While high-ranking Arab officials are not held accountable for misinforming or misleading the public, critical journalists in their respective countries are increasingly dragged into courts and handed harsh jail sentences following unfair trials for “spreading false news.”
The author of one of the most recent pieces of
official misinformation is Moroccan Minister of Communication Khalid Naciri. In
a statement to the independent daily Akhbar
al-Youm al-Maghrebia, earlier this month he claimed that the draconian
restrictions recently imposed on Arab and foreign TV reporting in the
He added that
All TV networks, “whether Arab or foreign, are
now required to obtain authorization from the Ministry of Communication if
they want to do TV reporting or any televised press assignment outside the
capital, Rabat,” Naciri declared.
Arab TV journalists based in Western capitals or
traveling on assignment in different parts of the world told CPJ that they are
not required to apply for authorization in addition to their accreditation to
cover events outside
“Regulating and supervising TV reporting by the
authorities is an ordinary measure taken in all advanced countries and
In March, CPJ
wrote to King Mohammed VI to express disappointment over the “government’s
continued use of the courts to suppress freedom of expression” and to ask him
to instruct authorities to end “the practice of withholding accreditation from
journalists,” including two working for Al-Jazeera.
Naciri took precaution to mention that the Saudi
satellite Al-Arabiya TV and the U.S.-government-backed Al-Hurra TV are also
required to abide by what he euphemistically called this “ordinary measure.” But
neither of these networks has given the Moroccan authorities as much of a
headache as Al-Jazeera. The Qatari-backed, most influential Arabic media outlet
is currently facing the same drastic restriction on its ability to cover events
outside the Egyptian and Iranian capitals, journalists told CPJ.
“This is a senseless decision aimed at
intensifying the siege on freedom of expression," said Taoufik Bouachrine, editor of Akhbar al-Youm al-Maghrebia and one of the most harassed journalists in Morocco. "They seem afraid of seeing the
social protests which occur far from
Many Arab journalists told CPJ that they regret
that Morocco—which spurred more hope than any other Arab country among human
rights and democracy advocates on the eve of King Mohammed VI’s ascension to
power in 1999—seems to be increasingly inclined to turn its back on
international standards for freedom of expression and to abide
by the notorious 2008 Arab League’s Principles for Organizing Satellite and
TV Broadcasting.
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With 2/3 of Morocco's population either uninterested in print journalism at best,or illiterate at worse, press freedom or freedom of expression concerns merely a handful of journalists and even fewer newspapers and magazines!
As such, CPJ's commentaires are wild goose chases. Instead of focusing on the press, perhaps donating annually to help erradicate illiteracy
Is a more noble objective with guaranteed gréât results in a couple générations. Only then, Will moroccans be apt to debate onindividual liberties
Al jazéera n'est pas l'équivalent de la liberté, c'est une chaine commerciale comme les autres (sport 2010).
Avant la liberté d'expression il faut la confiance en soi, la motivation, la stabilisation,l'objectitivité, la responsabilisation...
Le Marocain a des références et caractéristiques, essayer de les banaliser est une erreur.