - TMG (English): http://campaigns.ifex.org/tmg/ - TMG (French): http://campaigns.ifex.org/tmg/fr - "Kalima" magazine: http://www.kalimatunisie.com/

7. ETHIOPIA: PROTESTERS PARDONED, BUT TWO JOURNALISTS STILL JAILED

Ethiopia has pardoned and freed 34 opposition members and four journalists who had been convicted last week for their links to deadly 2005 protests against alleged poll-rigging, say Reporters Without Borders (Reporters sans frontières, RSF) and news reports. But two Ethiopian journalists initially sentenced to life remain in jail.

On 20 July, two of the four editors, Andualem Ayele of "Ethiop" and Mesfin Tesfaye of "Abay", who were sentenced to life in prison for inciting violence, received pardons. Also pardoned were "Asqual" editor Wenakseged Zeleke, who was originally sentenced to three years in jail, and deputy editor Dawit Fassil of "Satanaw", who got 18 months, says RSF. According to news reports, the 38 defendants had signed a government statement admitting to organising violent election protests in 2005 and asking for clemency.

Two other journalists who were given life sentences in absentia - "Menilik" editor Zelalem Guebre and "Netsanet" editor Abey Gizaw - have so far not been included in the pardon.

RSF says, "Prime Minister Meles Zenawi has taken account of the international community's appeals but he made the release of these prisoners conditional on their signing an 'apology to the Ethiopian people' for the 'mistakes made in November 2005'." RSF says the case will not be over until Guebre and Gizaw are also cleared.

Visit these links: - "IFEX Communiqué" on sentencing: http://www.ifex.org/en/content/view/full/84892/ - "IFEX Communiqué" on convictions in June: http://www.ifex.org/en/content/view/full/84088/ - RSF: http://www.rsf.org/article.php3?id_article=22960 - BBC: http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/africa/6908039.stm

TAKE ACTION!

8. SEND A SOLIDARITY MESSAGE FOR DETAINED MOROCCAN JOURNALIST

Send a message of solidarity for a Moroccan journalist detained without charge since 17 July allegedly for publishing secret government documents.

Abderrahim Ariri, publisher of the Moroccan weekly "Al-Watan Al An" ("The Nation Now"), and Mostafa Hormatallah, a journalist for the paper, were arrested for allegedly revealing national defence secrets, according to the Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ). Ariri was released on 24 July, but Hormatallah remains in jail.

On 14 July, the paper published a confidential document of the General Directorate for Territorial Surveillance, a Moroccan security agency, which discussed the monitoring of jihadist websites. The memo asked security services to be vigilant after a video was posted online in which militants threatened to wage jihad against Morocco and other North African states.

Police arrested Ariri and Hurmatallah at their Casablanca homes on 17 July and took them to police headquarters for questioning. Later that day, about 20 police officers raided the "Al Watan Al An" office, and confiscated some of the newspaper's archives and Ariri's computer.

The Moroccan journalists' union (Syndicat National de la Presse Marocaine, SNPM) organised a national day of solidarity with Ariri and Hormatallah on the day of the journalists' arrest, advocating for their release and the right of journalists to gain access to information. The action was also part of a larger initiative in the human rights community aimed at disassociating their case from that of military personnel accused of leaking secret documents.

Post your message on the "Al Watan" blog here: http://www.alwatan.press.ma/Contact.aspx

For background on the case, see: - CPJ: http://tinyurl.com/2woauo - International Federation of Journalists: http://www.ifj.org/default.asp?Index=5137&Language=EN - Reporters Without Borders (Reporters sans frontières): http://www.rsf.org/article.php3?id_article=22989 - SNPM: http://www.snpm.ma/def.asp?codelangue=24&po=2

AWARDS AND FELLOWSHIPS:

9. ALFRED FRIENDLY PRESS FELLOWSHIPS

Reporters from the developing world are invited to submit applications for the 2007 Alfred Friendly Press Fellowships, which provides print and online journalists with hands-on experience in U.S. newsrooms.

The 10 successful applicants will spend six months reporting for a U.S. news organisation and will learn U.S. journalistic traditions that they may adapt and apply in their home countries.

To be eligible, applicants should be from the developing world and be between the ages of 25-35, work full-time as a journalist, have three years of journalism experience in print or online media, and have an excellent command of English (all activities are conducted in English).

Fellowships include the Daniel Pearl Fellowships, which honour the life and work of the "Wall Street Journal" South Asia correspondent who was kidnapped and murdered in 2002. Daniel Pearl fellows come from South Asia, North Africa and the Middle East, areas that Pearl covered as a journalist, and their work encourages dialogue among different cultures and religions.

The fellowships begins in March 2008, and cover health insurance, a monthly stipend to cover basic living expenses, and all costs of programme-related travel. Deadline for applications is 15 August 2007.

For more information, ring: +1 (202) 429-3740, or see: http://www.pressfellowships.org

JOB NOTICES:

10. FREEDOM HOUSE SEEKS PROGRAM OFFICER AND RESEARCH ASSISTANT/ASSISTANT EDITOR

Freedom House is looking to hire a Program Officer for its Washington, D.C. office for the Global Internet Freedom Initiative, as well as a Research Assistant/Assistant Editor for its New York office.

The Program Officer will develop and implement Freedom House's Global Internet Freedom Initiative, which includes creating a web-based interactive database that compiles reports of Internet censorship and repression against cyber-activists, and building a global network of activists to campaign for Internet freedom around the world.

Qualified candidates must have three to five years of experience in information design and communications technology, particularly in website development, electronic data management and information security. They also must be knowledgeable on Internet governance issues and international affairs. A Bachelor's degree is required.

The Research Assistant/Assistant Editor will provide research for the Freedom of the Press survey, write country reports, prepare presentations, press releases and other advocacy and outreach materials, and help the staff with administrative duties.

Candidates must have strong editing, writing and proofreading skills, and should be able to multi-task. A university degree is required. Knowledge of press freedom issues and basic statistical methods, as well as expertise in a particular region or language, is desired.

Applications for both positions will be accepted until the positions are filled.

Send cover letter, resume, and salary requirement to Jeffrey Mosser, Human Resources Director, fax: +1 (202) 822-3893

For more details, see: http://www.freedomhouse.org/template.cfm?page=13

ALERTS ISSUED BY THE IFEX CLEARING HOUSE LAST WEEK:

Dear "Communiqué" readers:

Aerts issued last week will not be listed in this edition of the "IFEX Communiqué". Instead, in addition to the usual newsletter, you have been receiving the pilot version of a proposed new IFEX information product: the IFEX Digest.

The IFEX Digest compiles, two times a week, the headlines of all IFEX alerts issued in the prior days of that week, together with additional submissions by IFEX members on the same stories. The headlines are grouped together by region, country and story. Each headline is accompanied by a webpage address if you wish to read the full-text version of the item.

IFEX Digests are being issued on 18, 20, 25 and 27 July. At the end of the pilot period, a questionnaire will be sent to you for your feedback on the new product.

We hope you will find this proposed new IFEX product to be useful, and we are counting on your feedback after the two-week pilot.

ENDS

The "IFEX Communiqué" is published weekly by the International Freedom of Expression eXchange (IFEX). IFEX is managed by Canadian Journalists for Free Expression (www.cjfe.org) on behalf of the network's 71 member organisations.

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