imprisoned 1997 list

Algeria (2)	Please send appeals to: His Excellency Liamine Zeroual President of the High Council of State The Presidential Palace El Mouradia Algiers, Algeria Fax: 213 2 60 96 18
Djamel Fahassi, Alger Chaîne III Detained: May 7, 1995	State security officials detained Fahassi, a reporter for the government-run French-language radio station Alger Chaîne III, and formerly a contributor to Al-Forqane, a weekly organ of the Islamic Salvation Front (FIS) that was banned in March 1992. Officials have refused to acknowledge his arrest.
Aziz Bouabdallah, Al-Alam *al-Siyassi* Detained: April, 12, 1997	Bouabdallah, a journalist who covered Islamist groups in Algeria for the Arabic-language daily Al-Alam al-Siyassi, was abducted by three armed men from his home in Algiers. The men identified themselves as Algerian security agents and forced Bouabdallah into a waiting car. CPJ later received information that Algerian authorities were holding Bouabdallah in an Algiers detention center. He was reported to have been tortured repeatedly. Authorities have denied any knowledge of his detention.
Azerbaijan (1)	Please send appeals to: His Excellency Heydar Aliyev President of Azerbaijan Baku, Azerbaijan FAX: 994-12- 92-26-63
Savalan Mamedov, Istintag Imprisoned December 22, 1997	On December 22, Salavan Mamedov, editor of the Baku weekly Istintag, was arrested and imprisoned. He was charged with libel (article 121 of the Azerbaijani penal code) against the former Prosecutor of the Lenkoran district, Nazim Tagiev. In a number of articles Mamedov claimed that Tagiev had cooperated with Alikram Gumbatov, who was convicted of treason and attempting to stage an uprising. According to Yeni Nesil, Mamedov was released from police custody on January 23, 1998. Court hearings have not yet been scheduled. Mamedov could serve a sentence of up to five years if he is found guilty.
Burma (8)	Please send appeals to: His Excellency General Than Shwe Prime Minister and Minister of Defense Chairman of the State Peace and Development Council Ministry of Defense Signal Pagoda Road Yangon (Rangoon), Myanmar (Burma) Tel: 87862
U Win Tin Imprisoned: July 4, 1989	U Win Tin, former editor of two daily newspapers and vice-chair of Burma’s Writers Association, was arrested and sentenced to three years’ hard labor—a sentence that was subsequently extended. U Win Tin was active in establishing independent publications during the 1988 student democracy movement, and he also worked closely with imprisoned National League for Democracy leader Daw Aung San Suu Kyi. Authorities extended U Win Tin’s sentence by five more years on March 28, 1996, after they convicted him of smuggling letters describing conditions at Insein prison to Professor Yozo Yokota, the U.N. Special Rapporteur for human rights in Burma. In an October alert, Human Rights Watch cited reports that U Win Tin was seriously ill and perhaps close to death in Rangoon General Hospital. He was apparently transferred to the hospital in early October from Myingyan jail, known to be one of the worst in Burma.
U Maung Maung Lay Ngwe Imprisoned: September 1990	U Maung Maung Lay Ngwe was arrested and charged with writing and distributing publications that "make people lose respect for the government." The publications were titled, collectively, Pe-Tin-Tan. In 1997, CPJ was unable to obtain new information on his status.
U Myo Myint Nyein, U Sein Hlaing, What’s Happening Imprisoned: September 1990	U Myo Myint Nyein and U Sein Hlaing were arrested for contributing to the preparation, planning, and publication of the satirical news magazine What’s Happening, which the Burmese government claims is anti-government propaganda. They were sentenced to seven years in prison. On March 28, 1996, they were among 21 prisoners tried inside Insein Prison and given an additional seven years sentence under the Emergency Provisions Act for smuggling letters describing prison conditions to Professor Yozo Yokota, the U.N. Special Rapporteur for human rights in Burma. In 1997, CPJ was unable to obtain new information on their case.
Daw San San Nwe U Sein Hla Oo Imprisoned: August 5, 1994	Dissident writer Daw San San Nwe and journalist U Sein Hla Oo were arrested on charges of spreading information damaging to the state and contacting anti-government groups. San San Nwe and Sein Hla Oo were sentenced on October 6, 1994 to 10 years and seven years in prison, respectively. Three other dissidents, including a former UNICEF worker, were sentenced to between 7 and 15 years in prison on similar charges. Officials said the five had "fabricated and sent anti-government reports to some diplomats in foreign embassies, foreign radio stations, and visiting foreign journalists." San San Nwe allegedly met two French reporters visiting Burma in April 1993 and appeared in a video they produced to spread propaganda about the government. According to reports citing Burmese officials, authorities seized confidential Energy Ministry data, as well as documents and compact discs containing anti-government materials from one of the dissidents. Both U Sein Hla Oo and Daw San San Nwe were previously imprisoned for their involvement in the National League for Democracy, Burma’s main pro-democracy party. As of December 1994, all five were being held at the Insein Prison in Rangoon. In 1997, CPJ was unable to obtain new information on their case.
Ma Myat Mo Mo Tun Imprisoned: 1994	The daughter of imprisoned dissident Daw San San Nwe, Ma Myat Mo Mo Tun, was arrested in 1994 and sentenced to seven years in prison for spreading information injurious to the state. She is alleged to have recorded "defamatory letters and documents," made contact with "illegal" groups and sent anti- government articles to a journal published by an expatriate group. In 1997, CPJ was unable to obtain new information on her case.
Ye Htut Imprisoned: September 27, 1995	Ye Htut was arrested on charges of sending fabricated news abroad to Burmese dissidents and opposition media. Among the organizations to which Ye Htut allegedly confessed sending reports was the Thailand-based Burma Information Group (BIG), which publishes the human rights newsletter The Irrawaddy. Burma’s official media claimed that BIG had presented a false picture of the country to foreign governments and human rights organizations. He was sentenced to seven years in prison. In 1997, CPJ was unable to obtain new information on his status.
Cameroon (1)	Please send appeals to: His Excellency Paul Biya President of the Republic of Cameroon Presidential Palace Yaoundé, Cameroon Fax: 237-221-699
Evariste Menouga, Hebdo Imprisoned: March 20, 1997	Menouga, editor in chief of the independent newspaper Hebdo, was convicted of "inciting rebellion within the army" and "spreading false news," and remanded to the central prison in Keondengui. Menouga was arrested in Yaounde after a warrant was issued against him on March 13 by Defense Minister Philippe Menye. The arrest was in connection with an article titled "Rebellion in the Army" published in the March 12 issue of Hebdo. Menouga was scheduled for a court hearing on April 17.
China (15)	Please send appeals to: President Jiang Zemin Guowuyuan 9 Xihuangcheng Genbeijie Beijing, People’s Republic of China
Ji Kunxing, Shang Jingzhong, Shi Qing, Yu Anmin, Pioneers Tried: September 1989	Ji, Shang, Shi, and Yu were tried in Kunming on charges of "fomenting a counter-revolutionary plot." They had published an underground magazine called Pioneers, circulated anti-government leaflets, and put up anti-government posters. Though they were tried in 1989, their sentences have never been publicized. According to reports from 1994, Ji was sentenced in 1991 and the others were still being detained. In 1997, CPJ was unable to obtain new information on this case.
Chen Yanbin, Tielu Imprisoned: Late 1990	Chen, a former University student, was arrested in late 1990 and sentenced to 15 years in prison and four years without political rights after his release. Together with Zhang Yafei, he had produced an unofficial magazine called Tielu (Iron Currents) about the 1989 Tiananmen Square massacre. Several hundred mimeographed copies of the magazine were distributed. The government termed the publication "reactionary" and charged Chen with dissemination of counter-revolutionary propaganda and incitement.
Zhang Yafei, Tielu Imprisoned: September 1990	Zhang, a former student at Beifang Communications University, was arrested and charged with dissemination of counterrevolutionary propaganda and incitement. In March 1991, he was sentenced to 11 years in prison and two years without political rights after his release. Zhang edited an unofficial magazine called Tielu (Iron Currents) about the 1989 crackdown at Tiananmen Square.
Wu Shishen, Xinhua News Agency Imprisoned: October or November 1992	Arrested in the fall of 1992, Wu, a Xinhua News Agency reporter, received a life sentence in August 1993 for allegedly providing a Hong Kong journalist with a "state-classified" advance copy of President Jiang Zemin’s 14th Party Congress address.
Gao Yu, free-lancer Imprisoned: October 2, 1993	Gao was detained two days before she was to depart for the United States to start a one-year research fellowship at Columbia University’s Graduate School of Journalism. On November 10, 1994, she was tried without counsel and sentenced to six years in prison for "leaking state secrets" about China’s structural reforms in articles for the pro-Beijing Hong Kong magazine Mirror Monthly. Gao had previously been jailed for 14 months following the June 1989 Tiananmen Square demonstrations and released in August 1990 after showing symptoms of a heart condition. In January 1997, Chinese authorities rejected an appeal for bail on medical grounds. On May 3, 1997, Gao Yu was awarded the World Press Freedom Prize by the United Nations Educational, Scientific, and Cultural Organization (UNESCO). The Chinese government attacked UNESCO and condemned its director general, Federico Mayor, for supporting the presentation of the award to Gao Yu.
Ma Tao, China Health Education News Sentenced: August 1993	Ma, editor of China Health Education News, received a six-year prison term for allegedly helping Xinhua News Agency reporter Wu Shishen provide a Hong Kong journalist with President Jiang Zemin’s "state-classified" 14th Party Congress address. According to the Associated Press, Ma is believed to be Wu’s wife.
Wang Dan Imprisoned: May 21, 1995	Wang, a former student leader, pro-democracy activist, and frequent contributor to overseas publications, was detained at an undisclosed location. On October 30, 1996, he was sentenced to 11 years in prison for conspiring to subvert the government. Wang’s offenses consisted of publishing articles in the overseas press that were deemed objectionable by Beijing and receiving donations from overseas human rights groups. Foreign reporters were barred from the courtroom during his trial, and the domestic press was prohibited from reporting on the trial. Following the denial of his appeal on November 10, Wang was sent to a prison in remote Jinnzhou, in Liaoning province, 500 kilometers northeast of Beijing. Wang had previously been jailed for three-and-a-half years after he lead pro-democracy protests in Tiananmen Square in 1989.
Bai Weiji, Zhao Lei Arrested: April 1993 Sentenced: May 1993	Bai, who once worked for the Chinese Foreign Ministry, monitoring foreign news and writing news summaries, was sentenced in May 1993 to ten years in prison for passing information and leaking national secrets to Lena Sun, a correspondent for the Washington Post. His appeal was rejected in July 1993. His wife, Zhao Lei, and two friends were also arrested for involvement in this case. Bai organized a march of Foreign Ministry colleagues in June 1989 and reportedly lost his job as a result. Zhao was working as a translator for Lena Sun when she was tried in secret and sentenced to six years in prison for "illegally providing national secrets to a foreigner," said to be Lena Sun.
Khang Yuchun Sentenced: December 1994	Khang was tried with 16 others on charges of being members of counter-revolutionary organizations, most notably the Chinese Progressive Alliance, the Liberal Democratic Party of China and the Free Labor Union of China. Among the accusations against him was that he commissioned people to write articles and set up Freedom Forum, the magazine of the Chinese Progressive Alliance. He was sentenced in December 1994, to 12 years in prison for "organizing and leading a counter-revolutionary group" and an additional seven year imprisonment for "counter-revolutionary propaganda."
Liu Jingsheng, Tansuo Tried: 1994	Liu, a former writer and co-editor for the pro-democracy journal Tansuo, was sentenced to 15 years in prison for "counterrevolutionary" activities after being tried secretly in July 1994. Liu was arrested in May 1992 and charged with being a member of labor and pro-democracy groups, including the Liberal Democratic Party of China, Free Labor Union of China, and the Chinese Progressive Alliance. Court documents stated Liu was involved in organizing and leading anti-government and pro-democracy activities. Prosecutors also accused him and other dissidents who were tried on similar charges of writing and printing political leaflets that were distributed in June 1992, during the third anniversary of the Tiananmen Square demonstrations.
Wang Ming Arrested: November 1996	Wang was sentenced to three years re-education through labor for writing "Declarations on Citizens’ Freedom of Speech," an open letter which called on the government to release dissidents Wei Jingsheng and Wang Dan. He is being held in Xishanping Reeducation Brigade in Sichuan Province.
Cuba (2)	Please send appeals to: His Excellency Fidel Castro Ruz President of Cuba c/o Permanent Mission of Cuba to the United Nations 315 Lexington Avenue New York, NY 10016 United States Fax: (212)779-1697
Lorenzo Páez Nuñez, Buro de Prensa Independiente de Cuba Imprisoned: July 10, 1997	Páez was sentenced to 18 months in prison for defaming the national police. He was detained because of his report about a police officer who allegedly killed a young man during harvest celebrations in Pinar del Río. Páez was convicted after a one-day trial during which he was not permitted legal assistance. On December 19, CPJ sent a letter to the Cuban authorities, asking for information on Páez’s legal status. No reply was received. On January 20, CPJ sent a letter asking that Páez be released.
Bernardo Arévalo Padrón, *Línea Sur 3* Imprisoned: November 18, 1997	On October 31, Arévalo was sentenced to six years in prison by the Provincial Chamber of the Court of Aguada de Pasajeros, a town in the province of Cienfuegos. He was convicted on the charge of "lack of respect" for Fidel Castro and Carlos Lage, a member of the Cuban State Council. The conviction stems from a story Arévalo published on the leaders’ privileges. He reported that a helicopter transported meat from a farm in Aguada de Pasajeros to Havana, while the Aguada de Pasajeros inhabitants do not have enough to eat. Arévalo was detained and jailed on November 18. He is serving his sentence in Ariza prison in Cienfuegos, where Arévalo shares a filthy cell with common criminals. On November 28, the Aguada de Pasajeros Court rejected Arévalo’s petition to review the conviction. On December 19, CPJ wrote a letter to Cuban authorities inquiring about the legal status of Arévalo. No reply was received. On January 20, CPJ sent a letter calling for Arévalo’s release.
Eritrea (1)	Please send appeals to: His Excellency Issaias Afewerki President of Eritrea Asmara, Eritrea Fax: 291-1-125123
Ruth Simon, Agence France-Presse Imprisoned: April 25	Simon, an Eritrean national who works as a correspondent for the Agence France-Presse news agency, was arrested and charged with endangering state secuirty. In a story she filed the day before, she had quoted President Issaias Afewerki as saying Eritrean troops were fighting alongside rebels in neighboring Sudan. At press time, Simon remained in detention. Her colleagues have been denied visitation. She is allowed visits from her family members only. In a letter to Afewerki, CPJ called for Simon’s immediate and unconditional release. According to the Eritrean foreign ministry, Simon has been charged under a press law which states that "any journalist who disinforms the public or any institution is liable to the damage he/she may cause as a result."
Ethiopia (16)	Please send appeals to: His Excellency Prime Minister Meles Zenawi Office of the Prime Minister Addis Ababa, Ethiopia Fax: 251-1-552-030 (c/o Ministry of Foreign Affairs)
Abay Hailu, Wolafen Detained: February 1997	Abay was sentenced to one year in prison on November 25. He had been in detention since February. At press time, CPJ learned that Abay had died in custody on February 13, 1998.
Sisay Negussie, Agere Imprisoned: March 1997	Sisay appeared before court on April 7, and was detained at Kerchele prison for failing to present a bail guarantor of approximately US$600. At press time, CPJ had no further information about this case.
Samson Seyoum, Tequami and Agere Imprisoned: April 18, 1997	Samson, former editor in chief of Agere and Tequami, was sentenced to an undisclosed prison term, on charges of "inciting war and spreading Islamic Fundamentalism," for articles he had published in Agere. Detained before the sentencing and unable to produce the bail of approximately US$730, Samson had just completed an 18-month prison sentence which he had begun in December 1995 after his conviction on charges of libel for an article in Tequami.
Tolera Tessema, Mede Welabu Imprisoned: April 23, 1997	Tolera, deputy editor in chief of Mede Welabu, was sentenced to a year in prison. At press time, CPJ had no further information on this case.
Nega Tariku, Quiyit Imprisoned: September 3, 1997	Nega, a reporter with Quiyit magazine, was arrested, detained, and charged with publishing pornography. His whereabouts are unknown.
Sisay Agena, Ethiop Imprisoned: September 8, 1997	Sisay, publisher of Ethiop, was arrested on September 8 on as yet unknown charges, and detained. He was released on bail on September 10, but on September 16 had been taken back into custody and moved from the Region 14 Criminal Investigation Office to the Central Criminal Investigation Office Prison.
Tamrat Serbessa, Wenchif Admassu Tesfaye, Wenchif Imprisoned: October 14, 1997	Tamrat, editor in chief of Wenchif, and Admassu, the paper’s deputy editor, were detained at the Central Criminal Investigation Office Prison. The two journalists are each charged on five counts, one of which is libel against President Negasso Gidada. This charge stemmed from a report in Wenchif that claimed the president was drunk at a gathering of Oromos.
Tesfaye Deressa, Urjii Solomon Nemera, Urjii Imprisoned: October 16, 1997	Tesfaye, editor in chief of the Urjii newspaper, and Solomon, the paper’s deputy editor, were abducted from a tea room near Urjii's offices. The journalists were first detained at the Central Criminal Investigation Office Prison and were later taken to a district police prison. The two were held on charges related to a report in Urjii about the recent killing of alleged Oromo Liberation Front (OLF) members in the Mekanissa area. The article contradicted the government media’s version of the same story. Tesfaye and Solomon appeared three times before a district court but were given new appointments each time because of requests by police for more time to continue their investigation. After the journalists’ court appearance on December 12, police said they had concluded their investigation but were awaiting the prosecutor’s decision as to bail. However, no decision had been made when Tesfaye and Solomon appeared again in court on December 19. They were scheduled for another court appearance on January 9.
Garoma Bekele, Urjii Imprisoned: October 27, 1997	Garoma, publisher of the newspaper Urjii, was detained on suspicion of being a member of the outlawed Oromo Liberation Front (OLF). Garoma is being held at the Central Investigation Office Prison along with others who have been detained for their alleged connection to a series of OLF bomb attacks in Addis Ababa, Dire Dawa, and Harar. On October 31, Garoma appeared in court and made an appeal for release on bail, but was denied by the prosecutor. He was given a new court appointment for January 13.
Fekadu Mahtemwork Imprisoned: October 28, 1997	Fekadu, a distributor of private newspapers, was detained at the Central Criminal Investigation Bureau prison. He was given a court appointment for a week later but has not yet appeared. The charges against him are not known.
Garedew Demisse, Wenchif Imprisoned: October 31, 1997	Garedew appeared in court on charges of false information regarding a number of stories in Wenchif. The journalist was served a trial date of two weeks later. He was detained on October 28 at the Central Criminal Investigation Office Prison.
Iskinder Nega, Wenchif Imprisoned: December 6, 1997	Iskinder, owner and publisher of Wenchif, was detained at the Central Criminal Investigation Office Prison, and charged with reporting false information. He was later moved to Wereda 9 Police Station.
Waqshum Bassa, Urjii Alemu Tolessa, Urjii Imprisoned: December 23, 1997	Waqshum and Alemu were called in for questioning and detained at the Central Criminal Investigation Office. After properly registering at the Press Licensing Office of the Ministry of Information and Culture, the two had taken over publishing the Urjii newspaper. The paper’s previous editors, Solomon Nemera and Tesfaye Deressa, were arrested on October 16 and are still in detention. Alemu and Waqshum were ordered to appear in court on January 9, 1998. The status of their trial is unknown.
Indonesia (2)	Please send appeals to: His Excellency Suharto Office of the President Istana Merdeka Jakarta, Indonesia Fax: 62-21-345-2685
Andi Syahputra Sentenced: April 1997	Syahputra, who manages the printing house that produces the Suara Independen magazine, was sentenced to 30 months in prison on charges of defaming President Suharto. The magazine published an article titled "Suharto in the Process of Becoming a Naked King" in October 1996. Chief Judge Marsel Buchari of the South Jakarta District Court ruled that the article had "clearly" shown intent to defame Suharto. Syahputra was sentenced several months after being arrested in a raid of the printing house on October 28, 1996, when police confiscated 5,000 copies of the issue containing the article. They also arrested Nasrul, a press operator. After the two were taken into custody at a South Jakarta police station, security forces searched Syahputra’s home. Syahputra and Nasrul were charged with defaming the president. Syahputra is a member of Indonesia’s only independent journalists union, the Alliance of Independent Journalists (AJI). These actions were part of the government’s suppression of Suara Independen, published by the Melbourne-based Society of Indonesian Alternative Media, and its predecessor, Independen, published by AJI.
Adnan Beuransyah, Serambi Indonesia Imprisoned: August 16, 1990	Beuransyah, a journalist with the newspaper Serambi Indonesia, was arrested. He was tried and convicted in March 1991 in Banda Aceh on charges of subversion and sentenced to eight years in prison.
Iran (2)	Please send appeals to: His Excellency Mohammed Khatemi President of the Islamic Republic of Iran The Presidency, Palestine Avenue Azerbaijan Intersection Tehran, Islamic Republic of Iran Telex: 214231 MITI IR or 213113 PRIM IR Fax: 98 21 674790 (via Foreign Affairs; ask for fax to be forwarded)
Faraj Sarkoohi, Adineh Imprisoned: January 27, 1997	Sarkoohi, editor in chief of the monthly literary magazine Adineh, was arrested by Iranian authorities and in September 1997, sentenced to one year in prison for "slandering the Islamic Republic," a charge which stemmed from a letter he smuggled out of Iran in January describing his detention and torture at the hands of Iranian authorities in 1996. Previously, in 1994, Sarkoohi had been one of 134 writers and intellectuals who petitioned the Iranian government to end censorship and launch official efforts to foster greater freedom of expression.
Morteza Firouzi, Iran News Imprisoned: November 9, 1997	The official Iranian daily Joumhouri Islami reported that Firouzi, editor in chief of the English-language daily Iran News, was arrested on charges of espionage. Prior to Joumhouri Islami’s announcement, Firouzi had been rumored "disappeared" for several months, since about the time of the presidential election in May. Authorities have provided no further details about his case, but CPJ has received reports that Firouzi’s arrest was related to articles published in Iran News calling for the release of foreign nationals from Iranian prisons, and for warmer relations with the United States. The charge of espionage is frequently brought against individuals viewed as threats to the regime. The charge has also been used by political factions within the government to attack their opponents’ allies.
Iraq (1)	Please send appeals to: President Saddam Hussein c/o Iraqi Mission to the United Nations 14 East 79th Street New York, NY 10021 United States
Aziz al-Syed Jasim, Al-Ghad, Al-Thawra Imprisoned: April 18, 1991	Jasim, editor of Al-Ghad magazine and former editor of the official daily Al-Thawra, was taken into custody at a secret police station in Baghdad and has not been heard from since. Reports suggest that his refusal to write a book about Iraqi President Saddam Hussein precipitated his arrest. Government officials deny that he is in prison.
Kuwait (7)	Please send appeals to: His Highness Shaikh Sa’ad al-’Abdallah al-Sabah, Crown Prince and Prime Minister Al-Diwan al-Amiri Al-Safat Kuwait City, Kuwait Telegrams to: His Highness Shaikh Sa’ad al-’Abdallah al-Sabah, Kuwait City, Kuwait Fax: 965-243-0121
Ibtisam Berto Sulaiman al-Dakhil Usamah Suhail Abdallah Hussein Abd al-Rahman Muhammad Asad al-Husseini Ahmad Abd Mustafa Sentenced: June 1991	The four journalists were given life sentences for working for the Iraqi occupation newspaper Al-Nida. They were taken into custody after Kuwait’s liberation and charged with collaboration. The trials, which began on May 19, 1991, in martial-law courts, failed to comply with international standards of justice. The defendants were reportedly tortured during their interrogations. Their defense—that they were coerced to work for the Iraqi newspaper—was not rebutted by prosecutors. On June 16, 1991, the journalists were sentenced to death. Ten days later all martial-law death sentences were commuted to life terms, following international protests.
Nawwaf Izzedin al-Khatib Sentenced: June 20, 1992	Al-Khatib, a Palestinian journalist, was convicted of having worked for the Iraqi occupation newspaper Al-Nida and sentenced by the State Security Court to 10 years in prison. The court also fined him KD2000 and ordered that he be expelled from the country upon termination of his sentences.
Mufid Mustafa Abd al-Rahim Ghazi Alam al-Dine Sentenced: July 28, 1992	The State Security Court convicted Abd al-Rahim and Alam al-Dine of working for the Iraqi occupation newspaper Al-Nida. Abd al-Rahim, a Palestinian, and Alam al-Dine, a Jordanian citizen and former editor at the Kuwait News Agency (KUNA), were sentenced to 10 years in prison. Alam al-Dine had only worked a total of 12 hours for Al-Nida. The court also fined each of the two men KD2000 and ordered that they be expelled from the country upon termination of their sentences. Abd al Rahim, who is in his sixties, suffers from paralysis in one of his hands—the result of torture at the hands of Kuwaiti authorities. Alam al-Dine, who is reported to be in his late fifties, is said to suffer from a serious heart condition.
Malaysia (1)	Please send appeals to: His Excellency Dato’ Seri Dr. Mahathir Mohamad Prime Minister and Minister of Home Affairs Jabatan Perdana Menteri Jalan Dato’ Onn Kuala Lumpur 50502 Malaysia Fax: 60-3-298-4172; 60-3-255-6264
Nasiruddin Ali, Karya One Imprisoned: May 6, 1996	Nasiruddin, a director of the publishing firm Karya One, which published four magazines linked to the banned Islamic movement al-Arqam—Tatih, O.K!, Ayu, and Dunia Baru—was arrested and imprisoned at the Kemunting Detention Center near Ipoh, 25 miles north of Kuala Lumpur. The magazines were suspended on June 4, 1996. Authorities detained Ali for the 60-day period allowed under section 73(1) of the Internal Security Act (ISA), then on July 7 invoked section 8 of the ISA, which allows up to two years’ imprisonment without trial. The charges against Nasiruddin have never been made public. However, the pro-government daily New Straits Times reported in May 1996 that Nasiruddin had been arrested along with three other Al-Arqam members for attempting to revive the activities of the sect, which the government banned in 1994 for allegedly deviating from true Islamic teachings.
Nigeria (17)	Please send appeals to: General Sani Abacha Chairman of the Provisional Ruling Council and Commander in Chief of the Armed Forces State House Abuja Federal Capital Territory, Nigeria Fax: 234-95-232-138
Kunle Ajibade, TheNews Imprisoned: May 5, 1995	Police arrested Ajibade, editor in chief of the daily TheNews, and demanded to know the source of the articles "No One Guilty: The Commission of Inquiry Presents an Empty File Regarding Suspects in the Coup d’Etat." They held him because he refused to divulge the whereabouts of his colleague Dapo Olorunyomi, who went underground. In July 1995, a special military tribunal held a secret trial for Ajibade and George Mbah of Tell Magazine (see below), charging them as accessories to treasonable felony and sentencing them to prison terms of undisclosed length. On October 1, 1995, Nigeria’s Independence Day, the Provisional Ruling Council amended the sentence to 15 years in prison. Ajibade is in Makurdi Prison, Benue State.
Christine Anyanwu, The Sunday Magazine Imprisoned: May 31, 1995	Anyanwu, publisher and editor in chief of The Sunday Magazine, was arrested for her reports on an alleged coup plot in March. In July 1995, a special military tribunal secretly tried Anyanwu, along with Ben Charles Obi, editor of Weekend Classique. [See below] Both got life sentences. On October 1, 1995, Nigeria’s Independence Day, the Provisional Ruling Council commuted their sentences to 15 years in prison. Anyanwu and Obi have since been transferred to a prison in Bama, northeastern Nigeria, notorious for its poor conditions. On four occasions, CPJ protested the arrests in letters to the Abacha government and called for the journalists’ immediate and unconditional release. In October, Anyanwu was named a 1997 International Press Freedom awardee by CPJ. At the end of 1997, she was being held at Kadu Prison in Kaduna State.
George Mbah, Tell Imprisoned: May 5, 1995	Soldiers arrested Mbah, assistant editor of Tell, for contributing to a report about a military officer who died during interrogation about his involvement in an alleged coup plot. In July 1995, a special military tribunal tried Mbah and Kunle Ajibade of TheNews, charging them with being accessories to treasonable felony. They were sentenced to life in prison. On October 1, 1995, Nigeria’s Independence Day, the Provisional Ruling Council commuted their sentences to 15 years in prison. Mbah and Ajibade have since been transferred to a prison in Bama, northeastern Nigeria, notorious for its poor conditions. There are reports that Mbah, who suffers from epilepsy, is consistently denied his medication. On four occasions, CPJ protested the arrests in letters to the Abacha government and called for the journalists’ immediate and unconditional release. CPJ also demanded that Mbah receive prompt and proper medical care. At the end of 1997, Mbah was being held at Biu Prison in Borno State.
Charles Ben Obi, Weekend Classique Imprisoned: May 1, 1995	Obi, editor of the weekly newsmagazine Weekend Classique, was arrested for his reports on an alleged attempted coup in March 1995. In July 1995, a special military tribunal tried Obi and Christine Anyanwu of The Sunday Magazine. (See above) Both received life sentences. On October 1, 1995, Nigeria’s Independence Day, the Provisional Ruling Council commuted their sentences to 15 years in prison. Obi was transferred to a prison in northeastern Nigeria notorious for its poor conditions. On four occasions, CPJ has protested his arrest in letters to the Abacha government and called for his immediate and unconditional release. At the end of 1997, Obi was being held at Agodi Prison in Ibadan (Oyo State).
Jude Sinnee, newspaper vendor Imprisoned: March 1, 1996	Armed agents of the Rivers State Internal Security Task Force arrested Sinnee, a newspaper vendor in Bori, an Ogoni settlement in Rivers State, at his newsstand. The agents also seized 500 copies of various publications and the vendor’s accumulated sales of the day. They then transported Sinnee to the Internal Security Task Force’s office at Kpor, near Bori, where he is being held incommunicado. Sinnee, who is disabled, went on a hunger strike to protest his detention.
Okina Deesor, Radio Rivers Imprisoned: July 31, 1996	Deesor, a producer with Radio Rivers in the state of Rivers, was arrested and detained at the Government House Cell prison, reportedly without food or water. On August 3, 1996, he was transferred to the Mobile Police Headquarters in Port Harcourt. According to Maj. Obi Umabi, who ordered the arrest, Deesor’s detention was in connection with the July 18, 1996, Radio Rivers broadcast of the national anthem of the Ogoni people. In a letter to Gen. Sani Abacha, CPJ denounced Deesor’s continued detention and asked for his immediate and unconditional release. At the end of 1997, Deesor was still detained by the Rivers State Internal Task Force in Kpor.
Moshood Fayemiwo, Razor Imprisoned: February 1, 1997	Fayemiwo, publisher of the now-defunct weekly Razor, was arrested and detained at the Directorate of Military Intelligence (DMI) in Lagos. Fayemiwo, who had been temporarily living in exile in Cotonou, Benin, was kidnapped by Nigerian security agents and returned to Lagos. Fayemiwo was reportedly tortured and his already poor health was deteriorating when he was imprisoned.
Mohammed Adamu, African Concord Imprisoned: July 27, 1997	Adamu, the Abuja correspondent of African Concord magazine, was arrested by three security agents at his Abuja residence. The agents did not give a reason for the arrest, but informed Adamu that he was being "invited for a chat." Friends believed Adamu’s arrest was in connection with the July 14 African Concord cover story titled "Ali Mustapha: Ruthless Man Behind Abacha." In a letter to Gen. Sani Abacha, CPJ called for Adamu’s immediate and unconditional release.
Soji Omotunde, African Concord Imprisoned: October 25, 1997	Omotunde, editor of the African Concord, was abducted by two security agents as he was driving along a street in Ikeja, in mainland Lagos. The agents tied, gagged, and bundled him into their car. He was driven to an unknown location. At the end of the year, Omotunde was still being detained, reportedly in the town of Abuja.
Adetokunbo Fakeye, PM News Imprisoned: November 4	Fakeye, the defense correspondent of PM News, disappeared while on assignment at Army Defense Headquarters in Lagos. Staffers at PM News said that Fakeye was detained at the Defense Headquarters. No reason was given for the journalist’s detention.
Jenkins Alumona, TheNEWS Imprisoned: November 8	Three plainclothes operatives of the State Security Service (SSS) arrested Alumona, editor of TheNEWS magazine, on the premises of the Nigerian Television Authority (NTA), located on Victoria Island, Lagos. A female member of the security team approached Alumona and escorted him out of the NTA offices. Her colleagues then placed him in one of two waiting vehicles and drove him to the State Security Services detention camp in Abuja. Alumona was released on December 31.
Onome Osifo-Whiskey, Tell Imprisoned: November 10, 1997	Osifo-Whiskey, managing editor of Tell magazine, was arrested by officials of the Directorate of Military Intelligence as he was on his way home from church with his family. His whereabouts and the reason for his arrest are unknown.
Akin Adesokan, Post Express Imprisoned: November 12, 1997	Adesokan, a reporter with the Post Express newspaper, was arrested by State Security Service (SSS) officers on November 12, at the Nigeria-Benin border. He was returning to Lagos from Austria, where, as an author and member of the Association of Nigerian Authors, he had attended a four-month writer-in-residence program. The security officers apparently objected to photographs of dissidents such as Ken Saro-Wiwa that Adesokan had in his possession. Adesokan was held at the State Security Service (SSS) Detention Camp, in Ikoyi, Lagos. Adesokan was released on December 31.
Rafiu Salau, TheNews/Tempo/PM News Group Imprisoned: November 14, 1997	Salau, administration manager of TheNews/Tempo/PM News group, was arrested and detained at the Directorate of Military Intelligence (DMI) in Apapa, Lagos, on November 18. Salau had gone to the offices of the DMI to check on his colleague Adetokunbo Fakeye. Fakeye, defense reporter for PM News, who had been imprisoned since October 25, was later released without charge. Salau remains in detention at DMI.
Babafemi Ojudu, TheNews/Tempo/PM News Group Imprisoned: November 17, 1997	Operatives of the State Security Service arrested Ojudu, managing editor of TheNews/TEMPO/PM News group, upon his return to Lagos from Nairobi, Kenya, where he had taken part in a seminar organized by the Freedom Forum. He is being held at the Ikoyi prison. Although authorities have given no reason for his imprisonment, it follows a pattern of harassment of the publishing group, which has resulted in the arrests of several other journalists affiliated with the group. In a letter to Gen. Sani Abacha, CPJ protested the November arrests of Ojudu and other journalists affiliated with the publishing group, and called for an end to the systematic censorship of the group’s publications.
Ben Adaji, TheNews Imprisoned: December 4, 1997	Adaji, Taraba State correspondent for TheNews magazine, was arrested by state security officers in Jalingo. He is being held at an undisclosed location. Security officers had launched a full-scale manhunt for Adaji. He was wanted in connection with a story titled "War in Taraba," which he wrote in the October 27 edition of the TheNews. The story detailed the build-up and outbreak of a factional conflict in the Takum district of Taraba State and the roles of some military officers in this conflict.
Niran Malaolu, The Diet Imprisoned: December 28, 1997	Niran Malaolu, editor of the daily newspaper The Diet, was arrested December 28 by Directorate of Military Intelligence (DMI) officers at the newspaper’s editorial offices. He was transported to Military Intelligence Headquarters in Apapa, Lagos, where he is being held incommunicado.
Pakistan (2)	Please send appeals to: His Excellency Muhammad Nawaz Sharif Prime Minister of Pakistan Office of the Prime Minister Islamabad, Pakistan Fax: 92-51-920-1835
Irfanul Haq, Iftikhar Adil Lashkar Sentenced: December 26, 1997	The Baluchistan High Court in Quetta sentenced sub-editor Irfanul Haq and printer/publisher Iftikhar Adil of the Lahore-based Urdu-language evening newspaper Lashkar to six months in prison for inaccurate reporting. Despite their written apologies, the two journalists were convicted after publishing a report on the alleged theft of court records. The journalists were also fined Rs. 5000 (US$109). On January 12, 1998, Iftikhar Adil was released from prison after the Baluchistan High Court accepted his appeal and said that the days he spent in jail were adequate for his punishment. Haq was released a few days later.
Peru (4)	Please send appeals to: His Excellency Alberto Fujimori President of the Republic of Peru Palacio de Gobierno Lima 1, Peru Fax: 51-14-266-770
Javier Tuanama Valera, Hechos Imprisoned: October 16, 1990	Tuanama, editor in chief of the magazine Hechos, was sentenced to 10 years in prison by a "faceless" judge from the Superior Court of Lambayeque. He was first detained on October 16, 1990, and charged with having links to the guerrilla group Revolutionary Movement Tupac Amaru (MRTA). He was found not guilty of the charges in two trials held in 1994. He was subsequently released but arrested again soon after. Under the Repentance Law, which allows terrorists to turn themselves in and inform on former comrades, a former member of the MRTA confessed that Tuanama had recruited him into the MRTA. CPJ protested his November 7, 1994, conviction in a trial that fell far below international standards of due process. In June 1995, one of his sisters complained that Tuanama’s medical condition seriously worsened as he had no access to specialized medical care his arthritis required. In April 1996, he was transferred to the Huacariz prison in Cajamarca. Tuanama appealed the sentence. The Oversight Commission (Comisión de Indultos) is currently reviewing the case. The Oversight Commission was created by the government of Alberto Fujimori to examine cases of those convicted under Peru’s anti-terrorism laws. CPJ inquired about Tuanama’s legal status in a December 22, 1997, letter, to which the Peruvian authorities did not reply.
Hermes Rivera Guerrero, Radio Oriental Imprisoned: May 8, 1992	Rivera, a reporter for Radio Oriental, in the province of Jaén in the Andean department of Cajamarca, was sentenced to 20 years in prison on May 13, 1994, for alleged terrorist activity. In his defense, Rivera said policeman Idelfonso Ugarte Valdivia arrested him arbitrarily on May 8, 1992, and brought the false charges against him. Rivera’s wife, Dilsia Miranda, also accused the policeman of demanding $500 for the release of her husband and making uninvited sexual advances. When she refused to cooperate, Miranda said, Ugarte apparently falsified evidence to show Rivera’s participation in terrorist attacks in the area. On January 26, 1995, Rivera, who was being held at the Picsi prison in the city of Chiclayo, sewed his mouth closed with thread and began a hunger strike in protest of the ratification of his sentence. He ended his hunger strike three weeks later. On March 7, his defense lawyer presented an appeal for review of his case before the Supreme Court of Peru. On September 5, 1995, the Supreme Court revoked the 20-year prison sentence and ordered a retrial. CPJ sent a letter of inquiry on December 22, but Peruvian authorities did not provide any information on Rivera’s legal status.
Augusto Ernesto Llosa Giraldo, El Casmeno, Radio Casma Imprisoned: February 14, 1995	Llosa, editor in chief of the newspaper El Casmeno and a reporter with Radio Casma, was arrested in the northern city of Casma and charged with involvement in a 1986 terrorist incident in Cuzco, where he was staying in a hotel at the time. Police raided his home and confiscated several documents, including National Association of Journalists (ANP) posters urging the release of several detained journalists, and an issue of ANP’s newsletter. A secret tribunal of the Fifth Criminal Chamber of the Superior Court of Cuzco convicted him of involvement in the terrorist incident, and on August 10, 1996, he was sentenced to six years in prison. Three weeks after the verdict, he was unexpectedly transferred to the maximum security Yanamayo prison. He is the only journalist among the inmates, most of whom are serving life sentences. Llosa requested the nullification of the sentence before the Surpeme Court of Peru, which was accepted. On June 30, a new verdict was reached, and Llosa was sentenced to five years. Llosa again requested the sentence be nullified. CPJ did not receive a reply to the letter it sent on December 22, inquiring about Llosa’s legal status.
Pedro Carranza Ugaz, Radio Oriental Imprisoned: November 29, 1993	Carranza, a correspondent with Radio Oriental de Jaén in Cajamarca, was detained on November 29, 1993, and sentenced on November 7, 1994, to 20 years in prison on the charges of being a member of the terrorist group Revolutionary Movement Tupac Amaru (MRTA). He is currently being held in the Picsi prison in Chiclayo. Carranza lived in Moyabamba. In 1997, the Oversight Commission (Comisión de Indultos) is currently reviewing the case. The Oversight Commission was created by the government of Alberto Fujimori to examine cases of those convicted under Peru’s anti-terrorism laws.
Russia (2)	Please send appeals to: President Boris Yeltsin The Russian Federation Moscow, Russia Fax: 011-7-095-224-0366 And also to: President Aslan Maskhadov The Chechen Republic Grozny, Chechen Republic Fax: 011-90-212-257-6817
Krzysztof Galinski, Mac Pariadka and Zycie Marek Kurzyniec, Marscho and Zycie Imprisoned: December 17, 1997	Galinski and Kurzyniec were kidnapped in Chechnya along with three other Polish citizens by unknown assailants while trying to deliver a shipment of food aid. All five undertook the mission on behalf of the National Federation of Anarchists in Poland, of which they are members. Galinski is an editor with the Gdansk-based Mac Pariadka, the country’s largest national anarchist monthly magazine. Kurzyniec edits his own small political bulletin Marscho, also in Gdansk. Although their primary mission was the food aid delivery, both carried press credentials from Zycie, a national daily newspaper in Gdansk. They had agreed to a request from the editor to write free-lance articles about the situation in Chechnya upon their return. The National Federation of Anarchists reported that all five hostages were safe as of mid-January. Rumors that the hostage-takers demanded ransom from Zycie and the anarchists’ group could not be confirmed. The kidnapping is the latest in a long series of abductions of foreign journalists and aid workers in Chechnya, usually for ransom.
South Korea (1)	Please send appeals to: President Kim Dae Jung The Blue House #1 Sejong-no, Chongno-gu Seoul Republic of Korea Fax: 822-770-0253
Richard Choi, Radio Korea Imprisoned: December 19, 1997	Choi, a veteran reporter and the vice president of Radio Korea, a Korean-language radio station in Los Angeles, was arrested at the Koreana Hotel in Seoul and charged with criminal slander and defamation on the basis of a story he broadcast from Seoul to Los Angeles. The brief report, which aired on December 15 in Los Angeles on Radio Korea (KBLA AM-1580), concerned the current economic difficulties of the Korea Times/Hankook Ilbo publishing company and its rumored merger with the Hyundai Corporation. The report was not broadcast in South Korea. According to Jang Hee Lee, the owner of Radio Korea, the report angered the owners of the Korea Times, which brought the defamation suit against Choi that led to his arrest. At the year’s end, Choi was being detained in the Seoul Jail. On January 7, 1998, the South Korean government released Choi on his own recognizance. Choi must still stand trial on charges of criminal slander. He is being prosecuted under a section of the Korean criminal code which allows private companies to file a criminal complaint against persons accused of defaming their reputation. He faces up to five years in jail if convicted.
Sudan (2)	Please send appeals to: His Excellency Lt. General Omar Hassan al-Bashir c/o His Excellency Mahdi Ibrahim Muhammad Embassy of Sudan 2210 Massachusetts Avenue, N.W. Washington, D.C. 20008
Osama Ghandi, Sudanese Television Hassan Saleh, Sudanese Television Imprisoned: February 1996	Television cameraman Osama Ghandi and technician Hassan Saleh of the state-owned Sudanese Television were arrested and accused of being involved in an alleged coup attempt. They were among 10 civilians who went on trial in late August 1996 in an in-camera military court trial, in which most of the defendants were military officers. Ghandi told the court on September 18 that military intelligence agents had coerced his confession by torturing him. CPJ received reports in 1997 that the military court had reached a verdict, although it was not clear whether the two journalists were convicted or if they remained in prison.
Syria (5)	Please send appeals to: His Excellency Hafez al-Assad President of the Syrian Arab Republic Presidential Palace Damascus, Syria Telex: 419160 munjed sy
Faisal Allush Imprisoned: 1985	Allush, a journalist and political writer who has been in jail since 1985, was sentenced in June 1993 to 15 years’ imprisonment for membership in the banned Party for Communist Action. He is reportedly being held in Sednaya Prison.
Anwar Bader, Syrian Radio and Television Imprisoned: December 1986	Bader, a reporter for Syrian Radio and Television who has been in jail since his arrest by the Military Interrogation Branch in December 1986, was convicted in March 1994 of being a member in the Party for Communist Action. He was sentenced to 12 years in prison.
Samir al-Hassan, Fatah al-Intifada Imprisoned: April 1986	Al-Hassan, Palestinian editor of Fatah al-Intifada, who has been in jail since his arrest in April 1986, was convicted in June 1994 of being a member of the Party for Communist Action. He was sentenced to 15 years in prison.
Salama George Kila Imprisoned: March 1992	Kila, a Palestinian writer and journalist, was arrested in March 1992 by Political Security in Damascus. His trial began in the summer of 1993. According to the London-based International PEN, Kila had "reportedly written an article on censorship in Syria for a Jordanian daily paper." The court ruled that he was guilty of a misdemeanor rather than a felony. Since the maximum sentence for a misdemeanor is three years, his release was expected in March 1995. But he remains in prison.
Nizar Nayouf, free-lancer Imprisoned: January 1992	Nayouf, a free-lance journalist who has contributed to Al-Huriyya and Al-Thaqafa al-Ma’arifa, was arrested in January 1992 in Damascus with several human rights activists from the Committees for the Defense of Democratic Freedoms and Human Rights in Syria. In March 1992, he was sentenced by the State Security Court to 10 years in prison for "disseminating false information and receiving money from abroad." He was severely tortured during his interrogation. He remains in solitary confinement in Mezze military prison.
Tunisia (2)	Please send appeals to: M. Zine El Abidine Ben Ali President of the Republic of Tunisia Presidential Palace Tunis, Tunisia Fax: 216 1 744 721
Hamadi Jebali, Al-Fajr Imprisoned: January 1991	Jebali, editor of Al-Fajr, the weekly newspaper of the banned Islamist Al-Nahda party, was sentenced to 16 years in prison by the military court in Bouchoucha on August 28, 1992. He was tried along with 279 others accused of belonging to Al-Nahda. Jebali was convicted of "aggression with the intention of changing the nature of the state" and "membership in an illegal organization." During his testimony, Jebali denied the charges against him and displayed evidence that he had been tortured while in custody. Jebali has been in jail since January 1991, when he was sentenced to one year in prison after Al-Fajr published an article calling for the abolition of military courts in Tunisia. International human rights groups monitoring the mass trial concluded that it fell far below international standards of justice.
Abdellah Zouari, Al-Fajr Imprisoned: February 1991	Zouari, a contributor to Al-Fajr, the weekly newspaper of the banned Islamist Al-Nahda party, was sentenced to 11 years in prison by the military court in Bouchoucha on August 28, 1992. He was tried along with 279 others accused of belonging to Al-Nahda. He has been in jail since February 1991, when he was charged with "association with an unrecognized organization." International human rights groups monitoring the trial concluded that it fell far short of international standards of justice.
Turkey (29) THE CASE OF TURKEY: VERIFYING REPORTS OF IMPRISONED JOURNALISTS
Sinan Yavuz, Yoksul Halkin Gücü Imprisoned: August 9, 1993	CPJ believes that Yavuz, editor of the left-wing weekly Yoksul Halkin Gücü, was arrested during a police raid on an Istanbul fabric shop. Police reportedly had been told that the shop served as a front and arms-trafficking station for Devrimci Sol (Dev Sol), an outlawed leftist organization responsible for numerous armed terrorist operations in Turkey. The charges under which Yavuz was prosecuted show that he was alleged to be a member of Dev Sol, apparently on the basis of his affiliation with Yoksul Halkin Gücü, which the state asserts is the group’s publishing arm. The evidence against Yavuz consisted of unspecified "documents" relating to Dev Sol and two copies of the magazine Kurtulus (a legal, far-left publication), which had allegedly been discovered during a search of the shop. Yavuz was alleged to have resisted arrest after attempting to flee the raid. He had been detained on previous occasions but released for lack of evidence. Yavuz confessed to nothing in police custody, but the prosecution said that other members of Dev Sol who were detained in the same roundup stated that Yavuz was a member of the group. According to court documents, Yavuz waved a Dev Sol banner in the courtroom. He was convicted, sentenced on December 29, 1994, to 12 years and six months in jail, and sent to Canakkale Prison.

Bülent Öner, Atilim Imprisoned: June 15, 1995	CPJ believes Öner is imprisoned for his work as a reporter for Atilim. He was taken into custody during a police raid on the newspaper’s Mersin bureau on June 15, and formally charged with membership in the outlawed Marxist-Leninist Communist Party (MLKP) on June 24. Investigators reportedly found numerous unspecified "documents" linking Öner to the MLKP. Two witnesses testified for the state, which asserted that Atilim was the publication of the MLKP and further accused Öner of writing and distributing unspecified declarations of the group. According to court documents, the prosecutor had stated that banners depicting a "disappeared" political activist were found in Öner’s office. Öner was convicted and sentenced to 12 years and six months in jail; he was sent to Erzurum Prison.
Mesut Bozkurt, Atilim Imprisoned: June 15, 1995	Bozkurt, bureau chief of Atilim’s Iskenderun office, was convicted of membership in the outlawed Marxist-Leninist Communist Party (MLKP), evidently on the basis of his work for the paper. He was arrested during a police raid on Atilim’s offices in June 15, 1995. Court documents reveal that copies of Atilim—described by the prosecution as "bulletins" of the MLKP—comprised the principal evidence in his trial. The prosecution also said that Bozkurt had rented a house in Mersin on behalf of the MLKP, and that police searching the premises found unspecified "illegal documents." It is not clear whether these confiscated documents were introduced as material evidence. Bozkurt was sentenced to 12 years and six months in prison on January 26, 1996, along with Atilim colleagues Fatma Harman, Bulent Öner, and Hasan Abali.
Fatma Harman, Atilim Imprisoned: June 15, 1995	Harman, a reporter for Atilim, was taken into custody during a police raid on the newspaper’s Mersin bureau in June 15, 1995. CPJ believes that her arrest was the result of a crackdown on the publication and that she has been imprisoned for work as a journalist. Harman was formally arrested on June 24, 1995, and sentenced on January 26, 1996, to 12 years and six months in prison under Article 168 of the Penal Code. Atilim’s lawyer reports that she was convicted of membership in the outlawed Marxist-Leninist Communist Party (MLKP) on the argument that Atilim was the publication of that group. The prosecution reportedly offered copies of Atilim found in Harman’s possession as evidence of her affiliation, and said that several unspecified banners were found in the Atilim office. Further, the prosecution said that Harman and Bulent Öner, another Atilim reporter, lived together in a house belonging to the MLKP. Harman is in Adana Prison.
Ibrahim Çiçek, Atilim Imprisoned: March 15, 1996	The use of articles from Atilim as material evidence against Çiçek leads CPJ to believe that he was prosecuted for his work as a journalist. According to court documents, Çiçek, former editor in chief of the leftist weekly Atilim, testified that he was detained on March 15, 1996, on his way to his father’s home, and his wife was detained the following day at their home. Çiçek was charged with membership in an illegal organization, but his lawyer reports that the only evidence against Çiçek was his affiliation with Atilim, which the state asserted was the mouthpiece of the Marxist-Leninist Communist Party (MLKP). According to the Ministry of Justice, Çiçek "was taken into custody in relation to the armed attack carried out by the MLKP illegal leftist organization against government office buildings in the Sultanbeyli district of Istanbul as well as the offices of the MHP political party in the same district around 1 a.m. on March 14, 1996. The incident prompted the decision of the Istanbul State Security Court to detain Mr. Çiçek with his collaborators on March 29, 1996. Currently, he is in Bayrimpasa Prison in Istanbul." Court documents show that Çiçek was charged with being a leader of the MLKP (Article 168/1 of the Penal Code)—specifically, of ordering an armed assault on the offices of an ultra-right-wing party in Istanbul—and of running Atilim. The prosecutor produced as evidence a story that appeared in Atilim’s March 23, 1996, issue, about the assault on the ultra-right-wing party in Istanbul. Two peopke gave statements to authorities which implicated Çicek. According to the defense statement, Çiçek said that he was tortured by police, but made no confession. He was sentenced to a minimum of 15 years in prison.
Nabi Kimran, Iscinin Yolu Imprisoned: September 9, 1996	CPJ believes that Kimran’s prosecution and imprisonment resulted from his work as editor of the leftist weekly Iscinin Yolu, which was subject to repeated government harassment during his tenure. Kimran is currently being held in Sakarya Prison for alleged membership in an outlawed organization under Article 168 of the Penal Code. His lawyer told CPJ that Kimran had also faced charges under Articles 7 (engaging in propaganda for an outlawed organization) and 8 (disseminating separatist propaganda) of the Anti-Terror Law. Staffers from the socialist weekly Atilim said these charges arose from news articles that appeared in Iscinin Yolu during his tenure. The Penal Code violation case was prosecuted but the Anti-Terror Law cases were eventually suspended following the government’s August 14, 1997, amnesty for jailed editors. According to court documents, Kimran was apprehended by police on a bus on September 9, in a police operation in advance of the anniversary of the Marxist-Leninist Communist Party (MLKP). The prosecution claimed that Kimran was a leader of the organization. The charge was based on a statement of an alleged MLP sympathizer, made while in police custody, that Kimran had given instructions to bomb a city bus. Kimran was also caught with a counterfeit I.D., which he admitted having because of his fear of being detained in the course of his journalistic work. The prosecution stated that police searching Kimran’s apartment found documents in his handwriting that demonstrated his affiliation with the MLKP.

Erdal Dogan, Alinteri Imprisoned: July 10, 1995	Dogan, an Ankara reporter for Alinteri, was detained by police on July 10, 1995, and later tried and convicted of membership in the Turkish Revolutionary Communist Union (TIKB) on the basis of his attendance at opposition events in his capacity as a journalist. Court papers indicate that the prosecution argued that Alinteriwas the publication of the TIKB. The case against Dogan was based on the following evidence: 1) A photograph of Dogan, taken at a 1992 May Day parade, allegedly showing him standing underneath a United Revolutionary Trade Union banner; 2) A photograph of Dogan taken on the anniversary of a TIKB militant’s death; 3) A photograph alleged to show Dogan attending an illegal demonstration in Ankara; 4) Statements of an alleged member of the TIKB, who said Dogan belonged to the organization. The defense claimed that the incriminating statement was extracted under torture. Dogan’s lawyer told CPJ that the photograph from the militant’s memorial was blurry, and Dogan testified in court that he had attended the May Day parade as a journalist. He was sentenced to 12 years and six months in prison under Article 168/2 of the Penal Code. and has been confined to Bursa Prison.
Serpil Günes, Alinteri Imprisoned: September 7, 1996	Günes, an editor and owner of Alinteri, was arrested in Izmir when police raided a vacation apartment where she and several of her Alinteri colleagues were staying. She has been in jail since her arrest. The prosecution stated that police found a counterfeit identification card in Günes’ possession, and seized unspecified illegal publications and handwritten documents which purportedly linked her and her colleagues to the Turkish Revolutionary Communist Union (TIKB). Günes was accused of membership in an outlawed organization based on the these allegations, as well as on witness testimony. Günes denied all the accusations. Former Alinteri staffers said Günes was charged and convicted of violating Article 7 of the Anti-Terror Law (propagandizing on behalf of an outlawed organization) and Article 312 of the Penal Code (inciting racial hatred) for articles published in the newspaper during her tenure. She was also charged with membership in the TIKB. Günes’ lawyer told CPJ that there had been about 20 cases against her as editor and owner of Alinteri, all of which were suspended following the August 14, 1997, amnesty for editors. Her lawyer said Günes has been fined nearly one billion TL in her capacity as owner of Alinteri. CPJ sees in these previous convictions a pattern of state harassment against Alinteri for publishing news and dissenting opinion. As a result of the raid, Günes was also charged in a separate indictment with "membership in an outlawed organization" under Article 168 of the Penal Code. Günes’ lawyer characterized her conviction in this case as a "political decision" and said that she received the maximum 15-year sentence because the state considers Alinteri the mouthpiece of the TIKB. Günes is in Usak Prison.
Erhan Il, Devrimci Emek Imprisoned: February 16, 1996	Il is a reporter for the magazine Devrimci Emek, and was editor in chief from 1993 to 1994. Court documents state that Il was arrested and charged under Article 168/2 of the Penal Code with belonging to the Turkish Communist Leninist Labor Party’s (TKEP-L) youth organization. The prosecution also alleged that he rented a house in December 1994 for the TKEP-L, stored weapons for the organization, and possessed a counterfeit I.D. Il’s colleagues at Devrimci Emek told CPJ that he was prosecuted on the basis of articles published in the magazine during his tenure as editor. In response to an inquiry from CPJ, the Ministry of Justice stated that Il was convicted "according to amended Article 8/1 of the Anti-Terror Law [disseminating separatist propaganda], and not according to Article 168 of the Penal Code[.]" He is in Byrampasa Prison.

Hüseyin Solak, Mücadele Imprisoned: October 27, 1993	Solak, the Gaziantep bureau chief of Mücadele, was arrested, charged with membership in the outlawed Dev Sol, and convicted on the strength of statements from people who said they had seen him distributing the magazine. Transcripts of Solak’s trial indicate the prosecution witness also testified that Solak had hung unspecified banners in public, and had served as a lookout while members of Dev Sol threw a Molotov cocktail at a bank in Gaziantep. The prosecution also cited "illegal" documents found after searches of Solak’s home and office. Solak confessed to the charges while in police custody, but recanted in court. Solak was sentenced on November 24, 1994, to 12 years and six months in prison under Article 168/2 of the Penal Code. He is in Cankiri Prison.
Serdar Gelir, Mücadele Imprisoned: April 16, 1994	Gelir, Ankara bureau chief for Mücadele, was detained on April 16, 1994, and arrested 10 days later for being a member of an illegal organization. CPJ believes he has been imprisoned for attending an opposition rally as a reporter and his association with Mücadele. During the trial, the prosecution introduced into evidence a handwritten note—written on a copy of Kurtulus magazine—found in Gelir’s possession, which discussed local elections in Turkey. Excerpts from the document said that "the state has held elections in Kurdistan by force, with the force of 150,000 soldiers. The state has shown that it can hold elections in this region by blood. By disqualifying the representatives of the Kurdish people, by massacring the Kurdish people, that [sic] the state can get the results it wants from the elections…" The prosecution also claimed that Gelir had handwritten a four-page document that discussed revolution, colonialism, and armed struggle. Prosecutors further alleged that Gelir had attended an illegal demonstration and distributed copies of the magazine. This was cited as proof of his membership in Dev Yol, an outlawed organization affiliated with Dev Sol. They said that Gelir had confessed to the accusations in police custody but later recanted. In his defense, Gelir insisted that he was covering the demonstration for Mücadele, and his lawyer added that Gelir had filed a story on the event. Gelir said that he had been detained on April 6 and held for 16 days but was released due to lack of evidence. On April 25, he was arrested again and then charged. Gelir cited the Turkish government’s hostility toward the press, which he said that such groups as RSF and the Press Council have documented. The Ministry of Justice told CPJ that Gelir was tried under Article 168/2 of the Penal Code and Article 5 of the Anti-Terror Law 3713 and sentenced to 15 years imprisonment by the Ankara State Security Court for being a member of an armed, illegal leftist organization (Revolutionary Left/Dev Sol). Court records, however, indicate that he was sentenced to 12 years and six months in Ankara Closed Prison.
Aysel Bölücek, Mücadele Imprisoned: October 11, 1994	Bölücek, a correspondent in Ankara for Mücadele, was arrested at her home and charged under Article 168/2 of the Penal Code, based on information the police had obtained and on a handwritten document allegedly linking her to Dev Sol. She has been in prison since her arrest. Court documents show the state also used as evidence the October 8, 1994, issue of Mücadele, arguing that the weekly was the publication of Dev Sol. The prosecutor claimed that the October 8 issue insulted the security forces and state officials, and praised Dev Sol guerrillas who had been killed in clashes with security forces. The defense argued that it was illegal for the defendant to be tried twice for the same crime. (Earlier in 1994, Bölücek had been acquitted of a charge of membership in Dev Sol for which the primary evidence had been the same handwritten document.) The defense accepted the claim that Bölücek had written the document, but said that she was forced under torture to write it while in police custody. The defense also said that a legal publication could not be used as evidence, and that the individuals who made incriminating statements about Bölücek to the police had done so under torture and subsequently recanted. Bölücek was sentenced to 12 years and six months on December 23, 1994. She is being held in Canakkale Prison.
Burhan Gardas, Mücadele Imprisoned: March 23, 1995	Gardas, the Ankara bureau chief for Mücadele, has been the target of several prosecutions since 1994 relating to his work as a journalist. Court records state that Gardas was detained on January 12, 1994, at his office. During a search of the premises, the police reportedly found four copies of "news bulletins" of the outlawed Dev Sol. The prosecution also said that police found banners with left-wing slogans and photographs of Dev Sol militants who had been killed in clashes with security forces. The prosecution said that when Gardas was taken into custody he shouted anti-state slogans. The prosecution said that Gardas was using Mücadele’s office for Dev Sol activities. He was charged with violating Article 168/2 of the Penal Code. Gardas denied all charges. His attorney argued that the confiscated illegal publications were part of the magazine’s archive, and that Gardas had been tortured while in detention. His lawyer presented a medical report to document the torture. Gardas was released on May 14, 1994, pending the outcome of his trial. While awaiting the verdict, he was arrested again on March 23, 1995, on new charges of violating Article 168/2 of the Penal Code, this time in connection with his activity as Ankara Bureau Chief of Kurtulus (the successor publication to Mücadele). The police raided his office in connection with the later charges and seized three copies of Kurtulus "news bulletins" and six articles from Kurtulus regarding the announcement of some illegal rallies. His second trial was held at the Number 2 State Security Court of Ankara. Court documents reveal that the prosecution’s evidence against Gardas consisted of his refusal to talk during a police interrogation—allegedly a Dev Sol policy—and his possession of publications which the prosecution contended were the mouthpieces of outlawed organizations, including Mücadele and Kurtulus. The state also introduced the statements of Ali Han, who worked at Kurtulus’ Ankara bureau and stated that Gardas was a Dev Sol member. Gardas denied the claim, and his defense argued that his silence during police interrogation was a constitutional right and proved nothing. On July 4, 1995, the Number 1 State Security Court of Ankara sentenced Gardas to 15 years in prison on the Mücadele charges. In 1996, he was sentenced to an additional 15 years on the second set of charges. He has thus been convicted twice of membership in Dev Sol, in each case based on his work as a journalist. Gardas is reportedly serving these sentences successively at Aydin Prison.
Özlem Türk, Mücadele Imprisoned: January 17, 1995	Türk, a reporter for Mücadele in Samsun, was arrested at a relative’s home and charged with being a member of the outlawed Revolutionary People’s Liberation Party-Front, an offshoot of Dev Sol. She has been in prison since her arrest. Court documents state that the prosecution cited as evidence the fact that Türk collected money for Mücadele, as well as a handwritten autobiography allegedly found in the home of a member of the Revolutionary People’s Liberation Party-Front. Two people stated that she was a member of the group. Türk maintained that the money she had collected came from sales of copies of Mücadele. The same court documents reveal that Türk said she was forced to confess to the charges under torture. The only material evidence presented in the case were copies of legal publications—Mücadele, Tavir, and Devrimci Genclik—found at her home, and copies of her alleged autobiography. Police provided expert testimony to authenticate the incriminating document. According to court documents, Türk was sentenced to 15 years in prison. She is in Canakkale Prison.
Necla Can, Kurtulus Imprisoned: April 9, 1995	CPJ believes Can, a reporter for the leftist weekly Kurtulus, was imprisoned for attending an insurgent’s funeral in her capacity as a journalist. Trial documents obtained in December 1997 state that Can was apprehended by police at her home on April 9, 1995, after two people made incriminating statements about her to authorities. They alleged that Can was a member of the Revolutionary People’s Liberation Party-Front (DHKP-C) but later recanted. Can was tried along with 19 other alleged members of the DHKP-C. Can’s lawyer told CPJ that the basis for the charge against her had been her attendance at the funeral of a member of the DHKP-C. In defending Can, her lawyer had said that she had been there as a journalist. The lawyer also said that Can had testified in court to being beaten while in custody. Can was tried along with 19 other alleged members of the DHKP-C. Can was convicted on December 21, 1997, and sentenced to 12 years and six months in prison under Article 168/2 of the Penal Code. She is in Istanbul’s Umraniye Prison.
Özgür Güdenoglu, Mücadele Imprisoned: May 24, 1995	Güdenoglu, Mücadele’s Konya bureau chief, was arrested, charged, and convicted under Article 168 of the Penal Code. He was sentenced to 12 years, 6 months in prison for alleged membership in Dev Sol. CPJ believes his prosecution is related to the state’s well-documented harassment of Mücadele. He is in Konya Prison.
Kamber Inan, Kurtulus Imprisoned: July 11, 1995	CPJ believes Inan has been jailed as part of a campaign of harassment against Kurtulus, for which he was a reporter. Inan was arrested in his home in Istanbul and charged under Article 168/2 of the Penal Code for membership in the Revolutionary People’s Liberation Party-Front (DHKP-C). Court documents obtained from Inan’s lawyer in December 1997 said that he had refused to answer questions during his detention and upon conviction was sentenced to 15 years in prison. He is in Bayrampasa Prison.
Ufuk Dogubay, Kurtulus Imprisoned: July 27, 1995	CPJ believes that the prosecution of Dogubay, a former editor of Kurtulus, was motivated by his work as a journalist and is part of a pattern of harassment against the magazine. Court documents state that Dogubay was arrested and imprisoned on July 27, 1995, and accused of writing a document that indicated that Kurtulus was the publication of the Revolutionary People’s Liberation Party-Front (DHKP-C). He denied the charge, but an expert witness for the prosecution concluded that he had written the document. The prosecution cited statements from two people allegedly incriminating Dogubay, and claimed that Dogubay shouted leftist slogans during his arrest. He was convicted and sentenced to 12 years and six months in prison under Article 168/2 of the Penal Code. The court documents refer to him as a journalist and an engineer. He is in Sagmalcilar Prison.
Sadik Çelik, Kurtulus Imprisoned: December 23, 1995	Although Çelik was detained and formally charged with membership in the outlawed Revolutionary People’s Liberation Party-Front (DHKP-C), the state’s case rested almost exclusively on his activities as a reporter and Zonguldak bureau chief for Kurtulus. Court documents state that Çelik was detained on December 23, 1995. The prosecution asserted that Kurtulus was the publication of the DHKP-C, and that Çelik’s position with the magazine proved he was a member of the group. Çelik was accused of conducting "seminars" for the DHKP-C in the magazine’s office, propagandizing for the organization, transporting copies of the magazine from Istanbul to Zonguldak by bus, and organizing the paper’s distribution in Zonguldak. The prosecution said that Çelik’s name appeared in a document written by a leader of the DHKP-C (it is not clear whether the document was introduced as material evidence). Moreover, the prosecution said Çelik’s refusal to testify in police custody proved his guilt. The defense argued that the prosecution could not substantiate any of its claims. Çelik acknowledged distributing the magazine in his capacity as Kurtulus’ bureau chief. He said that he held meetings in the office to discuss matters pertaining to the magazine. The defense presented the statements of two Kurtulus reporters, corroborating Çelik’s statements. Çelik was sentenced on October 17, 1996, to 12 years and six months in prison. Court documents indicate he was sent to Ankara Closed Prison. He was reportedly released in February 1998.
Asaf Sah, Kurtulus Imprisoned: January 4, 1996	CPJ believes that Sah, an Antakya reporter for Kurtulus, was imprisoned as part of the state’s campaign of harassment against the magazine. Sah was convicted under Article 169 of the Penal Code for aiding an outlawed organization. He was sentenced on April 16, 1996, to three years and nine months in jail and is currently in Nevsehir Prison.
Yazgül Güder Öztürk, Kurtulus Imprisoned: March 31, 1996	CPJ believes Öztürk has been prosecuted as part of the state’s harassment of Kurtulus, for which she was a reporter. Court documents obtained in December 1997 state that Öztürk was detained and imprisoned on March 31, 1996, charged with violating Article 168/2 of the Penal Code for membership in the Revolutionary People’s Liberation Salvation Party-Front (DHKP-C). The prosecution accused her of gathering information for DHKP-C in Gaziantep, near the Syrian border, and Konya, in central Turkey. She was also accused of attending unspecified illegal demonstrations in Istanbul and the funeral in Adana of two members of the DHKP-C who were killed during a robbery in Ankara. According Öztürk’s lawyer, the prosecution additionally claimed that she had coordinated the propaganda activities of the DHKP-C. In her defense, Öztürk cited her work as a journalist and denied all charges. She was convicted of membership in the DHKP-C and is in Bayrampasa Prison.
Ayten Öztürk, Kurtulus Imprisoned: October 13, 1997	Court documents suggest strongly that Öztürk has been imprisoned because she published and edited Kurtulus. In September 1997, Öztürk was already facing charges, under Article 7 of the Anti-Terror Law, of spreading propaganda in the press on behalf of an outlawed organization. Those charges were voided on September 4 by an Istanbul State Security Court in accordance with the government’s August 14 amnesty for editors. On September 19, however, a warrant was issued for her arrest for a violation of Article 168/1 of the Penal Code—a statute not covered by the amnesty. Özturk surrendered to the court on October 13, and thereupon was charged with leading the outlawed Revolutionary People’s Liberation Party-Front (DHKP-C). The main evidence cited at her trial was her publication and distribution of an unspecified "special edition" of Kurtulus. The prosecution also said she had met with two alleged members of the DHKP-C. She was convicted on December 24 and sentenced to 12 years and six months. She is currently in Ankara Closed Prison.

Utku Deniz Sirkeci, Tavir Imprisoned: August 6, 1994	CPJ believes that Sirkeci, the Ankara bureau chief of the leftist cultural magazine Tavir, was imprisoned for attending the funeral of a Dev Sol activist in his capacity as a journalist. He was convicted of membership in Dev Sol and sentenced to 12 years and six months in prison. Court records show the state accused Sirkeci of throwing a Molotov cocktail at a bank in Ankara, but the documents do not stipulate what evidence was introduced to support this charge. It is not clear that a Molotov cocktail was ever thrown. Prosecutors also cited Sirkeci’s attendance at the funeral of a political activist to support the charge that he was a Dev Sol member. Sirkeci maintained he attended the funeral in his capacity as a journalist. During the trial, he provided detailed testimony of his torture at the hands of police, who he alleged coerced him to confess. He is in Ankara Closed Prison.
Baris Yildirim, Tavir Imprisoned: March 21, 1995	CPJ believes that Yildirim, a columnist for the leftist cultural magazine Tavir, was imprisoned for his work as a journalist. He was arrested, charged, and subsequently tried and convicted under Article 168 of the Penal Code for membership in Dev Sol, but interviews with his colleagues in 1996 indicated that his conviction was based largely on the fact that he worked for the magazine. The prosecution stated that Yildirim was arrested in Izmir and tried in the State Security Court for membership in Dev Sol. Informants told the court that Yildirim was a spokesman for the organization, taking part in throwing Molotov cocktails, and hanging banners around Izmir on orders from the organization. The prosecution alleged that he had participated in the occupation of the center-right True Path Party’s Izmir offices. Yildirim was convicted on December 17, 1996, and sentenced to 12 years and six months. He is being held in Buca Prison in Izmir.
Bülent Sümbül, Özgür Halk Imprisoned: April 24, 1995	Sümbül, a reporter in the Diyarbakir bureau of the pro-Kurdish monthly magazine Özgür Halk, was arrested during a police raid on his Diyarbakir office. CPJ believes that the state’s case stemmed from Sümbül’s work as a journalist. Sümbül’s lawyer told CPJ his client had been accused of violating Article 169 of the Penal Code, aiding the outlawed Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK). To establish Sümbül’s guilt, the prosecution relied on photographs of alleged PKK members which they claimed Sümbül delivered to an imprisoned colleague in Diyarbakir Prison. Sümbül’s lawyer responded: "When you take something to the prison, everything is searched. There is no way that he [Sümbül] could have given her the photos of some PKK members. The guards would have found them...inside the stationery. So, he [Sümbül] denies that he had given [the imprisoned colleague] the photos." The prosecution’s statement said that Sumbul was also accused of "being the leader of an organizational cell, taking an active role in an illegal organization, [and] acting as liaison for militants in rural and urban areas." According to this lawyer, the prosecution also produced a written confession, which police coerced him to sign. Sümbül denied the charges. He was convicted and sentenced to three years and nine months. He is in Bismil Prison.
Mehmet Çakar, Partizan Sesi Imprisoned: February 13, 1995	Çakar, Izmir bureau chief of the leftist monthly Partizan Sesi, was arrested and charged with being a member the outlawed Marxist-Leninist Communist Party. According to Çakar’s lawyer, the prosecution had based its case on the fact that Çakar had distributed copies of the magazine. The prosecution also said that Çakar had met with two members of an unspecified outlawed organization—a charge that Çakar denied, according to his attorney. Court documents obtained in December 1997 verified the lawyer’s statements. Çakar’s lawyer told CPJ that his client had been convicted of membership in the Marxist-Leninist Communist Party and sentenced to 12 years and six months in Bursa Prison.

Ismail Besikçi Imprisoned: November 13, 1993	Besikçi, a prominent scholar and author of numerous books and articles on the Kurds in Turkey, was arrested and charged with violating the Anti-Terror Law for an article he wrote in the now-defunct daily Yeni Ülke. He was tried and sentenced to one year in prison. Since this initial conviction, however, Besikçi has been found guilty in other cases for articles he published on the Kurdish question in Özgür Gündem, and for books he has written on the subject. By the end of 1997, he had been sentenced to more than 100 years in prison. He remains in Bursa Prison, with additional charges pending against him.
Hasan Özgün, Özgür Gündem Imprisoned: December 9, 1993	CPJ believes that Özgün’s imprisonment is a result of his work as a journalist and is of a piece with the state’s well-documented harassment of Özgür Gündem. Özgün, Diyarbakir correspondent for Özgür Gündem, was taken into custody during a police raid on the paper’s Diyarbakir bureau and charged under Article 168 of the Penal Code with being a member of the outlawed Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK). He was sentenced to 12 years and five months in prison. Transcripts of Özgün’s trial show that the prosecution based its case on what it described as Özgür Gündem’s pro-PKK slant. The prosecution also used as evidence copies of banned PKK publications (Serkhabun and Berxehun) found in Özgün’s possession, as well as photographs and biographical sketches of PKK members found in the newspaper’s archive. The state further cited Özgün’s possession of an unauthorized handgun as evidence of his membership in the PKK. In his defense, Özgün maintained that the PKK publications were used as sources of information and that the photos of PKK members found in the archive were related to interviews the newspaper had conducted. Özgün admitted to purchasing the gun on the black market, but denied all other charges. The Ministry of Justice replied to CPJ’s request for information saying that "In fact, Mr. Özgün had extensive ties to the PKK terrorist organization. Accordingly, he was convicted of the following charges: being an active member of the PKK terrorist organization; being a courier for the PKK’s mountain team; inciting the public to participate in propaganda activities organized by the PKK; informing the PKK of rich locals who could be targeted for extortion and ransom schemes organized by the organization; supplying food and medicine for the members of the PKK terrorist organization; carrying a gun without a license; providing arms for PKK mountain teams; distributing separatist propaganda material on behalf of the PKK terrorist organization." RSF and International PEN have voiced strong objections to Özgün’s prosecution. RSF reported that on the day after Özgün’s arrest, more than 150 journalists and employees of Özgür Gündem were arrested throughout the country. RSF noted that the accusation against Özgün was based on the discovery in the Özgür Gündem office of petitions signed by detained PKK members. Responding to an RSF letter, the Turkish Embassy in France stated that "Mr. Hasan Özgün, not having the title of journalist, was accused of belonging to the terrorist organization PKK, for having organized activities on behalf of this organization, for publicity and praise of said organization in the paper, for having given the organization the names of wealthy people for levying a compulsory tax for financing PKK, for possession of an illegal weapon, for having smuggled arms to terrorists posted in the mountainous areas of southeastern Anatolia, for having kept in his house and distributed numerous pamphlets and other pro-PKK publicity materials." According to RSF, Özgün told the court that petitions belonging to detained PKK members had been entrusted to him by people close to the prisoners so that he could write an article about their case. Özgün denied ever having been a PKK member and complained that both he and Özgür Gündem were being persecuted. International PEN, in its mid-year 1997 report, concluded that Özgün did not receive a fair trial, noting that he had additionally been accused of arranging medical treatment for PKK guerrillas and having communicated with PKK guerrillas in prison. PEN’s report said that "part of the evidence [was] said to relate to [an] interview with [a] PKK leader published in Özgür Gündem. Defense says the [same] interview was run in other Turkish newspapers without charges being brought." Özgün is currently in Aydin Prison.
Kemal Sahin, Özgür Gündem Imprisoned: November 1995	Sahin, the former editor in chief of Ozgür Gündem, was arrested and charged with membership the outlawed Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK). CPJ believes that his prosecution and imprisonment are part of a campaign of harassment against Özgur Gündem. Sahin had initially been convicted of violating Articles 6, 7, and 8 of the Anti-Terror Law and Article 312 of the Penal Code for articles published in the newspaper during his tenure as editor. Court documents from his trial on the Article 8 charges (disseminating separatist propaganda) show that among the numerous, mostly unspecified articles cited by the prosecution was one that appeared in Özgür Gündem on October 10, 1994, titled "Escape from the Army." Sahin was sentenced to seven years and eight months in prison and fined more than 319 million TL (US$1,595) for the Article 8 conviction. It is unclear whether he was ever imprisoned on these charges, which were subsequently suspended by the government’s August 14 limited amnesty for editors. Additional charges were brought against him under Article 168 of the Penal Code, however, for which he was arrested, charged, and eventually imprisoned. Sahin’s lawyer told CPJ that the new charges against him were based on the testimony of Sahin’s brother, who accused him of being a member of the PKK. It is unclear whether Sahin’s brother had been coerced into giving this testimony. Sahin is being held in Umraniye Prison in Istanbul.
Vietnam (5)	Please send appeals to: His Excellency Le Kha Phieu General Secretary of the Central Committee Communist Party of Vietnam 1 Hoang Van Thu Hanoi, Socialist Republic of Vietnam
Doan Viet Hoat, *Dien Dan Tu Do* Imprisoned: November 17, 1990	Public security police arrested Hoat, editor and publisher of the pro-democracy newsletter Dien Dan Tu Do (Freedom Forum). The Ho Chi Minh City People’s Court sentenced him in late March 1993 to 20 years of hard labor for his involvement with the newsletter. He is currently serving out his sentence, commuted to 15 years on appeal, in Thanh Cam Prison. Located in northern Vietnam, near the Laotian border, Thanh Cam is normally reserved for serious criminal offenders. Hoat suffers from kidney stones, a condition that developed during his previous 12-year incarceration by the Hanoi regime. In November 1997, the World Association of Newspapers awarded its Golden Pen of Freedom for press freedom to Doan Viet Hoat for his "extraordinary courage" in the fight for press freedom in Vietnam.
Nguyen Van Thuan (Chau Son), Dien Dan Tu Do Imprisoned: Late 1990	Thuan, whose pen name is Chau Son, was arrested in the fall of 1990 and in March 1993 was sentenced to 12 years in prison for his involvement with the pro-democracy newsletter Dien Dan Tu Do (Freedom Forum). His sentence was reduced on appeal to eight years. Thuan suffered a stroke on February 25, 1994, that left him partially paralyzed. He is reportedly being held in a re-education camp where he is not forced to carry out labor, although the lack of medical facilities raises concerns for his health.
Le Duc Vuong, Dien Dan Tu Do Imprisoned: Late 1990	Vuong was arrested in the fall of 1990 and sentenced in late March 1993 to seven years in prison for his involvement with the pro-democracy newsletter Dien Dan Tu Do (Freedom Forum). CPJ believes Vuong is incarcerated at Xuan Phuoc labor camp.
Nguyen Dan Que Sentenced: November 1991	Que was convicted of compiling and distributing subversive literature and sentenced to 20 years in prison. Before he was imprisoned, he had distributed political handbills and sent documents abroad. Que, who suffers from hypertension and a bleeding gastric ulcer, is imprisoned at the Xuyen Moc labor camp in Dong Nai Province.
Nguyen Hoang Linh, *Doang Nghiep* Arrested: October 8, 1997	Hoang Linh, editor of the state-run business newspaper Doang Nghiep, was arrested on charges of revealing state secrets. The charges were linked to articles he wrote that explored questionable practices of Vietnam’s General Customs Department in the purchase of coastal patrol boats. Local journalists said the arrest was interpreted as a warning to reporters to stay away from stories about government corruption. The arrest followed restrictions imposed earlier in the year concerning financial and banking information. The government also barred Vietnamese journalists from giving information to their foreign counterparts without first obtaining state permission.
Zambia (1)	Please send appeals to: His Excellency Frederick Chiluba President of the Republic of Zambia State House Independent Avenue Lusaka, Zambia Fax: 260-1-221-939
Fredrick Mwanza Imprisoned: November 14, 1997	Mwanza, a writer and journalist, was detained under the Preservation of Public Security Act of 1960, accused of involvement with a failed coup attempt on October 28. He appeared in court on November 26, but was not charged. Mwanza then applied for a writ of habeas corpus, challenging the government to show cause why he could not be released. At a hearing on December 2, the government responded by serving Mwanza with a presidential detention order, which allows the police to hold the journalist indefinitely under the state of emergency currently in force. Mwanza has denied all allegations that he was present at a meeting finalizing the coup plot against President Frederick Chiluba’s government. The journalist has been questioned in prison about several articles critical of government policies. His lawyer, Patrick Mvunga, has stated that Mwanza was tortured during interrogation and has been denied access to his family.

China (5) Fan Jianping, Jin Naiyi, Beijing Ribao Imprisoned: 1989 Li Jian, Wenyi Bao Imprisoned: July 1989 Yang Hong, Zhongguo Qingnian Bao Imprisoned: June 13, 1989 Yu Zhongmin, Fazhi Yuekan Imprisoned: 1989 Shang Ziwen, Sun Liyong Arrested: 1991 Democratic Republic of Congo (formerly Zaire) (4) Mukalayi Mulongo, OZRT-Shaba Kabemba wa Yulu, OZRT-Shaba Imprisoned: May 19, 1995 Jean Muadianvita, free-lancer Imprisoned: January 23, 1997 Nepa Bagili Mutita, La Voix de L’Islam Imprisoned: February 11, 1997 Ethiopia (3) Melese, Kayete Imprisoned: September 3, 1997 Andualem Mohammed, Tame Feker Imprisoned: September 3, 1997 Getachew Teffera, Agere Imprisoned: September 3, 1997 Guinea (2) Ousmane Camara, L’Oeil Imprisoned: August 1, 1997 Foday Fofana, L’Independant Imprisoned: October 13, 1997 Nigeria (1) Babatunji Wusu, TheNews Imprisoned: September 17, 1997 Sierra Leone (1) Suliman Janger, New Tablet Imprisoned: July 28, 1997 Turkey (13) Bektas Cansever, Devrimci Çözüm Imprisoned: December 26, 1993 Kemal Topalak, Devrimci Çözüm Imprisoned: December 26, 1993 Ibrahim Özen, Devrimci Çözüm Imprisoned: December 28, 1993 Hanim Harman, Mücadele Imprisoned: January 19, 1994 Nuray Gezici, Yoksul Halkin Gücü Imprisoned: April 16, 1994 Mustafa Çoskun, Partizan Sesi Imprisoned: May 25, 1994 Released: October 25, 1994 [?] Ali Sinan Çaglar, Mücadele Imprisoned: August 6, 1994 Bülent Ecevit Özdemir, Kurtulus Imprisoned: December 7, 1995 Released: October 1997 [?] Semiha Topal, Kurtulus Imprisoned: December 12, 1995 Tekin Aygün, Kurtulus Imprisoned: 1996 [?] Released: ? Özgür Öktem, Devrimci Emek Imprisoned: February 19, 1996 Aysel Sarica, Demokratik Universite Bulteni Imprisoned: September 7, 1996 Özden Özbay, Özgür Ülke Imprisoned: November 1996 Released: 1997 [?] Zambia (1) Gerard Gatare, Rwandan National Television Imprisoned: October 10, 1995

Algeria (2)