|
Our Reports
The Internet In the Arab World
A New Space of Repression?
No Rules, No Limits
United Arab Emirates:
Freedom of expression is missing despite a decision banning imprisonment for press crimes
|
|
|
Weekly update for the Arabic Network for Human Rights Information # 203
Year 5
20 March 2007 - 26 March 2008
Syria
========
Syrian authorities opened fire on Al-Nayrouz celebrations
The Syrian Human Rights Committee denounced Syrian authorities aggression of opening fire on the Kurds who were celebrating Al-Nayrouz day in Al-Qamshely city on Thursday March 2, 2008. While the Kurds in Al-Qamshely were celebrating Al-Nayrouz day, the Syrian intelligence authorities in association with police forces had attacked and dispersed them by force with using tear gas grenades and bullets which led to gun down many persons.
The Syrian Committee calls for ceasing fire opened against disarmed peaceful civilians and respecting the Syrian and Kurdish folkloric and cultural privacies.
Sources
Syrian Human Rights Committee
For more information, visit /syria
==========================
Iraq
========
Al-Mada for Mass Media, Culture and Art associated with Journalistic Freedoms Observatory to release an awareness campaign for security cadres
Al-Mada for Mass Media, Culture and Art in association with Journalistic Freedoms Observatory decided to release a campaign for Iraqi security cadres to raise their awareness about the role played by journalists to serve the community. The campaign includes printouts of international laws and articles protecting journalists and facilitating their tasks. Also it includes Iraqi constitution articles that guarantee freedom of work for journalists.
Thi campaign of awareness comes after remarkable increase of aggressions exercised against journalists by some security bodies and officials guards, as in the last violences incident many journalists and media professionals (belong to Alarabia news channel and Al-Sawmarya space channel) were subject to verbal and physical abuse that their journalistic equipments were smashed by security guards who accompanied the prime minister during his visit to Babel governorate.
Sources
Journalistic Freedoms Observatory
For more information, visit : /iraq
==========================
Palestine
========
Al-Mezan Center calls the Arab Summit to take actions of protecting Palestinians in the occupied territories
Al-Mezan Center for Human Rights hopes the Arab Summit to provide an effective assistance to protect civilians in the occupied territories and ensure their simplest human rights.
The Center confirmed that the Arabs' common agreement on legal work mechanisms, would ensure laying siege on the occupying state considering it as a country violating international law rules of human rights and U.N resolutions related to the Palestinian cause. Such agreement can provide a great value for the advisory opinion given by the International Court of Justice in regards to the separation barrier located in the West Bank, which would settle a cornerstone to end the occupation.
Sources
Al-Mezan Center for Human Rights
For more information, visit : /palestine
==========================
Egypt
========
Maat Center concluded journalists training course on neutral dealing with cases of prisoners and their families
Maat Center concluded a course of training 30 journalists on how to deal neutrally with cases of prisoners, detainees and their families that the number of journalists mounted to 60 persons who had been trained within the Peace Community Project.
A number of journalists belong to national, partisan, independent and regional newspapers located in six governorates had participated that among of them are television program reporters and preparers. The training was about identifying international charters concerning rights of prisoners and detainees, besides the role of human rights professionals in identifying the issues of this neglected class to the community, and how can this community rehabilitate and merge that class to protect its individuals (detainees and prisoners children) from being provoked into violence ideas as a result of their feel of deprivation or social isolation.
In association with USAID, the Center is going to complete the training of 60 lawyers during April just to finish training of targeted classes (journalists, lawyers and social leads) in the project, then the Center will move to interact directly with families of the project prisoners and detainees to spread out culture of community peace and ostracize violence among them.
Sources
Maat Center for Judicial and Constitutional Studies
Egyptian Organization submitting draft constitutions to human rights committee of the People's Assembly
Egyptian Organization for Human Rights submitted drafts for new laws to the human rights committee affiliated to the People's Assembly. These constitutions are related to amend some articles in Penal Code and Criminal Procedures Code in regards to torture, another alternative law draft for civil associations and private institutions, besides an alternative draft constitution for political parties.
Sources
Egyptian organization for Human Rights
The martial governor refuses ratification on the peasants acquittal judgment and ratifies imprisonment
The martial governor refused ratification on acquittal judgment of a lawyer and another 14 accused peasants from Sarando village among which 7 women. The martial governor calls for conducting their trial again before another division the time he approved the conviction of another 7 peasants involved in the same case. The grounds of this case refer to that the High State Security Persecution (emergency) had submitted the defendants before the High State Security Court (emergency) on charges of gathering, assault and arson attacks as political powers and human rights organizations collected a team of defense led by head of Egyptian lawyers and chairman of Arab lawyers union Mr. Sameh Ashour. After one year of deliberations , the Court ended up on march 19, 2007 with the innocence of 15 accused persons that among of them was the lawyer Mohammed Abdul-Aziz (the first accused), besides sentencing another accused persons to 7 years imprisonment, sentencing another five to 7 years imprisonment and sentencing another two to 15 years imprisonment.
Sources
Hisham Mubarak Law Center
For more information, visit : /egypt
==========================
International & Regional
========
Two newspapers censored and a website screened
Reporters without Borders expressed concern about deterioration of journalistic freedom in Yemen. On March 14, 2008, authorities prohibited the distribution of the monthly periodical "Abwab" and the weekly release "Al-Sabah". The website www.aleshteraki.net which considered the press apparatus affiliated to one of the opposition parties, is screened since March 12. Nayef Hassan the editor-in-chef of Al-Shara'a newspaper and the independent journalist Abdul-Kareem Al-Khewany are chased on charges of publishing news that could undermine the army's morals.
Sources
Reporters without Borders
For more information, visit: /mena
==========================
The Arabic Network for Human Rights Information
========
Military tribunals against journalist Mazen Darwesh must be stopped
The Arabic Network for Human Rights Information is really annoyed about the Syrian authorities insistence on proceeding the military tribunal against journalist Mazen Darweish the head of Syrian Center for Media & Freedom of Expression on charges of "libeling & defaming the state's bodies", as he published a featured report about the riots occurred in Damascus last January. In addition to his criticism of security bodies' failure in protecting citizens who were killed in these riots.
The Arabic Network for Human Rights Information releases a new website shedding light on freedom of expression and human rights causes in the Arab world
The Arabic Network for Human Rights Information released today a new website titled Qadaya (-http://qadaya.net/) which provides a legal and human rights service for journalists, lawyers and human rights activists in Egypt and the Arab world.
The new website includes many important departments such as an agenda for the human rights court cases against journalists, political and human rights activists, in addition to important judicial verdicts supporting human rights, especially freedom of expression. The site is providing the texts of Arab constitutions, legal acts, examples of cases and procedures related to human rights causes which would help researchers, journalists and lawyers to have information about cases related to human rights and sessions dates in regards to cases considered by the courts.
The Network details are available on : /en/reports
==========================
anhri is a legal organization that defends the freedom of opinion and expression of the press and the right to exchange information. Moreover, it works on collecting the publications of nearly 140 Arabic human rights organizations from 18 countries across the Middle East and North Africa, which are published in Arabic and presented in one website. It also provides human rights Sources in the Arab world for media workers, journalists, activists and the public in an attempt to increase the number of internet users and those interested in human rights issues in the Arab speaking world. Though one of many human rights groups serving the Middle East and North Africa, it is the only one in the Arab world devoted exclusively to protecting the freedom of expression across the region.
For more information, suggestions or membership in the Arabic Network for Human Rights Information, please contact anhri at:
Address: 19-26 July st-Downtown - Cairo- 4th floor - suit 55
Phone Number: (00202) 27736177
Email address:
info@anhri.net
|
|
