NEWS

Journalist attacked in Tunisia
Rohan Jayasekera: an assault on Slim Boukdhir has come hot on the heels of Tunisia's dubious presidential election result
29 Oct 09

Four men, believed to be plain-clothed police, seized independent journalist Slim Boukdhir near his home in Tunis yesterday evening (Wednesday 28 October), beating him, stripping him of his clothes, ID, money and phones and drawing a knife while threatening to kill him “next time”.

The kidnapping and assault occurred two hours after Boukhdhir was interviewed by the BBC, where he discussed President Zine al-Abidine Ben Ali’s internationally derided election victory on Sunday and a banned book by two French journalists on Ben Ali’s wife and her rising influence in the country.

According to reports from Index on Censorship’s sources in Tunisia, Boukhdhir was dumped outside the city’s Belvedere Park, where he was helped by a passer-by who put him in a taxi. From there he took refuge at the home of journalist Neziha Rejiba. “He was naked and barefoot and bruised all over his body when I opened the door for him,” said Rejiba, editor of the banned web site Kalima.

After Sunday’s vote, Ben Ali and pro-state local media listed Boukhdhir among a “tiny minority” of Tunisians accused of “treason” for communicating with foreign media and casting doubt on Ben Ali’s victory in which he took 89.6 percent of the vote, after two decades in power. The US government has expressed concern about the transparency and credibility of the elections.

Boukdhir was seized in similar circumstances in September 2008, though not beaten or stripped, after writing an article about then US Secretary of State Condoleeza Rice’s brief visit to Tunisia and her critical remarks about the human rights situation there. Again his assailants were thought to be plain-clothes police.

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But free speech is not free. Instead we rely on readers like you to keep our journalism independent, our advocacy sharp and our support for writers, artists and dissidents strong.

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At Index on Censorship, we believe everyone deserves the right to speak freely, challenge power and share ideas without fear. In a world where governments tighten control and algorithms distort the truth, defending those rights is more urgent than ever.

But free speech is not free. Instead we rely on readers like you to keep our journalism independent, our advocacy sharp and our support for writers, artists and dissidents strong.

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At Index on Censorship, we believe everyone deserves the right to speak freely, challenge power and share ideas without fear. In a world where governments tighten control and algorithms distort the truth, defending those rights is more urgent than ever.

But free speech is not free. Instead we rely on readers like you to keep our journalism independent, our advocacy sharp and our support for writers, artists and dissidents strong.

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