Bahrian: Journalist in Faces Prosecution, Travel Ban
TEHRAN (Tasnim) - A Bahrain prosecutor has charged a correspondent for a French media outlet with violating the country’s licensing law for journalists, Human Rights Watch said on Sunday.
The criminal charges against the journalist, Nazeeha Saeed, who has covered Bahrain’s domestic unrest for France 24 since 2009, violate her right to free expression and further undermines media freedom in Bahrain.
The authorities charged Saeed with working for foreign media without a license. United Nations human rights experts have stated that state licensing of journalists inherently violates freedom of expression.
Saeed is also one of 23 people subjected to travel bans since the start of June. They include human rights lawyers and activists, trade union leaders, teachers’ and nurses’ representatives, and the president of the Bahrain chapter of Transparency International.
“Bahrain is making criminals of anyone who criticizes the government’s increasingly repressive policies,” said Joe Stork, deputy Middle East director at Human Rights Watch. “Any government that claims to support press freedom needs to speak out loud and clear in support of Nazeeha Saeed.”
Saeed was only informed of the travel ban at the airport on June 29, when she attempted to leave Bahrain.
She told Human Rights Watch website that she has been unable to challenge the ban because she has not been able to find out the reason for it or by which ministry it was imposed. That would make the travel ban arbitrary.
A public prosecutor charged Saeed, on July 17, with violating article 88 of Bahrain’s press law, which states that correspondents for foreign media can only operate with a license from the Information Affairs Authority. The law requires renewing the license every year, and provides for a fine of 1,000 Bahraini dinars (US$2,650) for non-compliance.
