The now infamous incident of
Iraqi journalist Muntadhar al-Zaidi throwing his shoes at President George Bush
became primetime news throughout the world. In the
A previous entry on the CPJ blog stated that the incident is not a press freedom case, but expressed concern regarding the reported--though unconfirmed--mistreatment of al-Zaidi after he was detained.
As expected, many government
officials, state-owned news agencies, and government-aligned organizations in
the
One can't help but wonder why similar statements of solidarity are rarely issued when local journalists are harassed, imprisoned, or worse.
For instance, press freedom
advocates in
Aisha al-Qaddafi, daughter of Libyan leader Muammar al-Qaddafi, announced on Monday that a government-aligned charitable organization which she directs will present a "Medal of Bravery" to al-Zaidi. "It was a means for journalist al-Zaidi to say 'No! No to violations of human rights,' " said a statement released by her organization.
On June 2, 2005, the body of freelance journalist Daif
al-Ghazal al-Shuhaibi was found in Benghazi, about 620 miles east of
In
In
In just the last week, the
Tunisian, Saudi Arabian, and Syrian governments prevented journalists,
bloggers, and human rights activists from their respective countries from
traveling to
Governments in the region might look homeward when considering the rights of journalists.
UPDATE: Paragraph seven has been updated to include a reported conviction in the death of Daif al-Ghazal al-Shuhaibi, and that human rights groups remain skeptical as to whether justice has been served in the case.
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An Iraqi journalist decided that he was none too happy with Bush's performance, and set himself on making a statement of protest by throwing his shoes at the President. In America, we'd think a person was nuts for doing this, but in Muslim culture throwing your shoes at a person is the greatest of insults. The name of the journalist is Muntadhar al-Zeidi, and as he hurled his footwear he said, "This is your farewell kiss, you dog!" The statue of Saddam that was toppled a few years ago had numerous shoes thrown at it, to give you an inkling of how serious they take the insult. Bush dodged both loafers, and laughed it off as a "sign of a free society," like financial options like payday loans are. The man was promptly subdued and jailed. Many people across the Muslim world praised the man for his actions, as President Bush's image is not a very popular one in the Middle East. The shoes are currently being held as evidence, and the man awaits trial as he could receive up to two years for the offense.
Sign of a free society?
It looks like al-Zaidi was subjected to a brutal beating, and possibly torture immediately after throwing the shoes. He has since issued apologies and implicated himself as a terrorist in what he alledges were forced confessions. He now faces 5-15 years imprisonment for insulting a foreign head of state.
Free society?
I think not.
he is a brave man. see alzaidi.org for more information. hope you like it .