Yemeni Security Forces has kidnapped the Journalist and Human Rights activist; Loui Al-Moaid on Monday, June 30th, 2008 at 11:00 a.m. and he was taken to The National Security building. Loui is infected with Hepatitis B virus (active) and we are concerned about his life since he might be tortured severely and there is no health care at all. (Read on …)
A number of press journalists have filed a lawsuit against the Yemeni Journalists Syndicate (YJS) represented by the head of the syndicate, his agents, the secretary-general, his aides and members of the executive council, demanding an end to the syndicate and the closure of its headquarters.
The syndicate’s council member Marwan Damaj said that the syndicate grants membership to those who comply with its requirements: holding a university degree and being an editor-level employee rather than a technician in a newspaper. “It is the right of any person to resort to the judiciary, and we do not prevent any person from pursuing this right,” Damaj stated.
The lawsuit filed at the court demanded to speed the judicial procedure to the Ministry of Social Affairs and to force it to form a preparatory committee and an internal system of the syndicate according to the Press and Publications Law No. 25 of 1990 and under judicial supervision of the court.
The journalists who filed the lawsuit against the YJS are Ismail Abdel-Hafiz al-Absi, Abdul Hakim Tarsh al-Mogales, Ahmad al-Makosh, Ahmad Ghailan, Fadhel Saleh, Mohammad Dahan, Mohammad al-Gofi, Abdul-Qader al-Shater, Hanna Me’yad and others. They are known in the press field as they claimed in the lawsuit, and have all legal conditions to obtain journalist profession cards stipulated by the press law and which can be obtained through the YJS. The YJS, through what has been termed an alleged internal regulation, revised the definition of the journalist profession and the press, for the definition of the YJS was partially contrary to the definitions, meanings and connotations specified in the press law, the lawsuit claimed.
This is a short interview with Abdulkarim al-Khaiwani’s little daughter, Eeba, via Hub. She says the thugs were pounding his head into the street and he motioned to her to go back inside.
I hope the regime takes advantage of the temporary lull in publicity to free al-Khaiwani before we have to go into phase two of the campaign.
This is a second list. (List #one is here and is a seperate listing.) Please join us and sign at this link in support of the heroic journalist, Abdulkarim al-Khaiwani. If you have a link, please leave it in the comments. Thanks AGAIN to Nicki for keeping track of this today…. Update: 1001 people sent a letter so far. Its a beautiful thing.
Almotamar.net - The Specialised Criminal Court on Tuesday fixed the date of one month from today for announcing the sentence against the persons accused of forming an armed gang for killing and sabotage and attacking security institutions (Sana’a 2nd Cell).
In the sitting of the court held Tuesday under chairmanship of Judge Muhsin Alwan, Head of the First Instance Court, the prosecution presented its final presentation and asked the severest sentence legally stipulated against the accused members of the gang.
The presentation mentioned that the defendants had participated in formation of an armed gang for killing, sabotage and attacking security and military institutions by using explosive charges in addition to putting poisons in camps water tanks.
The lawyer of the victims’ families, the killed Majors Abdulgfhani al-Maamari and Yahya Rawee, presented his final statement and requested the execution of the defendants. The defence body of defendant Abdulkarim al-Khaiwani presented also the closing defence and asked the court to acquit their client from charges against him.
At the end of the lawyers reading the closing statement the journalist Mohammed al-Maqaleh bust into noisy laughter and when the court asked him about the reason of his laughter he continued his laughing and ridicule of the trial saying it was a farce. The court decided sending hi to prosecution for interrogation due to his ridiculing the court and violation of the sitting as well as insulting the judiciary.
Almotamar.net - An information source at the General People’s Congress (GPC) ruling party on Tuesday expressed the GPC solidarity and sympathy with the Yemeni writer and political activist Ms Tawakul Karman against the threat of killing she has been exposed to in addition immoral words on the phone; as it was reported in media instruments.The source affirmed that differences in opinion in the national arena whatever they were must not slide to this immoral level of personal assailing and insult that is inharmonious with religious, ethical and human values as well as with bases of democratic freedom and opinion and other opinion.
The GPC information source asked all to stand against such inconvenient practices and asked the security authorities to take their measures for providing protection for the activist Tawakul Karman and hold accountable those who carried out such irresponsible and condemned action.
Really they are quite an amazing bunch.
SANA’A, June 27 — Journalists, human rights activists, as well as partisans and women leaders held a sit-in for the seventh time in front of the cabinet in the ” freedom Square” within the frame of the sit-in activities organized by the civil society organizations, protesting against blocking the SMS news services, and calling for releasing the journalist Abdulkareem Al-Khaiwani.
At the commencement of the sit-in, lawyer Khalid Al-Ansi, the executive manager of Hood organization for defending rights and freedoms, requested the audience to make a respected stance for the symbol of freedom, Al-Khaiwani.” Our fresh news this time, in this sit-in, is that Al-Khaiwani is detained,” Al-Ansi declared.
He also said,” We are having victory and we will continue till we achieve our complete demands. Al-Eshteraki and Al-Shora web sites have been unblocked and we will continue holding our sit-ins till the release of the SMS news services of Without Chains and Nass Press, as well as allowing the Without Chains Newspaper to carry on.”
For her side, Tawakul Kurman, the chairwoman of Women Journalists Without Chains, delivered a speech in which she said,” It a pity to have this sit-in held in the freedom Square.” “To call for releasing media means and insure a wide bias for practicing freedom of expression without any violations coincide with abducting Abdulkareem Al-Khaiwani, who is still in the precaution prison without charging him of any accusations.” She added.
“While we are holding this sit-in for the sake of freedom of expression and the right of having its media means, we salute journalist, Abdulkareem Al-Khaiwani, and announce our solidarity with him, considering him one of the pioneers of freedom of expression,” Kurman added. “The good pressmen are being violated, imprisoned, abducted, beaten, and wiretapped all over Yemen.” she elaborated.
However, during the sit-in, Dr. Abdullah Al-Faqeeh, Professor of political science in Sana’a University, said, “The Yemeni regime is portraying the Yemenis to the world to be a people of explosive belts, who are ready to explode themselves, as well as the world, calling the civil society to collate.” Al-Faqeeh also called the civil society to nominate Al-Khaiwani for Nobel Prize in its next turn. He also suggested preparing a letter draft of nomination and contacting the human rights organizations to support the Yemeni nominee for the prize.
He went on to say,” The prevention of having media means in Yemen suggests depriving the Yemenis from taking creative actions and transforming them to consumers of behavior examples and virtues as well as values of others. He also questioned how his regime could allow its citizens to have broadcast channels while it fears from 70 –letters messages.
YT: SANA’A, May 16 – The Center for Training and Protecting Journalist Freedoms presented its 2006 annual report to the Yemeni Journalists Syndicate, brining back memories of the sufferings of journalists and newspapers from 2002 to 2005.
Concerning last year, the report presented by Mohammed Sadiq Al-Odaini, head of the center, indicated that, “2006 witnessed 200 violations and 47 incidents of intimidation against the press, including detentions, seizures and attempted kidnapping of journalists, opinion writers, local correspondents and journalists from foreign media outlets, as well as 33 instances of threat.”
During the same year, 22 verdicts were issued against the press, including fines, tough sanctions, dismissal from employment and banning from writing. The Socialist Party-affiliated Al-Thawri newspaper suffered the most violations, with six verdicts issued against it, its editor-in-chief and writers. Four of those verdicts were issued in the span of less than a month.
Additionally, its Editor-in-Chief Khalid Salman was subjected to a series of intimidating acts and likely will experience many more by Socialist Party leaders themselves because he wanted to report professionally and impartially even if against the party’s best interest.
The report alleged that such acts of intimidation prompted Salman to seek political asylum in London, an unprecedented event in press history.
Continued on page 3
Other verdicts were issued against journalists and private as well as partisan newspapers, such as Al-Wahdawi, Al-Nahar, Al-Nass and Al-Hurriyya. The year ended as trials continued against independent, and partisan newspapers such as Al-Wasat, Al-Thawri, Al-Nahar, Al-Wahdawi, Al-Shoura.net, Al-Shoura Voice and Al-Balagh.
YO:
The Yemeni Journalist Syndicate held a protest this week, to express solidarity with the journalist Zaid al-Ghabri of the Al-Jumhuria newspaper in Taiz, who was recently attacked in his home. The YSJ was also protesting the continuing oppression of all journalists. “This conference is to show solidarity with the oppressed journalists,” Sami Ghaleb, a member of YJS, said.
Seven members of the military police broke into al-Ghabri’s home and attacked him and his two sons, said Fikri Qasim, his colleague. The military police declined to hand over the attackers to the investigation, he said. Marwan Damaj, the General Secretary of the Yemeni Journalists Syndicate, said that what was most significant is that the perpetrators of attacks on journalists have not been identified or punished. Some 30 journalists from different newspapers attended the protest. But many journalists were disappointed with the low turnout.
“It is a weak activity, and it did not show much,” Balqis al-Lahabi said. Saif al-Washli, a freelance journalist in Sana’a, said that he has been kidnapped once, by unknown assailants. He spoke about the kidnapping for the first time at the protest, and said he has been threatened again. “The danger is lodged in the terrorist gangs that terrify the journalists,” he said. Al-Washali said that he was attacked because he criticized the tribal dominance over the government. “I am working in the media that belongs to the president, and my position is so sensitive, so I thought not to talk.”
Al-Washli said that he fears that his colleagues will not stand by him, which is why he has not spoken of his ordeal until now, he said. “See, out of a thousand journalists, the crowd that has come here for the protest is so few in number,” he said. He added that the weak stand of the YJS is another reason that he didn’t speak out earlier. “The syndicate contents itself with protests and condemning press releases,” he said, “whereas it has to press on the concerned authority to investigate and find out the criminals and protect the journalists.”
Ali al-Faqeeh, another journalist, said that during the protest, Abdul-Hadi Naji, a correspondent for Al-Ayyam in Aden, was still locked in the prison for financial problems, and he has since been accused of further crimes. Damaj said that the worst thing is that the journalists’ attackers are unknown. “The unknown identities of the attackers make it a difficult problem to face,” he said.
Furthermore, there is no single case in which the attackers’ identity was revealed by the police, he said. Mohamed al-Audaini, the head of the Yemeni Freedom center, said that he has been charged with murder. “I have no idea whom I am supposed to have killed,” he said. He feels these charges stem from a government plot against him. He thanked Nasr Taha Moustafa, the head of the syndicate, for his personal efforts to get him out of the jail. Some of the audience objected to the use of the word ‘personal’ for it is reducing the role played by the syndicate.
Yet he insisted on this, and said it is true. “Without his personal efforts, nothing would have been done for me,” he said. Abdul-Raheem Mohsen, a writer, said that there are many non-official organizations that work against journalists. He added that the syndicate is gathering the cream of the society, and they have to work together as a single unit to make these acts effective.
Few of the YJS’ top officials attended the protest. But Ghaleb said that their attendance isn’t important, because they are simply gathering in solidarity, and it is enough if just one person shows up from the syndicate.
SANA’A, Dec. 20 — Four Yemeni journalists urged the United Nations to protect them from physical harm, hunting, assaults and harassments. They complained that their freedom of expression is restricted.
In a letter sent to U.N. Human Rights Council, a copy of which was published by Al-Tajamu’ weekly, journalists urged the UNHRC to intercede and take an international decision to protect them in conformity with international conventions and legitimacies.
“The State hunts us, abuses our rights and restrict our freedom of expressions,” the Yemeni journalists said in their letter. “We were subjected to abduction, forcible disappearance and illegal and unconstitutional arrests. We are deprived of our livelihood sources because we criticize corruption and the military regime that has been grasping power for 28 years.”
The four journalists called on their colleagues to support their request, which is backed and signed by the famous writer and human rights activist Abdurrahim Mohsin, Publisher and Editor-in-Chief of Al-Deyyar newspaper, Hamoud Al-Mahdhari, Editor-In-Chief of Al-Shoura Net, Abdulkarim Al-Khaiwani and the journalist Abdulqawi Al-Qubati.
Al-Khaiwani at the conference on press freedoms:
YO: Journalist Abdul-Kareem al-Khaiwani totally disagreed with the minister. “It is hard to even discuss press issues under this climate of constant oppression,” he said. Al-Khaiwani, who was imprisoned, but later pardoned by a presidential decree, gave examples of recent journalists who suffered oppression.
“Qaid al-Tairi was kidnapped, and the ministry of interior did not investigate that,” he said. “He was banned from traveling and was sent back from the airport.” He noted that the same thing had happened to him at the airport, though there was no judicial provision for the ban. Al-Khaiwani then suggested that legislation was only part of the problem. “What can the law say about the cloning of newspapers?” he said, referring to his newspaper being assembled by someone else under the same name.
“What about the case of Rahma Hojeirah and Hafiz al-Bokari, two journalists who have been badly slandered in one of the newspapers?” Motahar al-Masri, the deputy Minister of Interior, said that no actions were being undertaken, because no legislation warranted such actions. Both the deputies of the minister of the interior and the minister of information said that the current press legislation was not being applied, because it would restrain journalist’s freedom too greatly.
Thats just infuriating. And yes, the CD does prove the wiretapping.
Interior minister Rashad al-Alimi denied that his ministry ordered to wiretap private calls and that it made a deal with telecommunication companies working in Yemen to bring systems for recording and wiretapping.
In his reply to a question by the MP Abdul-Razaq al-Hajri on wiretapping to people personal calls, al-Alimi said the constitution and law prohibit that except if there a judicial order, confirming that his ministry is ready to refer the wiretapping cases to justice if proved.
He admitted that his ministry asked the ministry of telecommunications to order the telecom centers write names and the identity cards of people who call form those centers to keep social security. He justified that some people misuse phones for threats. But he asserted there were no cases of wiretapping.
“We have not to make rules according to rumors, but according to facts. If there is a real incidence, the ministry will investigate in to it and raise the results to the Parliament, said Alimi in his comment on al-Hujri question.
The MP al-Hujri said there was a CD includes a personal conversation between the correspondent of al-Jazeera space channel in Sana’a Ahmad al-Shalafi and his wife.
Al-Alimi said shops “are full of such CDs and the CD does not prove the allegation”.
He said that people who have suits should file them to the prosecution or to the interior ministry offering adequate evidence. He pointed that his ministry is preparing a draft law to fight “electronic crimes”.
Well thats certainly a nice article fromAlsharq Alawasat.
The focusing on news and events of one country at the expense of others is unjustifiable both professionally and morally. Although we are not the only ones that practice this type of discrimination, we have yet to do anything to reverse it.
Usually nations that are more powerful from a political, military, and economic perspective, get the most media coverage, even when it comes to trivial matters like entertainment, with the coverage usually bordering on the shallow and exaggerated. On the other hand, poorer and weaker nations are the prisoners of their grim circumstances, marginalized and out of the world’s collective conscience, except on rare occasions.
Yemen is a great example of this. As close as we are to Yemen geographically, our knowledge of it does not exceed that of their daily headlines, and they are usually about the rising fundamentalist movements, or the latest Al-Qaeda crimes, or the country’s Qat obsession, and that is hardly enough information for us to say that we know what goes on there.
A recent report by “the Committee to Protect Journalists” revealed that no less then 24 Yemeni journalists have been tortured, imprisoned or criminally prosecuted in the last two years. In addition, many newspapers were closed down or have had their licenses revoked. In the report, a number of journalists went on record to detail the arrests, torture, and intimidation the faced because they dared to write about sensitive issues.
These are just the quick facts, the details are more horrific. In addition to the above-mentioned methods of punishment, the Yemeni authorities have managed to create some new ones. On two separate occasions, Private intimate phone conversation between journalists and their wives were recorded and circulated in a society notorious for its moral conservatism.
Today in Yemen the noose is tightening around the press’s neck, which is the only tool available that can reflect the voices of opposition and political dialogue.
The essence of the problem is that the Arab media are not giving Yemen half the coverage it gives other countries in the region, for in less than a year, a number of journalists have been brutalized, kidnapped and imprisoned and none of them received the same attention their counterparts did in other Arab countries.
SUPER COOL! I’m so proud of them. They deserve it.
In March, Dr. al-Saqqaf posthumously won a lifetime achievement award at the Middle East Publishing Conference, from WAN, the World Association of Newspaper Editors.
IPI Names Yemen Times “Free Media Pioneer 2006″
The International Press Institute (IPI) has announced its decision to honour the independent newspaper, Yemen Times, with its 2006 Free Media Pioneer Award. Mr. Raidan Al-Saqqaf, Member of the newspaper’s Board of Directors, will receive the prize on behalf of the Yemen Times at an award ceremony on 30 May, during the forthcoming IPI World Congress in Edinburgh, Scotland (27-30 May).
Founded in 1990 by Prof. Abdulaziz Al-Saqqaf, a prominent economist and human rights activist, who was also its editor and publisher until his untimely death at age 46 in a traffic accident in 1999, the Yemen Times started publishing on 28 February 1991. Yemen’s first and most widely-read English-language newspaper, its declared aim is “to make Yemen a good world citizen.”
The Yemen Times operates in a part of the world known for harsh government restrictions on the media. The closure of independent and opposition newspapers and the criminal prosecution of journalists for critical coverage of sensitive issues are routine in the Middle East and North Africa and have led to a climate of fear in which self-censorship is common. Violent attacks against journalists are also on the rise, making the practice of their profession more dangerous than ever.
Against this backdrop, the Yemen Times continues to provide accurate and timely news and information on Yemen and the region, and actively participates in efforts, outlined in its mission statement, to support “press freedom, respect for human rights, political pluralism and democracy.”
The annual Free Media Pioneer Award was established by IPI, the global network of editors, media executives and leading journalists, in 1996 to honour individuals or organisations that have fought against great odds to ensure freer and more independent media in their country or region. The Award is co-sponsored by the U.S.-based Freedom Forum, a non-partisan, international foundation dedicated to free press and free speech.
Previous winners of the Free Media Pioneer Award are: SW Radio Africa, UK (2005); the Central Asia and Southern Caucasian Freedom of Expression Network - CASCFEN (2004); the Media Council of Tanzania (2003); the independent daily newspaper Danas, Serbia (2002); the independent on-line newspaper Malaysiakini.com, Malaysia (2001); the Press and Society Institute - IPYS, Peru (2000); the Ethiopian Free Press Journalists’ Association - EFJA (1999); Radio B-92, Yugoslavia (1998); the Alliance of Independent Journalists - AJI, Indonesia (1997); and NTV, Russia (1996).
….to honour individuals or organisations that have fought against great odds to ensure freer and more independent media in their country or region.
Thats actually pretty interesting and thought provoking, with a variety of views and issues. I can’t believe its Faris who put this together. I wonder if he called anybody a hedgehog, accused them of hard work? hahaha
SANA’A – The Yemen Observer’s Think Tank Tent (TTT), a new discussion group, was launched last week by Faris Sanabani, publisher of the Yemen Observer Publishing House.
The first and inaugural session, held at the Yemen Observer office on April 27, discussed the situation of press freedom in Yemen.
The TTT is intended to be a “forum of choice for new ideas, analysis and debate on the most important issues facing Yemen,” Sanabani said.
The discussions are intended to allow the discussion of important issues in a candid and transparent way, in order to get a wide spectrum of opinions. It is therefore hoped to create a better understanding of the issue.
The list of subjects planned to be debated include corruption, the presidential elections, transparency in the government, the reform agenda, foreign aid, education and health care, foreign policy, tribalism, tourism and poverty.
A “Who’s Who” of journalists, government representative and opposition figures were invited, so that voices from all opinions and sides were heard.
It included Nasr Taha Mustafa, the Chairman and Editor-in-Chief of Saba News Agency, Hafez Al-Bukari, the Secretary General of Yemen Journalists Syndicate (YJS) and Hamid Shihra, Chairman and Editor-in-Chief of Al-Nass Publishing House.
In addition Nabil Al-Sofi, Editor-in-Chief of NewsYemen, Mahmoud Yassin, writer and journalist, Ahmed Al-Zorqa, the YJS Executive Director also took part.
Jalal Yagoob, Assistant Deputy Minister of Planning, Akram Sabra, Managing Editor of the suspended Al-Hurriyah Newspaper and Mohammed Al-Asadi, Editor-in-Chief of Yemen Observer also participated.The outcome of this discussion is below, so readers can see and take part in the conversations too. We are therefore especially interested in your feedback and hearing what you think.
The content of future discussions, and the feedback we receive, will be published in a separate booklet so as to be easily available to researchers, politicians, legislators and the general public.
Copies of these booklets will also be passed on to government officials, lobbyists and decision makers, so that the ideas and opinions exchanged can better help them make informed decisions on the topic discussed.
Academics, reformers and the leaders of this country are also invited to participate with ideas, opinions and support for the TTT.
The next discussion will debate the issue of corruption in Yemen, including the government’s commitment to fight corruption, create anti-corruption laws and increase awareness about the problem.
MEO:
Major donor countries, concerned that the reform process in Yemen has stalled, have stepped up pressure on the Sanaa regime by linking aid to tangible change.
“The donors have made it clear that there has to be change,” whether pertaining to public freedoms or the fight against corruption, a Sanaa-based diplomat said, requesting anonymity. President Ali Abdullah Saleh “has been pressured a lot by the international community on reform and good governance,” he said.
It seems a long time since Saleh was invited by US President George W. Bush to take part in a G8 summit in Sea Island, Georgia, in June 2004 in order to endorse Washington’s “Broader Middle East” initiative for democratization of the Arab-Islamic world. Two years later, Washington no longer sees Sanaa as one of its best pupils.
Ambassador Thomas Krajeski publicly aired US concern that Yemen had halted progress toward democracy in an interview with the private newspaper Al-Ayyam last October. Yemeni authorities deny dragging their feet on reform, but Krajeski said that his remarks were prompted by “an increasing harassment of journalists and closing of some independent newspapers, causing all of us concern about Yemen’s democratic commitment and the pace of democratic reforms”. “We remain concerned” by the situation in terms of liberties, chiefly press freedom, he said. Attacks against journalists have increased in recent months, and authorities have failed to arrest any suspects in the assaults.
A draft press law, which one diplomat described as “a law that protects the government against journalists,” is also under consideration just a few months before presidential elections scheduled for September. Another diplomat noted, however, that Yemen and Kuwait are the only two countries in the Arabian peninsula “where there is an opposition press that can go very far in its criticism” of government policies.
Information Minister Hassan Ahmad al-Lawzi insisted in remarks to AFP that the government “condemns” attacks against journalists and that press freedom will be “protected.” Another black spot in Yemen’s record is corruption, which both foreign diplomats and Yemenis see as spreading rather than decreasing.
Washington was not long in making its displeasure known. During a visit to the United States in November, Saleh was informed of its decision to deprive Yemen of financial assistance which would have made it eligible for the Millennium Challenge Account (MCA), an aid programme for impoverished nations launched by the Bush administration in 2002.
The development assistance programme was proposed for countries “ruling justly, investing in their people and encouraging economic freedom.” Some countries that did not meet the criteria required to qualify for MCA assistance were selected to receive “Threshold Programme Assistance.”
The MCA programme links aid to the performance of a country, gauged on the basis of 16 indicators, including one related to civil liberties and another to “control of corruption.” Yemen was picked as a “threshold” country in 2004 before being suspended last November. “Because of increasing concern over government corruption and a perceived decline in commitment to individual freedoms, they (Yemen) were suspended pending improvement,” one diplomat said.
The immediate loss for Yemen ranged between 20 and 30 million dollars. But in the longer term, it forfeited potential aid of hundreds of millions of dollars by losing its eligibility for MCA assistance. The following month, the World Bank announced a one-third reduction of its aid to Yemen - from 420 to 280 million dollars - for the same reasons.
In early February, Germany, the United States, Britain and the Netherlands - Yemen’s top donors — told the Sanaa government they wanted to see “change” and a quick implementation of concrete steps toward reform. All of which did not sit well with the Yemeni president. During a visit to Beijing last month, Saleh pointedly remarked that China does not meddle in the internal affairs of the countries it helps, and on his return to Sanaa, he rejected “dictates and conditional support.”
By Dr. Moncef Marzouki*
The problems facing the Yemeni journalist Mohammed Al-Asadi and the other Arab journalists arrested in Morocco, Algeria and Jordan for accusations of reprinting insulting cartoons of the Prophet Mohammed (PBUH), reminds us of the American military terminology of ‘collateral damage’.
They are like the associated, often innocent, casualties arising from a showdown between two warring sides.
However, I take it for granted that the collateral damages are part of plot and not a mistake. Indeed, sometimes are in fact the goal of the plot, which is ostensibly targeted otherwise.
The sides that fuelled the war of the blasphemous cartoons are the racist right-wingers who dream of a devastating collision of civilizations, while also seizing the opportunity for Islamic and Arab regimes to appear as advocates of Islamic values. Instead, they are desperately in need of a shot of mercy.
Some religious figures, such as the Mufti of Qatar, have exploited the opportunity for improving their own battered image. They want to form what they call ‘Committees for Prophet Protection’, a behaviour that suggests the Holy Prophet Mohammed Salla Allahu Alayhi Wasallam, is an ordinary person.
They have taken it upon themselves, as if the prophet needs these jokers to defend him. It has become a battle between two mad, opportunist sides who struck successfully at the most sensitive of issues.
In this battle of elephants, the journalist Mohammed Al-Asadi, editor of the Yemen Observer, has been maliciously knocked to the ground, so that he is now amongst those blackmailed for the alleged assault against the symbol of holiness.
Among al-Asadi’s writings I have read are these phrases: “My name is Mohammed, the same name of the prophet Sallah Allahu Alayhi Wasallam. I can’t in any way insult him. “What I published defends the Prophet, and you can see that for yourself”.
He adds: “The report of ours joined the Islamic world in denouncing the insult. It was a summary of what some scholars have said in admiration of the prophet”.
He also said: “I published a 5cm picture of parts of the cartoons, concealed with a large cross. It was a signal of total rejection and contempt of the cartoons for the western readers of the paper”.
He asks: “Is this a slander of the Holy Prophet – which no Muslim can do, as long as he professes that there is no God except Allah and that Mohammed is Allah’s messenger?” He has given all the articles and information, translated into Arabic, to the court. “This is an accusation of my faith that I can’t accept,” he adds.
Is that then the crux of the issue? Al-Asadi is a journalist, a profession sometimes seen as one of the worst threats for Arab states under totalitarian rule.
Here we come to face our regular enemy that we hold in contempt and hate, the corrupt Arab political regime.
However, the problem is that Al-Asadi’s case is more complicated that it appears to be. A totalitarian state merely exploits the opportunity to annihilate its most hated foe, free journalists producing news of corruption and distortion.
Yet the person spearheading this campaign against Al-Asadi is one of the victims of this regime. He doesn’t bother to make an ally of Al-Asadi today, even though he may fear they may be a potential enemy of the regime tomorrow
Ali al-Jaradi, the media and culture director for the Association of Yemeni Journalists, has called on Sheikh Abdulmajid al-Zandani to use the funds he raised for suing the journalists to instead sue the US authorities, for alleged abuse in the Guantanamo Bay prison including flushing a Holy Qu’ran down a toilet.
Perhaps we exaggerated by blaming political autocracy, for that is simply the tip of the iceberg.
What we have learnt is that this political totalitarianism is not an import from Mars, nor the imposed will of Israel or President Bush. Instead, the regimes crippling our energies are the result of our own totalitarian societies. This is incontrovertible.
The one spearheading the oppression of this free journalist is not the ruling authority. Instead, it is an individual volunteering to raise funds not for fighting hunger but for suiting Al-Asadi. He is well aware of what he will gain, killing two birds with one stone.
This person is carrying the flag of a society riddled with fanaticism and misogynism.
If it is not stopped, only a bloodier form of totalitarianism will be established over the ruins of the present totalitarian system.
The new totalitarianism will be ignorant and will only slowly learn – over the dead bodies of the innocent.
Al-Asadi is between the heavy hammer of political totalitarianism and the deeper totalitarianism of the society. We are all morally obliged to stand by him and to step up our rhetoric to attack totalitarianism.
Journalism, the most important tool of democracy – represented by Al-Asadi – is under siege in Yemen and the whole Arab world on two fronts, not a single one.
We must look after the individual tree more than we care for the whole wood.
——————————————————————————–
* A Tunisian Public Freedoms Activist and writer.
Accusing the lawyers of taking money from foreign sources…..
At the West Capital Court’s April 1 session in the Al-Ray Al-A’am newspaper trial, the defense, led by Allaw Establishment and headed by lawyer Mohamed Naji Allaw, presented its pleading. The paper is being tried for republishing insulting caricatures of the Prophet Mohammed (pbuh).
Defense confirmed a lack of material evidence due to absence of legal Sharia in the claim against the paper, asserting that republishing the caricatures to criticize them is not a crime, which is what the journalists did. Defense quoted a fatwa by prominent Islamic scholars, which validated republishing the caricatures to defend the prophet. It also presented Saudi Islamic Jurist ‘Mufti’ Dr. Suliman Al-Awdah, who republished the caricatures on Al-Arabia Satellite Channel, and Sheikh Mohamed Al-Arifi.
Allaw described Prosecution’s claim of applying Sharia law upon the defendants as a demand for the death sentence against them for the crime they allegedly committed, even if the charge is wrong. Allaw continued, saying the case is a criminal one, which Prosecution lawyers are unauthorized to file because it is the Attorney General’s duty.
Allaw stated that he is defending the journalists because they republished the caricatures to defend the prophet, adding that he is addressing all citizens, whatever their position, so they can distinguish what they hear before making premature judgments. He gave the example of mosque preachers who incited citizens against the journalists, deeming them to be the same as the Danish journalists, even collecting money to indict them.
Allaw asserted that Prosecution lawyers’ allegations are full of lack of knowledge of the basis for law and Sharia. In return, Prosecution lawyers accused Allaw Establishment of receiving funds from foreign bodies, which they did not mention, to defend Yemeni newspapers that republished the caricatures, saying they have proof that Allaw Establishment received such sums, in dollars, to defend newspapers that insulted the prophet. They demanded that HOOD and Allaw Establishment be banned for this reason, as well as demanding that case documents, memos and correspondence be reviewed.
Press Prosecution requested the opportunity to respond to Defense claims at the next court session.
From the Yemen Times, the quote of the day, “This is really stupid.“
The hysteric media barrage the political regime is launching against the opposition parties entails a bad omen of the coming few months prior to the presidential and local elections. Upon hearing rumors that the former president of the South Yemen Ali Naser Mohammed would run for office, the regime has opened up the question of the mass graves of the January 13, 1986 Aden, bringing into mind of the Yemeni people the agonies of the infighting and reviving the bloodshed memories and hatred sentiments.
Again, the state-run- and -financed media have also tried to revive the hostilities between the socialists, saying that the socialists of the North have controlled everything and left nothing for the socialists of the South.
Last Thursday, the 26 September newspaper of the army said the US embassy had given the government some important documents about the South during 1980s. It described these documents as important, revealing secrets of the conflict between the leaders of the socialist party at that time and other relevant issues to their term in office.
This is really stupid. What does it mean to incite such kind of sentiments? Won’t this hamper the national unity and stability of the country? They always say the unity is a “red line” and a taboo that must not be touched whatsoever the reason. I agree with my colleague Jamal Anaam when he said that the unity of the political parties is a part of the overall unity of the country. President Ali Abdullah Saleh has been always giving sermons on the importance of keeping the country united, burying the past hostilities and looking ahead for a better tomorrow. Why now recalling the past with all its miseries and pains? Won’t this stir up the anger the people of the South who are now lamenting the pre-unification era wherein law and order was respected and cherished by everybody, despite the other wrongdoings of the socialist regime.
Read the rest.
Its hard to get information in Yemen. From News Yemen:
“It was a very strange action when he denied what he had said” reported a journalist concerning an interview he conducted with a member of parliament. The journalist stated that as soon as he had finished recording the MP’s remarks, the MP left and went to another media source and denied everything.
Such behavior has become normal between the parties and the journalists who complain of difficulty in obtaining information from MPs. Sami Ghaleb, editor in chief of Al-Nida’, stated that the behavior of many MPs is far from being professional. He said that the reason behind this goes back to the leadership’s inability to listen to different opinions as well the ideological and historical background of these parties. The presence of local newspapers is new to the political life in Yemen. He feels that time and the continued practice of journalism in Yemen will change the political field’s opinion of it and that relationships between the journalism profession and the parties will change as well. “Our papers hold to professional standards and give balance to their coverage which will find acceptance among the ruling elite.
Al-Ghobari stated that dealing with the parties is much easier than dealing with the official bodies. He stated that it is a priority of the ruling party to make interaction with the journalistic profession difficult, followed by Islah. He stated that dealing with the Nasserite party and the YSP is the easiest. He said that the political parties in Yemen still show great reservation towards giving information about disputes among the ruling party and the opposition.
Concerning the internal workings of the parties, Islah is the most tight-fisted when it comes to giving information. He said most information is passed on by news leaks and conversation and not through official channels.
It is unlikely that the position of the parties will change their position towards journalists and try to solve the current impasse. An official spokesman stated that his is a paradox that does not only concern the parties but the state as well.
Also: this is interesting:
Sami Ghaleb defended the syndicate in his article published in Al-Nida’ under the title “The Governmental Quagmire and the Journalists’ Syndicate.” He considers this as a war waged by the government against journalism in order to raise party strife and incite anger against its members. This campaign began after the leader of the syndicate presented his resignation and following the joint parties’ support of it. He was surprised by this after a cordial visit between the minister of information and the syndicate which was considered a first step by a government official.
Al-Thawra published an article that stated “there are accusations of deals being made between journalists and foreign embassies in order to execute suspicious projects. However, do not forget the doubt surrounding MPs and their evil intentions towards the syndicate.”
The author, Al-Majidi, stated that the reason for the attacks comes from the profession’s defense of several journalists who underwent attacks and death threats as well as their opposition to laws that would restrict journalistic freedom.
Theres a lot more in the original article.
Its this kind of stuff that makes me think the Yemeni government fits the definition of a rouge regime.
fromNews Yemen:
The Yemeni Journalists Syndicate announced its condemnation for the hostile acts suffered by the journalist Qa’id Al-Tiri, (the editor of al-Thoury) and expressed its disapproval of the closure of Al-Usbu’.
The Syndicate demanded that the Ministry of the Interior conduct an investigation into circumstances surrounding the journalist’s kidnapping which occurred on Saturday as he was heading to his workplace in the Ministry of Media. The Syndicate condemned the criminal aggression that Mr. Al-Tiri was exposed to during his captivity, which included torture with electricity.
The Yemeni Journalists Syndicate stated that this act was just one in a string of aggressive acts committed against journalists over the last few months. It went on to say that if it were not for the indifference of the concerned parties then the perpetrators of these acts would have been brought before the court.
The Syndicate disapproved of the continued closure of Al-Usbuu’ despite the expiration of last year’s ruling to close the journal. It announced its deep concern over the arbitrary use of the law to close newspapers, which goes against the spirit of the law. Such manipulation causes material, mental, and physical harm to journalists.
Related: Judge Beaten by Prison Official:
A member of the Haja Governorate public prosecutor’s office, Judge Sahal al-Samit, was harmed during his visit to a prison yesterday. In a special interview with News Yemen Judge al-Samit stated that the vice manager of the prison in the security administration began to beat him as he (the judge) was freeing a number of prisoners who had been held illegally for some time. The president of the public prosecutor’s office in Haja sent a memo requiring lawful investigation into the event. The head of security in Haja related to News Yemen that he stopped the beating.
And Lawyers Beat-up by judicial police and soldiers.
from his paper, The Yemen Observer:
SANA’A – Yemen is focusing on the wrong people in targeting Mohammed Al-Asadi and the Yemen Observer in the accusations of insulting the Prophet (PBUH), according to a leading academic.
Dr Abdullah Al-Faqih, Professor of Politics at Sana’a University and head of the Change Forum, an independent NGO working to promote political dialogue, appealed to they Yemeni people arguing that they are “fighting the wrong war” in targeting the newspaper.“Yemen’s battle is not with Al-Asadi but with poverty, illiteracy, underdevelopment, and diseases,” he said.
Dr Al-Faqih, in an interview with the Observer, wrote an appeal for real justice to be made, calling the trial a ‘witch hunt.’
His statement follows below.
“It is inconceivable to think that a newspaper like the Yemen Observer would intentionally seek to insult Muslims or their Prophet (PBUH) in any manner.Yet the Observer and its Editor-in-Chief, Mr. Mohammed Al-Asadi, are put on trial for committing such a crime.
The paper and its editor are accused of republishing the infamous blasphemous cartoons that were initially published in a Danish paper last September.
The cartoons later provoked world-wide Muslim rage, leading to the death of tens of Muslims after clashing with police in several world capitals.The editor of the paper, whom I met a few months ago in Aden, is a very articulate, polite, and trustworthy young Muslim journalist.
The paper itself has a history of moderation and respect for Islam and other religions. In fact, it frequently runs stories attesting to its commitments to, and respects of, Islamic values and principles.
Those close to Al-Asadi, lawyers and friends hold great respect for him and think he and the paper are being targeted for no good reason.
Images of the cartoons appearing in the paper were covered with a big X. The accompanying editorials expressed disgust at the publication of the cartons.This is not a case related to freedom of the press per se. The Observer was part of the anti-cartoon movement and not a supporter of those ridiculing the Prophet and all Muslims.
The case appears to be a case of “witch-hunt.” The trial of the Observer and the call for the execution of its editor is a disservice to Yemenis, Muslims and to Islam too. “Witch-hunting” has nothing to do with Islam and its principles, values, and way of life.The attempt to use a situation, of misjudgment at worse, to settle old scores or to intimidate newspapers and journalists, gives the wrong message to people within and without the Muslim world.
The ongoing court case serves only those who propagate stereotypes of Muslims as intolerant people.
It is neither in the interest of the litigants, nor in the interest of the defendants to continue a baseless case and to provoke laymen’s emotions in a very irresponsible manner.Sheik Zindani, a very popular Yemeni religious scholar, is said to be steering the case. It has been reported that Mr. Zindani collected the sum of five million Yemeni rials from donors for hiring lawyers to prosecute the Observer and two other Yemeni papers.
The motives behind the case are not quite clear. Zindani himself has had some trouble with press coverage, with American accusations leveled against him. He also has had trouble with the government’s handling of his case. The political situation in Yemen is very complicated.Whatever the motives are, it would be a violation of justice to try the paper and its editor -using an incident of misjudgment in the worst case scenario - and not taking into account the paper’s history and the editor’s characteristics.
While my brothers and sisters who are litigants in the case may have the best of intentions, they should know that they are fighting the wrong war.The Yemen Observer is not the enemy, and its editor-in-chief is not the culprit. To those brothers and sisters who were offended by the paper, please and direct your attention, energy, and resources to Yemen’s real battle. Yemen’s battle is not with Al-Asadi but with poverty, illiteracy, underdevelopment, and diseases.”
Al-Faqih runs the Change Forum, which seeks to promote dialogue among political forces in Yemen, provide consultation on policy matters, and propose policy alternatives.
He makes a good point that this case is giving the regime another big round of negative publicity internationally, following on the heels of the escape.
The paper’s editorial:
For the past eight years the Yemen Observer has worked hard to provide accurate, balanced and informative news about all aspects of Yemen. It prides itself on providing up-to-date news and analysis in English, acting as a vital tool for non-Arabic speakers to learn more about the country.
Yet the continued suspension of the newspaper’s license – for unfounded allegations connected to the Danish cartoons of the Prophet Mohammed (PBUH) - is starving it of the crucial funds it needs to operate.
The actions were and still are meant to damage the good reputation of the newspaper, which has only ever acted with the very best interests of the country and its readers at its heart.
The Observer journalists continue to write and produce news on this website. We will, of course, resume printing the newspaper immediately when the draconian restrictions are lifted. However, if the Government do not change their mind, the newspaper faces a bleak future.
The newspaper’s forced closure has come just as the Government tries to boost tourist numbers and international investment in the country. If the Observer remains closed, a valuable international window onto Yemen will be lost, and a worrying message about press freedom in this country will be sent to the rest of the world. Press freedom is in real danger in this vital year.
The Yemen Observer has launched a massive campaign with local authorities including Parliament, leading religious scholars and senior judicial consultants at the Supreme Court of Yemen. All of them have shown understanding and sympathy. They admitted they were misinformed by the official media, which claimed that the Observer ran the abusive cartoons, but gave no further explanation in what context.
The editorial board of the Yemen Observer and all its workers at all levels would like to extend their deepest gratitude to readers and international organizations that have been a great support for all of us during this difficult time.
The situation cannot be allowed to continue.
On Wednesday March 8 the trial of the Editor-in-Chief Mohammed Al-Asadi resumes. We hope that both the Court and the Government will take the sensible and correct route, and allow Mr. Al-Asadi to run the newspaper freely once again.
Until then, we will be continuing all our usual news coverage online at this website: www.yobserver.com. We value our readers greatly. At this difficult time for the newspaper, we appreciate your support all the more. Thank you, and please keep visiting the site.
Update: Un-believable. The proscutors (all 21 of them) want the death penalty and the YO shut with financial compensation in the form of their assests. I still dont get this: how a private citizen can pay for state lawyers. I know its Yemen and I know its Zindani, but what is that?
Up to 21 prosecution lawyers called for the death penalty against Mohammed Al-Asadi, the Editor-in-Chief of the Yemen Observer, and the permanent closure of the newspaper, during Al-Asadi’s trial on Wednesday. The lawyers, commissioned by Sheik Abdul-Majid Zindani, the Chairman of Islah Shura Council and led by Mohammed Al-Shawish, also called for the confiscation of all the newspaper’s property and assets, and for financial compensation to be paid to be the Muslim’s ‘Finance House’, which last existed during the time of the Caliphs, 1200 years ago. They recounted a story in which a lady was killed during the Prophet’s lifetime after she insulted him, and that the Prophet then praised the killer.
Original Post:
I still cant believe this. Zindani whipping up a frenzy and collecting money and the YO shut. Ten new lawyers for the prosecution. At least he’s getting international coverage unlike Khalid Salman and the other Yemeni journalists kidnapped, beaten, stabbed, beat up every week for the last year. From the WAPO :
Arab Press on Trial Again
As freedom of the press in the Arab world grows, so do the challenges faced by independent journalists there.Yesterday, Kuwait passed one of the strongest press freedom laws in the Arab world. Tomorrow, Muhammad al Asadi, editor of the weekly Yemen Observer, goes on trial for charges of blasphemy resulting from the Observer’s coverage of the Danish cartoon controversy.
While many Arab governments still wield heavy influence over newspapers and broadcast outlets, the days in which journalists simply served their governments are gone. An independent press has emerged in Lebanon and Iraq. New online media are thriving, especially in the Persian Gulf. But as Al Asadi’s trial shows, governments that fear a free press are not resting either.
Al Asadi was detained for 11 days last month after the Observer published the cartoons under a thick black banner in a story about Yemeni protests over the caricatures of the prophet Mohammad that appeared in the Copenhagen daily Jylands Posten. The government revoked the Observer’s license to publish. Two weekly tabloids, Rai al-A’am and Al-Hurriya, condemned the cartoons but also lost their licenses, apparently for reproducing the controversial images.
Al Asadi says the Yemeni government objected most to the paper’s editorial denouncing the cartoons but also calling for Muslims to stop protesting and accept the apology offered by Jylands Postens.
“That’s what really angered the hard-liners,” he told Newsweek’s Rod Nordland. “Even religious scholars have supported us: it’s the intention behind the publication, not just the publication.” Al Asadi was not alone in presenting all sides of the Danish cartoon controversy.
Related from UNNWR: Just like Zindani blames the oppostion media for his designation by the US (ande UN) as a major terrorist, President Saleh blames the journalists for the cuts in World Bank and US funding:
What do you think about the cuts in U.S. and World Bank aid?
It is true that the World Bank and some other donor countries have reduced their assistance according to misinformation that they received from the newspapers of the opposition parties, as well as from the leaders of these political parties, who want to create frustrations for the Yemeni government. They tried to spearhead a campaign against the government on the theme of corruption, as well as reforms, which have caused the World Bank and some donor countries to believe that this is true, but it’s not true.
Update: the late Dr. al-Saqqaf won. Im very happy and I commend the conference for their excellent choice.
from AMEinfo:
Awards for lifetime achievement in regional publishing will be made at the Middle East Publishing Conference that opened in Dubai yesterday…..Newspapers: Ghassan Tueni, journalist, publisher and civil servant, who took over An Nahar (Lebanon) in 1947 and helped establish it as an outspoken, independent, liberal newspaper; Hisham and Muhammad Ali Hafiz, considered founders of journalism in Saudi Arabia, having in 1978 founded Asharq Al Awsat; the late Abdulaziz Al-Saqqaf (1952-99) the founder, editor and publisher of the Yemen Times who was also a human-rights activist; the late Abdul Aziz Fahd Al Msa’eed who was a towering figure in Kuwait’s post-independence press; and Mustafa Ameen (1914-97), journalist, writer and publisher who established Al Akhbar.
You know who Im rooting for. The Yemen Times archives go back quite a ways and Ive read several articles by its founder, and they are quite impressive and you can get a sense of who he was and why he’s still so missed and respected in Yemen.
Quite an interesting seven page article in the US News and World Report, lots of interesting quotes, covers the big topics: poverty, corruption, lack of oppostion leadership, journalists, the tribal areas, education, traditionalism, potential state failure, democratic reforms, counter terrorism efforts and the impending election. To follow is an assortment of random quotes from the article:
This time, the assault is an exercise, but Yemen’s elite Counterterrorism Unit has successfully carried out several high-risk operations against suspected terrorists and kidnappers. Portraits of six fallen soldiers, the unit’s “martyrs,” hang on the walls of their barracks. “They are without a doubt the bravest guys I have ever worked with,” says Ed, a U.S. Army trainer on his second tour in Yemen.
These days, though, Yemen is facing its own crisis, the result of deepening poverty and a government in denial about the depth of reforms needed to survive. In the past year, the United States and the World Bank have slashed their modest aid programs to Yemen, increasingly fed up with a bureaucracy that is one of the most corrupt in the world. “Yemen is teetering on the edge of failed statehood,” warns one U.S. official. “It will either become a Somalia or get serious about transforming.” For a nation awash in guns and crisscrossed by well-worn smuggling routes, the threat is grave.
(The 17) The group was captured after U.S. intelligence passed a tip to Yemeni security forces.
“This is a country that is really in the balance,” says Thomas Krajeski, the U.S. ambassador to Yemen. “There is a risk here for failure, and there is a chance of success. It is our job to give them all the help we can, but they have to make some hard decisions now.”
Increasingly, however, Yemenis fear that the strongman who has ruled for 28 years will be unable or unwilling to make the tough reforms needed. “The Americans are happy because they found someone who will fight terrorism,” says Mutawakil. “But my fear is that we’re establishing the foundation for terrorism in the country, just as they did in Iraq.” He is particularly concerned about what he calls Saleh’s “divide and conquer” style.
Amid all this, Yemen has somehow managed to remain one of the most democratic nations in the (admittedly autocratic) Middle East–and one of the very few with a relatively free press. The government tolerates a raft of opposition parties and independent newspapers. Yemenis, for the most part, feel free to criticize the government, and even Saleh, in public.
The democratic reforms all stop short of threatening Saleh’s rule
The final straw came when her staff recorded &#
