Posts Tagged ‘journalist imprisoned’
June 21st, 2012
A High Court in
Burundi has sentenced a journalist to
life in prison over terrorism charges. Hassan Ruvakuki, a reporter for local radio station Bonesha FM and French government-funded broadcaster Radio France Internationale was found guilty of ”participating in terrorist attacks”, along with 13 other defendants. In November 2011, Ruvakuki recorded a statement from former police officer Pierre Claver Kabirigi, claiming to be the leader of a new rebel group. Upon his return to the capital of Bujumbura he was arrested by security agents and questioned him over his alleged links to the rebel group. The journalist’s lawyer plans to appeal.
June 12th, 2012
A journalist and government critic has been
sentenced to two years in prison in
Azerbaijan. Anar Bayramli, a correspondent for two
Iranian media outlets, was sentenced for a drug possession charge following a controversial court case which was said to include contradictory evidence. Bayramli was arrested in February and charged with possession of four grams of heroin. The journalist was previously summoned by police on a number of occasions to disclose his political affiliation. The sentencing comes at a time when tensions between Azerbaijan and neighbouring Iran are particularly heightened.
March 19th, 2012
Three
Saudi web managers from news websites which cover political unrest are being
held in prison without charge. Habib Ali al-Maatiq and Hussein Malik al-Salam from Al-Fajr Cultural Network and Jalal Mohamed al-Jamal from news website Al-Awamia were arrested by security forces in February. The Al-Fajr Cultural Network website, which covers covers pro-reform protests in the predominantly Shia region, was taken down following the arrests. Al-Maatiq and al-Salam are reportedly being held in a prison in Dammam. Al-Jamal is believed to have been accused of “opposing the state” and “inciting” its downfall. His whereabouts are currently unknown.
March 6th, 2012
A web editor was
jailed for 10 days for reposting an unconfirmed report that two local officials had been caught with prostitutes in
China. Shang Laicheng, an editor at Tiantian Xin news forum was arrested on 17 February as he left work, and his family were informed he had been formally detained for spreading misinformation. The Foshan Procuratorate office said that the information in the post, suggesting two local prosecutors were caught using prostitutes at a sauna, was fabricated and had damaged the reputations of authorities. The original author of the post remains unclear.
November 2nd, 2011
The editor-in-chief of an independent daily paper in
Azerbaijan has
been imprisoned. Avaz Zeynally, from newspaper Khural, was
arrested in Baku on Friday on charges of bribery and extortion.
The charges follow a complaint filed by Gyuler Akhmedova, a member of parliament who alleged that Zeynally had tried to extort 10,000 manat (7,935 GBP) from her in August. Zeynally denies all charges, saying Akhmedova had offered him money in exchange for his paper’s loyalty to authorities. On Saturday, a court determined that Zeynally should be detained for three months. If convicted, he could face 12 years in prison.
October 24th, 2011
A
Mauritian journalist has been jailed for
contempt of court. Dharmanand Dooharika, who works for weekly newspaper Samedi Plus, was sentenced to three months in prison following the paper’s coverage of a fraud case in August. Dooharika was found guilty of publicly scandalising the Supreme Court and bringing the administration of justice into disrepute. Dooharika was taken ill following the ruling, and
sent to hospital under police guard. Goindamal Saminata Chetty, head of the firm Contact Press which owns Samedi Plus, was fined 300,000 rupees.
September 30th, 2011
A
Tajik journalist is facing
16 years in prison, following charges of defamation. Makhmadyusuf Ismoilov, a reporter for the independent weekly paper Nuri Zindagi, was arrested for defamation, insult, and incitement following an article in which he
criticised government and law enforcement officials in the Asht district in the northern Sogd region of Tajikistan. During his hearing yesterday, prosecutors asked the court to sentence the journalist to 16 years imprisonment, while Ismiolov’s lawyer claimed investigators had failed to prove he was guilty, and called for his release. The next court hearing in the case is scheduled for 3 October.
September 29th, 2011
The
lengthy prison sentences of two journalists have been upheld in
Bahrain. Journalistic bloggers Abduljalil Alsingace and Ali Abdel Imam were sentenced in June on a series of charges related to “plotting to topple” the regime, along with 19 other people. The court upheld the
life sentence for Alsingace and the 15 year sentence to Abdel Imam. Additionally in Bahrain, granting of ID passes to journalists from daily newspaper Al-Wasat was delayed, preventing the journalists from covering the government’s by-elections on Saturday. The passes would allow journalists to enter and report from polling stations.
