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Al-Ahram Weekly 2 - 8 September 1999 Issue No. 445 
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Published in Cairo by AL-AHRAM established in 1875 |
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Al-Ahram Weekly 2 - 8 September 1999 Issue No. 445
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| Published in Cairo by AL-AHRAM established in 1875 |
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Egypt Region International Economy Opinion Focus Culture Features Profile Travel Living Sports People Time Out Chronicles Cartoons Letters Press Syndicate appeals to Mubarak
By Shaden ShehabAt an emergency meeting, the Press Syndicate's council welcomed the statements made by President Hosni Mubarak to university students in Alexandria last week, in which he underlined the need for political reform. The council found it "its duty to appeal to the president to give priority, in his directives to responsible authorities, to the revision of laws and legislation that restrict freedoms, guaranteed by the Constitution, such as the freedom to publish and own newspapers and have access to information..," a statement issued by the council said.
"The council believes that the time is due for revising freedom-restricting penalties for publication offences in view of their grave consequences and negative reflection on the freedom of the press and their failure to establish a balance between freedom and responsibility," the statement said.
"The council's demand to replace jail sentences by monetary fines was not a response to the imprisonment of specific journalists but has been a basic demand of journalists in all their conferences and general assemblies," it added.
Two weeks ago, Magdi Hussein, chief editor of Al-Shaab, mouthpiece of the Islamist-oriented Labour Party, journalist Salah Bedewi and cartoonist Essam Hanafi were given two-year jail sentences and fined LE20,000 each. A misdemeanours court found the three guilty of libel for slandering Minister of Agriculture Youssef Wali.
Ibrahim Nafie
Osama El-Ghazali Harb
Yehia Qalash
Members of the syndicate's council visited the journalists in jail while at its Sunday meeting, the council decided on the "continuation of efforts to gain their release and provide them with proper health care."
Moreover, the council approved a report submitted by a council sub-committee headed by Osama El-Ghazali Harb, chief editor of Al-Ahram organisation's Al-Siyassa Al-Dawliya (International Politics), on improving professional legislation. The report dealt with preparations for establishing a committee of legal experts and veteran journalists to draft a press law that punishes publication offences by a fine and not imprisonment. "The committee will start convening on Saturday," said Yehia Qalash, general-secretary of the Press Syndicate and a council member. The results of the committee's work will be submitted later to the council prior to its ratification by the Fourth General Congress of Journalists, added Qalash. No date has been set for the opening of the congress.
Cancelling legal provisions of imprisonment for publication offences highlighted the election programmes of candidates vying for council membership last June. All elected members vowed to press efforts in this direction, especially that four journalists were sent to jail last year.
Since the enactment of Law 93 of 1995, journalists have campaigned for cancelling the imprisonment provisions. Law 93 provided for tough penalties for offending journalists. Following stiff opposition from the Press Syndicate, the law was repealed and another press law was passed in 1996 but it, too, provided for the imprisonment of journalists for publication offences, albeit for a shorter duration. Under this law, libel is punishable by a maximum of one year in jail and/or a fine ranging between LE1,000 and LE5,000. If the target of the offence is a public official or if the issue is related to public duties, the maximum penalty is two years in jail and/or a fine ranging between LE5,000 and LE20,000.
In another development, the chief editor of the independent Al-Naba'a newspaper, Mamdouh Mahran, will be questioned by an investigative committee of the Press Syndicate "for publishing undocumented information and sensational articles that are in contradiction with values and professional standards," a council statement said. The action was in response to a report compiled by the Supreme Press Council, evaluating the performance of newspapers, which found Al-Naba'a guilty of numerous violations.
