24 Apr 13 | Middle East and North Africa, Opinion
Bahrain’s top news during the past 48 hours say a lot about the troubled country: glitzy races are welcome; experts on torture are not.
Bahraini officials yesterday claimed that UN special rapporteur on torture, Juan Mendez, had cancelled his upcoming visit “indefinitely”. Funnily enough, the special rapporteur has denied this claim, saying that the government has actually blocked his visit, which was set to take place next month. The Special Rapporteur said in a release today that officials claimed that his trip could potentially endanger the success of the country’s National Dialogue, which began earlier this year.
Mendez said that the decision “does not enhance transparency with regard to the situation in the country nor demonstrate a commitment to redress impunity regarding any violations. Rather the authorities seem to view my visit as an obstacle rather than a positive factor to the reform process.”
The tiny gulf kingdom has faced unrest since the start of popular protests on 14 February 2011, which have now left 88 dead, according to Bahrain Center for Human Rights (BCHR).
The US State Department recently released a report evaluating human rights globally, and outlined Bahrain’s troubles with keeping up with its commitments to human rights. The report said that the country’s government has “limited freedom of speech and press through active prosecution of individuals under libel, slander, and national security laws; firing or attacking civilian and professional journalists; and proposing legislation to limit speech in print and social media.”
Bahrain says that reforms are underway, but their effect remains to be seen: according to Human Rights Watch, Bahrain’s authorities “have failed to investigate and prosecute high-level officials responsible for serious human rights violations.” To top it all off, the group also reports that there have been “more than 300 formal allegations of torture and ill-treatment.”
Even though there’s no room for UN experts in Bahrain, it looks like the doors are wide open for another Bahrain Grand Prix. This Monday, Formula 1 head Bernie Ecclestone said he would be pleased to extend the country’s contract for another five years.
“I feel they do a super job and don’t see any problems”, Ecclestone told the BBC.
Let’s recap last weekend’s race: BCHR has reported a total of 96 arrests in the lead up to the race — with 16 protesters arrested the day of the Bahrain Grand Prix. Protests took place in 20 of the troubled country’s villages, with clashes between protesters and security forces. An ITV news crew was forced to leave Bahrain right before the race, after reporting on protests — even though they had the appropriate accreditation. During last year’s race, three Channel 4 journalists were arrested and deported while covering a protest, but officials said that they were cast out for covering protests without media accreditation. I wonder what the excuse was this year?
Last year’s race drew crowds of protesters, who were met with brutal show of tear gas and bird shot pellets from security forces. One man, Salah Abbas Habib, was killed during protests. Bahrain did charge a police officer with murdering Habib, but his case is sadly the exception. In 2011, the race was canceled after 35 people were killed during the country’s crackdown on popular protests at Manama’s now-demolished Pearl Roundabout. Even though this year’s race went forward, every year this seems to come with a worrying cost.
Sounds like a problem to me.
24 Apr 13 | Middle East and North Africa, Newswire
Bahrain’s top news during the past 48 hours say a lot about the troubled country: glitzy races are welcome; experts on torture are not.
Bahraini officials yesterday claimed that UN special rapporteur on torture, Juan Mendez, had cancelled his upcoming visit “indefinitely”. Funnily enough, the special rapporteur has denied this claim, saying that the government has actually blocked his visit, which was set to take place next month. The Special Rapporteur said in a release today that officials claimed that his trip could potentially endanger the success of the country’s National Dialogue, which began earlier this year.
Mendez said that the decision “does not enhance transparency with regard to the situation in the country nor demonstrate a commitment to redress impunity regarding any violations. Rather the authorities seem to view my visit as an obstacle rather than a positive factor to the reform process.”
The tiny gulf kingdom has faced unrest since the start of popular protests on 14 February 2011, which have now left 88 dead, according to Bahrain Center for Human Rights (BCHR).
The US State Department recently released a report evaluating human rights globally, and outlined Bahrain’s troubles with keeping up with its commitments to human rights. The report said that the country’s government has “limited freedom of speech and press through active prosecution of individuals under libel, slander, and national security laws; firing or attacking civilian and professional journalists; and proposing legislation to limit speech in print and social media.”
Bahrain says that reforms are underway, but their effect remains to be seen: according to Human Rights Watch, Bahrain’s authorities “have failed to investigate and prosecute high-level officials responsible for serious human rights violations.” To top it all off, the group also reports that there have been “more than 300 formal allegations of torture and ill-treatment.”
Even though there’s no room for UN experts in Bahrain, it looks like the doors are wide open for another Bahrain Grand Prix. This Monday, Formula 1 head Bernie Ecclestone said he would be pleased to extend the country’s contract for another five years.
“I feel they do a super job and don’t see any problems”, Ecclestone told the BBC.
Let’s recap last weekend’s race: BCHR has reported a total of 96 arrests in the lead up to the race — with 16 protesters arrested the day of the Bahrain Grand Prix. Protests took place in 20 of the troubled country’s villages, with clashes between protesters and security forces. An ITV news crew was forced to leave Bahrain right before the race, after reporting on protests — even though they had the appropriate accreditation. During last year’s race, three Channel 4 journalists were arrested and deported while covering a protest, but officials said that they were cast out for covering protests without media accreditation. I wonder what the excuse was this year?
Last year’s race drew crowds of protesters, who were met with brutal show of tear gas and bird shot pellets from security forces. One man, Salah Abbas Habib, was killed during protests. Bahrain did charge a police officer with murdering Habib, but his case is sadly the exception. In 2011, the race was canceled after 35 people were killed during the country’s crackdown on popular protests at Manama’s now-demolished Pearl Roundabout. Even though this year’s race went forward, every year this seems to come with a worrying cost.
Sounds like a problem to me.
18 Apr 13 | Newswire
Egyptian Information Minister Salah Abdel Maqsoud — a member of the Muslim Brotherhood’s ruling Freedom and Justice Party (FJP) — faces mounting pressure to resign, amid allegations that he sexually harassed a young female journalist.
Media workers protest in 2012 over plans to try to close one of the oldest printing press firms in Egypt – Khaled Basyouny / Demotix
Speaking at an awards ceremony honouring journalists for courageous reporting last weekend, Abdel Maqsoud was interrupted by reporter Nada Mohamed, who asked “where is press freedom when journalists are being attacked and killed?” The Minister responded with “come here and I will show you where media freedom is” — provoking an uproar from journalists, activists, bloggers, and TV talk show hosts, who suggested that his comments — made in Arabic — had a “sexual connotation”.
In a Facebook post, Mohamed (who works for Arabic news site Hoqook, and received an award during the ceremony) said that the Minister’s comments “shocked and disappointed” her. This isn’t Abdel Maksoud’s first time stirring controversy with “indecent” remarks: during a live interview on Dubai TV last year he said to television host Zeina Yazigi, “I hope the questions are not as hot as you are.” Clearly embarrassed by the remark Yazigi retorted with “my questions are hot but I am not.”
Abdel Maqsoud’s impertinent remarks coincided with protests by State TV employees outside the TV building in Cairo’s downtown district of Maspero over anticipated pay cuts for broadcasters on Sunday. Egypt’s Radio and Television Union has been facing a staggering debt of approximately 20 billion LE, which Abdel Maqsood says has been inherited from the previous administration.
Demonstrators also complained of “a government plot to ‘Ikhwanise’ the media” (a term used to refer to the appointment of members of the Muslim Brotherhood in key positions). They also expressed frustration with “continued interference by senior management in editorial content”, claiming that “editorial policies remain unchanged” and that they “continue to face restrictions on their reporting.”
The Minister has denied the accusations, insisting that media in the Egypt “now enjoys greater freedom than ever before.” During an interview with MBC-Egypt following Abdel Maqsoud’s inappropriate remarks, Mohamed and the programme’s host, Mona El Shazli, acknowledged that the media was much freer in Egypt post-revolution. El Shazli, however, lamented that the crackdown on journalists today is far more brutal, adding that “journalists face intimidation, physical assaults and even death in an attempt to silence voices of dissent.”
According to the Egyptian Organisation for Human Rights, the Public Prosecutor’s Office has received more than 600 legal complaints against journalists since Morsi entered office in June 2012. Shortly after coming under fire for the Public Prosecutor’s investigation of popular TV satirist Bassem Youssef for insulting Morsi and Islam, the President’s office withdrew all lawsuits filed by the presidency against journalists “out of respect for freedom of expression.”
The Minister has also insisted that the government was working to abolish laws allowing for the imprisonment of journalists for what they publish. In an effort to appease TV employees, he also promised them 10 per cent of revenues from advertising. Critics, however, say that Abdel Maqsoud’s latest remarks are “too little, too late.” Producer for the state-sponsored Nile Cultural Channel, Tarek Abdel Fattah, said during the protest Sunday that “the days of Abdel Maqsoud as Minister are numbered. A cabinet reshuffle is expected in the coming weeks and we are hoping that there will be no Minister of Information in the new lineup.”
“What has Abdel Maqsoud done beside build a wall and erect barricades around the building?” he asked.
Abdel Maqsoud had earlier said that he would be Egypt’s last Minister of Information, as plans are underway for the establishment of a new Media Council to replace the Information Ministry. According to Egypt’s new constitution, the proposed media council would “promote press freedom while preserving the moral values of the society.” While abolishing the Ministry of Information would fulfil one of the Egypt’s young revolutionaries, many of them are concerned that the new charter may undermine freedom of expression.
“We do not need another body or organisation to regulate the media”, Sameh Kassem, of independent newspaper Al Dostour, told Index. “In the Digital Age, readers, viewers and listeners should be able to decide for themselves what they can or cannot read, watch and hear”, he said. ”A media council and the Ministry of Information are just two different faces of the same coin.”
16 Apr 13 | Newswire
Thangyat is a traditional form of entertainment performed for Burma’s New Year Thingyan Water Festival (taking place this week), made up of chanted satirical sketches with dance and percussion. The performances highlight all the things that went wrong in the past year, in the hope of avoiding repeating the same mistakes in the year to come. Thangyat was banned by the military government after the uprising in 1988 and was kept alive in exile before being allowed back last year.
Thangyat troupes, which can be up to 70 people strong, compete for cash prizes in heats leading up to the festival. The finalists perform on the main stage and the winner is announced on New Year’s Day. This year Sky Net, a new independent TV company, has sponsored the Thangyat competition and will broadcast it nationwide.
— The first day of this year’s Thingyan Water Festival and Myanmar new year – Thet Htoo / Demotix
Sky Net required all participating teams to submit their scripts or videos of their work so they could vet the material. Index met members of one troupe that had been banned from taking part.
The performers we met from the banned troupe believed Sky Net was more sensitive to political satire than the government, and were shocked and angry at being excluded. They thought that they had been banned for the generally political nature of their performance, rather than because they ventured into particular no-go zones. The troupe is going ahead with their performance anyway but their shows will not be broadcast; they are making their own documentary instead.
In Mandalay pre-censorship remains in the hands of city authorities and when I was there earlier in the week the first ever all-woman Thangyat ensemble was waiting to hear back from the censors. The women are teachers and students from a college in the city who have formed a group to preserve Burmese traditions — in particular traditional dress for women.
I was lucky enough to see an early rehearsal of this group, which took place in a monastery in a strange wilderness district of the city where huge, gated mansions mainly built for the Chinese buyers, are springing up around the monastery compound. The women, accompanied for the rehearsal by two percussionists, were working in an ornate communal building without walls and very young monks crowded in to hear the women rehearse.
Their performance is a passionate litany of biting satire that highlights the threats to Burmese culture, traditional life-style, and environment from business interests, with Chinese influence particularly targeted. The contentious Letpadaung Copper Mine, deforestation and the suspended Myetsone damn project were all targets. I heard that they are determined to perform their show as it is, whatever the censors say.
That Thangyat will be part of the celebrations again after 25 years is a sign of the times — and reveals the opening up of space for freedom of expression in Burma. But the fact that the comeback is being so closely scrutinised by both political and corporate interests illustrates the power of Thangyat to hit where it hurts.
As government pre-censorship is to some extent loosening its grip on arts and entertainment in Burma, as it appears to be, it is interesting to see corporate censorship stepping comfortably into its shoes. And as corporate censorship is a global phenomenon, it is something that artists all over the world, not just here in Burma, are increasingly concerned about.
