HRW: Al Jazeera's Demolition Request Is 'Cowardly Censorship'

The Human Rights Watch Human Rights Watch called the "Cowardly Censorship" requests by Saudi Arabia and other Arab states to disband Al Jazeera network.

Sarah Leah Whitson, HRW Director for Middle East and North Africa, wrote on Twitter: "The request by the United Arab Emirates and Saudi Arabia to expel Qatar is not punished by Qatar alone, punishing millions of Arabs in the region by denying important information reporting. Just an attempt to spread the crazy censorship imposed on its citizens, but this will fail. " Earlier, Reporters Without Borders, a nonprofit organization advocating freedom of the media, condemned the demands of Saudi Arabia and other Arab states to shut down the Al Jazeera network and other media outlets in Qatar.

The Gulf States have today announced a list of thirteen items, including the closure of all media houses that Qatar finances directly or indirectly, including Arabi21, Rassd, Al Araby Al Jadeed, Mekameleen, and Middle East Eye. "We are really concerned about the implications and consequences of such requests if they are ever adopted," said Alexandra El Khazen, Head of Department for the Middle East and North Africa Reporter without Borders.

"We are opposed to any form of censorship and measures that could threaten the diversity of the Arab media world and their pluralism. The Arab media must make room for different attitudes and accept them, rather than introduce repressive measures because of alternative attitudes opposed by certain governments. " Tim Dawson, chairman of the British National Union of Journalists, expressed his "absolute horror" as he said, "a monstrous request," and called on the Saudi administration to withdraw the demands.

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Khazen also expressed concern about the impact of the demands on the employees of the mentioned media. "Some of them may be pressured to give up or decide to do so in order to adhere to the policies of their state, and we are currently investigating this," she added. Acting Director of Al Jazeera English Giles Trendle said he was "stunned by the request to abolish Al Jazeera." "Of course, there have been speeches about this in the past, but there is still a huge shock and surprise to see it literally. It's absurd just as if Germany wanted Britain to turn off the BBC, "he said.

Trendle added that Al Jazeera would continue "his editorial reporting mission from all over the world in a fair and balanced manner". "We call on all governments of the world to respect the freedom of the media. We hope other media organizations will support our calls to defend media freedom, "he added and stressed that requests for the abolition of Al Jazeera have been encouraging since 2011 and the Arab Spring.

"Al Jazeera then reported about the dreams and efforts of the new generation of people. We provided space for the voices of men and women from the Arabian streets. We have reported these protests and given place to different attitudes, indeed we have been the voice of those who are not heard. I think there are some regimes in the region that do not value the variety of attitudes. I think that's the real reason for everything that is happening right now, "Trend says.

Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, Bahrain and Egypt broke diplomatic relations with Qatar on June 5, accusing the country of supporting "terrorism". Qatar denies these charges.

Stronger penalties for Qatar support

Qatar Foreign Minister Shaheed Mohammed bin Abdulrahman Al Thani said the Al Jazeera Network is an "internal issue" and there will be no talks about the fate of a Doha-based media house during the Gulf Crisis. To reduce negative responses, Saudi Arabia, the UAE and Bahrain have taken steps to ban their citizens to express their views against the policies of these states. So the UAE announced that the opposition to the strict measures of this state against Qatar or the expression of solidarity with Qatar would be a criminal offense punishable by a prison sentence of three to 15 years and a minimum globe of 136,000 US dollars, whether the comments were published on social networks or in the media.

And Saudi Arabia and Bahrain have criminalized the expression of solidarity with Qatar. Khazen says the decision to punish citizens is "a huge violation of the freedom of speech and the right to information, which could have serious consequences". Journalists of Al Jazeera are often hit. Egypt has shut down journalist Al Jazeera Arabic Mahmoud Hussein, who is behind the grids 185 days for "throwing false news and receiving cash from foreign governments to ruin the country's reputation".

Al Jazeerini journalists Baher Mohamed and Mohamed Fahmy spent 437 days in Egyptian jail, while Peter Greste was detained for more than a year.

• 23 Jun, 2017
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