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Rights groups warn that rulers across the Middle East are stepping up
efforts to silence political dissent, detaining journalists, shuttering
newspapers and blocking news sites. Egypt added seven sites to its blacklist
last weekend, including Turkey's Hurriyet Daily News, bringing to 103 the
number of its blocked news sites, according the Association for Freedom of
Thought and Expression, a nonprofit watchdog group in Egypt founded by lawyers.
The group said the clampdown constituted "a clear attack on the media"
and was aimed at suppressing opponents and criticism.
The latest crackdown in Egypt started in May when the country's official
news agency reported the government had ordered internet service providers to
block access to 21 news sites, alleging they supported terrorism or were
reporting false news. The association said that so far, the government has
failed "to disclose any judicial or administrative decision to block
sites" and has not even officially announced it is doing so.
News platforms associated with the outlawed Muslim Brotherhood are among
the sites blocked, including Ikhwan Online and Egypt-based Al-Sharq television,
but the clampdown is ranging far beyond Islamist-associated outlets. The
respected investigative news platform Mada Masr, the English-language Daily
News and the Huffington Post's Arab-language edition are being blocked.
Also being blocked is Al Jazeera, the Qatari international broadcaster
that Saudi Arabia has long pressured Doha to curb. Al Jazeera also has
attracted the anger of authorities elsewhere. In early June, Jordan closed Al
Jazeera's bureau in Amman, stripping it of its operating license.
Last week, it emerged that Israel was considering closing the Jerusalem
bureau of Al Jazeera. One of the drivers of the current diplomatic standoff
between Qatar and its neighbors, which has seen Saudi Arabia, the United Arab
Emirates, Yemen and Bahrain impose a blockade on Qatar, is anger over Al
Jazeera's freewheeling reporting outside Qatar. This has been confirmed by Western
and Arab diplomats.
Egypt and Saudi Arabia accuse Al Jazeera of being supportive of
Islamists and not critical enough of Iran. The news outlet's defenders say the
real motivation fueling anger toward Al Jazeera is the fear that it prompts the
Arab publics to question their rulers and encourages dissent, at least beyond
the borders of Qatar.
International reporting on the increasingly restrictive media
environment in the Middle East often focuses on Al Jazeera, but according to
Arab journalists, press freedom in the Middle East is more restricted generally
now than it was even in the years leading up the Arab Spring of 2011.
The Federation of Arab Journalists in May released a 200-page report
surveying the worsening situation in 17 countries, blaming governments, owners
and religious institutions for the curtailing of press freedom and the
intimidation of reporters. Several dozen Egyptian journalists and bloggers are
in jail, either detained pending investigation and trial or sentenced already.
Some analysts lament what they see as a muting of international
criticism of the media crackdowns, arguing that Western governments seem
willing to turn a blind eye to the excesses of authoritarian rulers in the
interest of stability in the region.
A member of the Journalists Union of Turkey holds a placard reading
"Enough!" during a demonstration to mark World Press Freedom Day in
central Istanbul, May 3, 2017.
A member of the Journalists Union of Turkey holds a placard reading
"Enough!" during a demonstration to mark World Press Freedom Day in
central Istanbul, May 3, 2017.
Turkish efforts
One exception has been Turkey. European Union governments have expressed
alarm at what they see as a concerted effort by the government of Recep Tayyip
Erdogan to control journalists.
Most of the criticism has focused on the detention and prosecution of
Turkish journalists and the government's seizure of newspapers and broadcasters
that criticize its policies. The crackdown has expanded dramatically since last
year's attempted coup.
This week, Erdogan dismissed allegations that journalists are being
detained, insisting no one is jailed for journalism. He said on June 18 that
"according to information from our [Justice] Ministry, only two of 177
people who are in prison and declared their profession as journalism have
yellow press cards [officially accrediting them as journalists]. One of those
177 is in prison for murder, while the rest are in because of their ties to
terrorist organizations."
Human rights groups accuse Turkey of jailing more journalists than any
other country in the world. Erdogan's remarks were dismissed as disingenuous by
media advocates, who say the government decides who gets press cards, and not
having one doesn't mean someone isn't a journalist. The government has canceled
dozens of press cards.
"The imprisoned journalists are [in prison] because they practiced
journalism, chased the news, searched for the truth. Anything else is empty
words," said Pinar Türenç, head of the country's Press Council.