Attacks on the Press in 2010 - Committee to Protect Journalists

Middle East and North Africa: Analysisfollowing an executive order from Palestinian Authority PresidentMahmoud Abbas.Palestinian journalists told CPJ that they are routinely denied Israeliissuedpress permits that would enable them to traverse the hundreds ofcheckpoints dotting the West Bank. Orabi said he could recall only onepress permit granted to Wattan TV’s 30 journalists over the 14 years theindependent broadcaster has been in existence. The only exception, hesaid, was a “one-time, three-hour permit” that enabled him to take a flightto the United States. The reason given for the routine rejection of permitapplications, he said, “is always security—no further justification is evergiven.”Fearing reprisals invoked in the name of national security, Orabi said,some journalists engage in self-censorship or partisan reporting. “Manyjournalists are forced to follow the government line, be that the [Fatahled]Palestinian Authority or Hamas, while trying to evade Israel’s variousrestrictions,” he said. “In the process, it’s the journalists and the quality ofthe reporting that are the ultimate victims.”In suppressing dissent, Iranian authoritiesrely on national security laws.Governments also exploit national security grounds to settle scores withcritics and political opponents. In Iran since June 2009 and in Bahrain inthe closing months of 2010, such grounds were used to eliminate coverageof the political opposition.Following the social unrest that erupted after the disputed June 2009presidential elections, Iran mounted a massive crackdown against independentand opposition media. The concerted effort to quell any voicesthat diverged from the government position resulted in the imprisonmentof more than 100 journalists and bloggers in the year and a halfafter the disputed vote. Although many journalists were released afterbeing charged with relatively minor infractions, others faced more seriousantistate charges that carried lengthy prison terms and, in some cases, thedeath penalty.Of the 34 journalists in custody when CPJ conducted its annual prisoncensus on December 1, at least 25 were being held on charges of havingcompromised the national security of the Islamic Republic. “Propagatingagainst the regime” was the most frequently leveled count against227