(..) On World Press Freedom Day, the Committee to Protect Journalists is highlighting 10 emblematic cases of journalists in prison, silenced by authorities in retaliation for their work. CPJ is calling on authorities to release these journalists, as well as all others being held in relation to their work.
(..) CPJ research has documented a rise in the jailing of journalists since 2000, a year before the September 11 terrorist attacks on the United States fueled the global expansion of anti-terrorism and national security laws. Governments have exploited these laws to silence critical journalists covering sensitive issues such as insurgencies, political opposition, and ethnic minorities. Of the 211 journalists in jail at the time of CPJ’s most recent prison census, 124, or 60 percent, were jailed on anti-state charges—far more than jailed on any other type of charge.
CPJ believes that no journalist should be imprisoned for doing their job. You, too, can add your voice. Join with CPJ in calling on authorities in repressive countries to #FreeThePress and release all journalists held for no other crime than covering issues in the public interest.
Ahmed Humaidan, Bahrain
Affiliation: Freelance
Prison term: 10 years
Charges: Retaliatory
Held at: Jaw Central Prison
In late March, a Bahraini court sentenced Ahmed Humaidan to 10 years in jail. The award-winning freelance photographer, who was convicted on charges of participating in an attack on a police station, has been imprisoned since December 2012. His family said authorities sought his arrest for months and raided his home five times in an attempt to arrest him. But Humaidan, whose images have exposed police attacks on protesters during demonstrations, was at the police station simply to document the attack, according to local human rights groups. CPJ and other rights organizations believe his arrest is part of a larger campaign by Bahraini authorities to censor independent and dissident voices in the country.
Key fact: A third of journalists jailed around the world are freelancers.
Key work: Many of Humaidan’s photographs are on his Instagram page.
Take action:
- Use the hashtags #FreeThePress, #FreeHumaidan.
- Call on the Bahraini Ministry of Interior, the Minister of Foreign Affairs, the Minister of State for Information Affairs, or the Media Adviser to King Hamad bin Isa Al Khalifa to free Humaidan.
- Tweet a message of support to Free Ahmed Humaidan.
- Watch a video of protests calling for Humaidan’s release.
Please read the full CPJ report on https://www.cpj.org/reports/2014/04/ten-journalists-to-free-from-prison.php